"A Blow For Me, A Toot To You" - Fred Wesley (tb, voc); Maceo Parker (ts); Michael Brecker (sax); Randy Brecker (tp, flh); Bootsy Collins (g,b, dr); Garry Shider (g); Rick Gardner (tp); Bernie Worrell (keyb); Frank "Kash" Waddy, Jerome Brailey (dr); a.o. Thanks to their first-class training in funk and soul while playing in James Brown’s Band, Fred Wesley and Maceo Parker were the obvious choice when it came to participating in George Clinton’s P-Funk empire – the Godfather of Soul had had an enormous influence on Clinton anyway. In 1977, Clinton and Bootsy Collins produced "A Blow For Me, A Toot For You", the début album by Fred Wesley & the Horny Horns – an ensemble with Wesley on the trombone, Parker on the tenor and alto saxophone, as well as Rick Gardner and Richard 'Kush' Griffith on the trumpet. The majority of the numbers are by Clinton and Collins, so it is not really surprising that much of the LP is pure P-Funk. The album begins rather gloomily with a remake of Parliament’s "Up For The Down Stroke", and the influence of Parliament is also unmistakable in the other numbers. With regard to the instrumental numbers, "Four Play" fuses funk and jazz, while Wesley’s atmospheric "Peace Fugue" reflects the CTI sound of the 1970s. Actually "Peace Fugue" is the work which least sounds like Clinton on this LP. "A Blow For Me, A Toot For You" scarcely ranks behind Parliament’s "Mothership Connection" or Funkadelic’s "One Nation Under A Groove" and is certainly more than just a recommendable LP, which every funk lover should get to know. This Speakers Corner LP was remastered using pure analogue components only, from the master tapes through to the cutting head. All royalties and mechanical rights have been paid. Recording: 1977 at United Sound Systems, Detroit, by Jim Vitti and Hollywood Sound Recorders, Los Angeles, by Jim Callon Production: George Clinton and Bootsy Collins
Erstklassig in der Band von James Brown in Funk und Soul ausgebildet waren Fred Wesley und Maceo Parker erste Wahl, um in George Clintons P-Funk-Imperium mitzuwirken - der Godfather of Soul hatte ohnehin großen Einfluss auf Clinton. 1977 produzierten Clinton und Bootsy Collins A Blow For Me, A Toot For You, das Debütalbum von Fred Wesley & the Horny Horns - eine Gruppe mit Wesley an der Posaune, Parker am Tenor- und Altsaxophon sowie Rick Gardner und Richard "Kush" Griffith an der Trompete. Ein Großteil der Kompositionen stammen von Clinton und Collins und so ist es wenig überraschend, dass der Großteil dieser LP reiner P-Funk ist. Das Album beginnt düster mit einem Remake von Parliament's Up for the Down Stroke, und der Parliament-Einfluss ist auch in den anderen Stücken unverkennbar. Was die Instrumentalstücke betrifft, so mischt Four Play Funk und Jazz, während Wesleys stimmungsvolles Peace Fugue den CTI-Sound der 1970er Jahre nachzeichnet. Tatsächlich ist Peace Fugue das am wenigsten nach Clinton klingende Stück auf der LP. A Blow For Me, A Toot For You steht Parliament's Mothership Connection oder Funkadelic's One Nation Under A Groove kaum nach und ist eine mehr als nur empfehlenswerte LP, die jeder Funk-Liebhaber kennen sollte.
