All Day Music - WAR***

All Day Music/Get Down/That's What Love Will Do/There Must Be A Reason/Nappy Head/Slippin' Into Darkness/ Baby Brother

All Day Music was the highly successful follow up album from the Californian group War. Their music has been described as crossover that fuses together elements of rock, funk jazz, Latin, R & B and even reggae. (US:16)

“It's definitely got its fair share of what you might call a hippy dippy sound, and, inasmuch as funk might be a dated genre to begin with, this is definitely tied to a certain era (it has 1970s West Coast written all over it). It isn't the group's most consistent release, as they were just beginning to hit their stride, but the songs are mostly well written, even if they do sometimes go on a bit. I don't really care much for the closing live jam, but Get Down is a fine example of the funky group sing-alongs these guys are known for.”

“Much of the War album All Day Music is just the kind of music I would normally like. There is a problem, however, which is that the songwriting is not very good. The title track is a great song, and after that my expectations were high. Get Down sounds like a more ordinary funk number, and while it is alright, That's What Love Will Do sounds more inspired but gets way too over lengthy. This is underlined by the jam track that follows.”

“The songs seem uninspired, the grooves are too soft to work, there is less energy than in the debut album, and the edgy jazz feel has gone. The tracks, especially on the second side, are way too long, and they carry to their ending in a somewhat tired way.”

“This is quite a funky album, but it doesn't grab in any way that makes you jump up and pay attention. The soul is here but at the end of the day there's just not enough.” “Stoned soul music of the finest kind. Great album moving from laid back to funky to jazzy to soulful, sometime all in one song. Funky and socially conscious, what more do you need for a good soul album?”

“War take the funk of Sly and The Family Stone, the Latin percussion of groups of the day like Santana and Malo, the social conscious of Marvin Gaye, and mix it all together into a party that makes you dance and think at the same time. The title track is cool as a summer breeze, while songs like Slippin' Into Darkness and Get Down are rife with the social discontent of the day.”