SLAVE by DJ Flash Gordon Parks
May 24, 2010 by FGP
Filed under DJ Flash Gordon Parks, Mixes, PUM.Radio
SLAVE is yet another stellar FUNK Band out of Ohio. Gaining popularity in the late 70s with jams like “Slide” and “Just A Touch Of Love” thanks to the signature bass licks of Mark “Drac” Hicks. Steve Arrington’s vocals were simply amazing with the combination of funky rhythms and sharp horn stabs. DJ Flash Gordon Parks does what he does best by exploring the catalogue of one of FUNK’s greatest treasures. Enjoy!
Slave Tracklisting
1. Stellar Fungk
2. Funken Town
3. Steppin Out
4. I’ll Be Gone
5. Funky Lady (Foxy Lady)
6. Snap Shot
7. Just A Touch
8. Watching You
9. Slide
10. Son Of Slide
11. Spice of Life (Oh Yes, You’re The Best)
12. The Word Is Out
13. Can’t Get Enough Of You
14. Turn You Out (In & Out)
15. Nobody Can Be You (Steve Arrington)
16. E.Z. Lovin’ You
17. Stay In My Life
Arguably the hottest of the ’70s Ohio funk bands, Slave had a great run in the late ’70s and early ’80s. Trumpeter Steve Washington formed the group in Dayton in 1975. Vocalist Floyd Miller teamed with Tom Lockett Jr, Charlie Bradley, Mark Adams, Mark Hicks, Danny Webster, Orion Wilhoite, and Tim Dozier. Vocalists Steve Arrington and Starleana Young came aboard in 1978, with Arrington ultimately becoming lead vocalist. Their first big hit was the thumping single “Slide” in 1977 for Cotillion, where they remained until 1984. Their best tracks were lyrically simple and at times silly, but the arrangements and rhythms were intense and hypnotic. Other Top Ten R&B hits were “Just a Touch of Love” in 1979, “Watching You” in 1980, and “Snap Shot” in 1981. Young, Washington, and Lockett departed to form Aurra in 1979. Arrington himself left in the early ’80s. They added Charles Carter, Delburt Taylor, Sam Carter, Kevin Johnson, and Roger Parker as replacements and continued on, though much less successfully, into the late ’80s. They moved to Atlantic for one LP in 1984, then switched to the Atlanta-based Ichiban in 1986 for singles and LPs that were just a shade of the former vibrant Slave sound. Their most recent release was The Funk Strikes Back in 1992. Rhino issued Stellar Funk: The Best of Slave, a first-rate anthology of their finest cuts, in 1994.