Thermonuclear Sweat

Thermonuclear Sweat is an album by the American jazz group Defunkt.[2][3] It was released in 1982 via Hannibal Records.[4][5] The group broke up after the release of the album, reforming in 1986.[6]

Thermonuclear Sweat
Studio album by
Released1982
GenreJazz, funk, punk[1]
LabelHannibal Records
ProducerJoe Boyd
Defunkt chronology
The Razor's Edge
(1981)
Thermonuclear Sweat
(1982)
In America
(1988)

Production

The album was produced by Joe Boyd.[7][8] Aside from the leader and trombonist Joseph Bowie, the guitar player Kelvyn Bell was the only other member who had played on the debut.[9] Vernon Reid played guitar on six of the album's tracks.[10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[11]
Robert ChristgauB+[12]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[4]
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide[10]

The Washington Post wrote: "As a dance band, Defunkt is best at break-neck rhythms—'Illusion', the tongue-in- cheek, feet-firmly-in-the-groove 'Avoid the Funk', and the boppish escapade and tribute to Charlie Parker, 'Big Bird (Au Private)' on which the band's jazz roots are well displayed."[1] Trouser Press called the album "sweeter-sounding and jazzier" than the group's debut.[7]

Robert Christgau lamented that the group's cover of "For the Love of Money" "sounds like slumming, especially from a guy who couldn't outsing Kenny Gamble in the shower."[12] The New York Times thought that "when this band plays funk, it plays hard, dance-floor funk, with a cavalier disregard for the pop sweetening most funk bands add to their records in order to get radio play and hits."[9]

Reviewing the reissue that paired Thermonuclear Sweat with the debut, The Independent called the albums "groundbreaking" and among the 1980s' "alternative essentials."[6]

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Illusion"5:33
2."I Tried to Live Alone"5:08
3."Cocktail Hour (Blue Bossa)"3:26
4."Ooh Baby"6:05
5."Avoid the Funk"4:26
6."Big Bird (Au Private)"2:07
7."For the Love of Money"5:54
8."Believing in Love"7:14

References

  1. "The Defunkt Power Trip". The Washington Post. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  2. "Defunkt | Biography & History". AllMusic.
  3. Vincent, Rickey (November 4, 2014). Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of The One. St. Martin's Publishing Group. ISBN 9781466884526 via Google Books.
  4. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 2. MUZE. pp. 828–829.
  5. Thompson, Dave (August 7, 2001). Funk. Hal Leonard Corporation. ISBN 9780879306298 via Google Books.
  6. "Cult Classics". The Independent. Books. 30 Nov 2007. p. 12.
  7. "Defunkt". Trouser Press. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  8. The Encyclopedia of Record Producers. Billboard Books. 1999. p. 84.
  9. Palmer, Robert (22 Sep 1982). "THE POP LIFE". The New York Times. p. C21.
  10. MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 159.
  11. "Thermonuclear Sweat - Defunkt | Songs, Reviews, Credits | AllMusic" via www.allmusic.com.
  12. "Robert Christgau: CG: Defunkt". www.robertchristgau.com.
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