A TASTE OF HONEY-A TASTE OF HONEY.

dereksmusicblog ♦ November 6, 2011 ♦ Leave a comment

A TASTE OF HONEY-A TASTE OF HONEY.

Not long ago, I was listening to a number of compilations of disco classics released by Harmless Records. Between 2010 and 2011 they released a total of twelve compilations of disco tracks. This was the perfect opportunity to reacquaint myself with some of the music I’d grown up listening to. On the albums were a number of well known and some less well known tracks. One of the many tracks that I knew were A Taste of Honey’s huge hit single Boogie Oogie Oogie, one of the most infectiously catchy songs you’ll ever hear. It was on the excellent compilation Disco Discharge-Disco Ladies, which features twenty-one 12 inch singles over two discs. A few weeks later, I was looking for a couple of albums that I wanted when I noticed that A Taste of Honey’s debut album A Taste of Honey had been remastered and rereleased. Back in 1978 when the album was released, I never bought the album, but decided to take the plunge and buy it. Would the rest of the album be as good as the hook-laden Boogie Oogie Oogie?

When I received the album and started reading the credits, I noticed that Fonce and Larry Mizell had produced the album for Sky High Productions. That was a good omen, as the Mizell brothers had produced many big names. Their previous work included Donald Byrd, The Jackson 5, Bobbi Humphrey, The Blackbyrds and Johnnie Hammond. They’d produced albums for some of the biggest labels in music, Blue Note, Motown, Epic and Prestige. Looking again at the album credits I noticed Wade Marcus had arranged the strings on the album. He’d previously produced Stevie Wonder, Gary Bartz, Donald Byrd and The Emotions. Clearly, an experienced production team had been assembled for A Taste of Honey’s debut album.

Although A Taste of Honey had been formed in 1971 by co-vocalist and bassist Janice-Marie Johnson, Carlita Dorhan co-vocalist, Perry Kibble keyboards and drummer Donald Ray Johnson. Over the next few years, the line-up changed a few times, with Gregory Walker joining as lead vocalist. Unfortunately, he decided to leave just before Boogie Oogie Oogie was released. After honing their sound for six years, the group were signed by Capitol Records. It was in a club that the Mizell brothers spotted the group, and convinced Capitol to audition them. This they did, with the group signing a five album contract. When it came to recording their debut album Taste of Honey, the Mizell brothers were chosen to produce it.

Taste of Honey was released in 1978 and featured the huge hit Boogie Oogie Oogie. It had reached number one in the US Billboard 100, the US R&B Charts and the US Dance Charts. This was almost unheard of in the US, reaching number one in the three major charts. Meanwhile, the single was a huge hit in the UK in 1978, reaching number three. Part of the success of the single was it had crossover appeal, attracting a wide range of record buyers. The success of Boogie Oogie Oogie must have helped sales of the album Taste of Honey. it reached number six in the US Billboard 200 and number two in the US R&B Charts. This was the group’s most successful studio album.

Another Taste released in 1979 failed to match the success of their debut album, reaching just fifty-nine in the US Billboard 200 and twenty-six in the US R&B Charts. Their third album Twice As Sweet, released in 1980, did much better, reaching number thirty-six in the US Billboard 200 and twelve in the US R&B Charts. It featured the single Sukiyaki which reached number three in the US Billboard 100 and number one in the US R&B Charts. Their final album Ladies of the Eighties saw their popularity slip again reaching number seventy-three in the US Billboard 200 and fourteen in the US R&B Charts. It seemed that they couldn’t quite replicate the success of Boogie Oogie Oogie and their debut album A Taste of Honey, which I’ll now tell you about.

A Taste of Honey opens with Boogie Oogie Oogie a bona fida disco classic with the most uplifting introduction you’ll ever hear. It’s all there a quick, funky, buzzing bass, chiming, shimmery, guitars, bouncy drums, percussion and keyboards combining before the sweetest of vocals enters. After that, it’s just a joyous five and a half minutes of music. The Mizell brothers arrangement heads of into a funky workout with one of the best bass lines you’ll hear outside a Chic track. Occasional screaming guitars, handclaps, sweet backing vocals, the funkiest of rhythm sections and keyboards to produce a classic disco track, laden with hooks and the most joyous sound. Even thirty-three years later, it’s timeless classic of the disco genre.

This Love of Ours is the polar opposite of the previous track. It’s a lush sounding love song, full of swirling strings that are responsible for a somewhat dramatic sound. This track allows the group to demonstrate that they’re far from one trick ponies, just able to produce disco classics. Drums, dramatic, swirling strings and a slow bass combine before Hazel Payne’s lead vocal enters. It too, is slow, but thoughtful and emotive. From there on, both the arrangement and vocal just get better, with chiming guitars joining the arrangement as the sweet vocal becomes full of emotion and heartache. In the background, the strings are at the heart of the arrangement, as drums inject bursts of drama, while guitars chime, combining perfectly with the strings. Although very different from the opening track, it’s a very beautiful song thanks to the vocal and arrangement.

As Distant opens, a dirty, funky bass combines with flourishes of piano, and drums creating a dramatic, funky introduction which promises much, but does can it deliver. A burst of guitar signals the arrival of the vocals. They’re subtle, lush even, and are accompanied by sweeping strings and the still funk influenced combination of rhythm section, percussion and guitars. The arrangement meanders along, with strings at it’s heart, while the vocal drops in and out of the mix. Occasionally, a funky laden breakdown occurs, but quickly, things return to a much more understated sound. Later, the vocal becomes stronger, becoming a cross between a snarl and roar. Towards the end of the track, the quality of sound isn’t the best, becoming fuzzy. That sounds like a problem with the remastering. Did the track deliver? It did, although what sounded like a delicious slice of funk, ended up just to  have a drizzle of funk, in among the sweeping, lush sounding music.

When World Spin begins, it’s a bold sound that eventually unveils itself, with the rhythm section punchy, guitars chiming and strings swirling and sweeping dramatically while a considered, almost deliberate vocal sits atop the arrangement. It’s quickly apparent that the Mizell brothers have gone for a big production here, with the sound much fuller, impressive and with an almost grandiose drama. By comparison, the vocal is slightly weak, compared to the previous track and the quality of the arrangement. Part of the problems seems the style of vocal, which is quite deliberate. Midway through the track, the style changes, with a funky breakdown, giving way to some jazz influenced chiming guitars. Later, the vocal improves, and is much better. However, like the previous track, the sound quality sounds blurred and jumpy towards the end of the track. Definitely a remastering problem. Overall, the arrangement is excellent as you’d expect from the Mizell brothers, with the vocal improving as the track progresses. 

The third single released from the album was Disco Dancin’ which only released number sixty-nine in the US R&B Charts. Listening to the track, that seems fair. Straight away, it’s obvious that this track lacks the quality of the previous ones. This is the case with the lyrics. They’re slightly stilted, wooden even, and there’s an awkwardness about the arrangement. It sounds like a funk based track trying to dress up as a disco track, and doesn’t work. This is a pity, because the standard of playing on the track is excellent, it’s just musicians can only play what they’re told to play. When the track opens, a hugely funky bass and excitable vocal combine, before the rhythm section, keyboards and guitars combine with the vocal. After that,  the hugely repetitive, rather poor lyrics are sung against a backdrop of funk influenced rhythm section, guitars and a proliferation of keyboards and synths that don’t gel well, sounding awkward. Without wanting to sound repetitive, the sound quality isn’t great at the end of the track, again, becoming fuzzy. Overall, a disappointing track.

Hopefully, You will make up for the previous poor track. When it opens with a funk influenced introduction that gives way to a track that has Chic as its influence. However, A Taste of Honey don’t have Niles and Bernard. It’s not a bad song, but it’s not one of their best either. After the combination of rhythm section, keyboards and guitars gives way to the vocal which is delivered in short, sharp bursts, against a backdrop that’s drenched in funk thanks to the reliance on the rhythm section and guitars. Occasionally, the vocal sounds sweeter, with almost a lush sound, but returns to its previous style. What the group appear to be trying to achieve is a funk based track that can masquerade as a disco track. It doesn’t quite work, even when the keyboards play a bigger part and the arrangement starts to open up. Although better than the previous track, it isn’t as good as the opening four tracks. This makes me think of the Odyssey album I reviewed recently, when side one was far better than side two. History does have a tendency of repeating itself, is a very true statement.

If We Loved is a slower ballad, with swirling, dramatic strings, piano, keyboards and rhythm section combining with chiming guitars as backing vocals enter. They give way to Hazel Payne’s lead vocal which is slow, emotion and passionate as she sings about, being in love and how she could make her lover happy. Backing vocalists sing tight harmonies, subtly, while the slow arrangement meanders along with the rhythm section keeping the tempo slow. Guitars chime, while a saxophone solo soars above the arrangement and strings sweep gently in. This is a much better song, with the vocal perfect for the lyrics and the lovely slow, sometimes dramatic, arrangement. Maybe a couple of slower songs would’ve been preferable to a couple of the faux disco tracks.

Following on from the lovely If We Loved is another slower track, Sky High, which has a spacious arrangement, with strings playing an important part in the arrangement. Hazel Payne sings the lead vocal, her voice perfect for this type of track. When the track opens, chiming guitars and dramatic swirling strings give way to Hazel’s lovely sweet vocal. The rhythm section, percussion and sweeping strings combine with the chiming guitars, providing a backdrop for Hazel’s vocal. During the track, subtle changes in tempo and short, sharp bursts of drama from the drums and strings add variety, while the chiming guitars and strings combine beautifully with the vocal. It seems that like the previous track, Sky High sees a return to form for A Taste of Honey. This is thanks to a gorgeous vocal and equally beautiful arrangement from the Mizell brothers.

A Taste of Honey closes with Your In Good Hands which was the second single from the album, which failed to chart. This is a pity as it’s a lovely slow track, with flourishes of drama and another quality vocal from Hazel. It’s chiming guitars and swirling strings that opens the track before Hazel’s slow, emotive and passionate vocal enters. The track has an old fashioned arrangement that features sweeping and swirling strings, chiming shimmering, guitars and tight backing vocals, set against a slow arrangement which features a slow rhythm section, piano and guitars. During the track the lushest of strings feature as does an excellent piano solo. Together with one of the best vocals on the album, this is the perfect way to end the album, with one of the best tracks.

Before I bought the recently remastered copy of A Taste of Honey, I’d only heard a few tracks by the group. Obviously, I was aware of the disco classic Boogie Ooogie Oogie and a few other tracks, but I didn’t really know what to expect. After the first five tracks, I was pleasantly surprised, having enjoyed each track with was of a high standard. Then when I heard Disco Dancin’ and You, I wondered if it was all downhill from here after two pretty poor tracks. Thankfully, the final three tracks made up for these two tracks. Bringing the Mizell brothers onboard to produce the album was a masterstroke. Their experience in production lead to to a really polished sound on the album, with their arrangements of the highest quality. A less experienced producer might not have achieved such a polished sound and as successful an album. With them at the helm, A Taste of Honey had both a hugely successful single in Boogie Oogie Oogie and an equally successful album in A Taste of Honey.

However, one thing that disappointed me was the sound quality. Towards the end of many of the tracks the sound became fuzzy and thick, and wasn’t of the quality of the rest of the tracks. This is surprising as the album has just been recently remastered. I listened to the album on a high end stereo and headphones and the problem was quite noticeable. It slightly spoiled my listening and it always seemed to happen at the same point, towards the end of the track. Apart from that, the rereleased album on BBR Records is a good package, featuring three bonus tracks, two of Boogie Ooogie Oogie and one of my nemesis Disco Dancin’. Overall, I enjoyed A Taste of Honey, and think the album is well worth a listen, as seven of the nine tracks are really good. My only caveat is the sound quality. If like me, you’re someone who pays close attention to remastering and technical issues, then it may annoy you somewhat. However, surely that’s worth living with to hear the joyous disco classic Boogie Ooogie Oogie again. Standout Tracks: Boogie Ooogie Oogie, This Love of Ours, If We Loved and Your In Good Hands. 

A TASTE OF HONEY-A TASTE OF HONEY.