Eugene McDaniels - 1975 - Natural Juices

Eugene McDaniels

1975

Natural Juices

01. Feel Like Makin' Love 5:05
02. Lady Fair 3:33
03. Natural Juices 4:02
04. Can't Get Enough Of You 5:36
05. River 4:49
06. Shell Of A Man 5:23
07. Dream Of You And Me 4:13
08. Waterfall 5:08
09. Honey Can You Know 3:40
10. The Perfect Dream 5:35

Acoustic Guitar – Oscar Castro Neves
Backing Vocals – Afreeka Trees, Carmen Bryant, Carolyn Willis, Jim Gilstrap, Kathy Collier, Kneddy Gloud, Marti McCall, Morgan Ames
Drums – Idris Muhammed
Electric Bass – Gary King
Guitar – Billy Connors, Mean Dean Parks
Keyboards – Bob James
Percussion – Ralph MacDonald
Guitar – David T. Walker, Roland Batista
Saxophone, Flute – Walter Parazaider
Saxophone – Tom Scott
Trombone – Jim Pankow
Trumpet – Lee Loughnane
Organ – Richard Tee
Synthesizer – Ian Underwood
Vibraphone – Victor Feldman
Woodwind – Plas Johnson, Ronnie Laws

Gene McDaniels, also known as Eugene McDaniels, was mosty famed for two of his compositions, Compared to What, the Jazz protest song that became a pop hit, and Feel Like Makin' Love covered by dozens of singers and musicians during the seventies and later.

As a recording artist, McDaniels may today be known by fans of hiphop for his often sampled 1971 release, Headless Heroes of the Apocalypse. He was also a noted producer of over 35 records (Phyllis Hyman, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Melba Moore, Jimmy Smith, etc.).

In 1975, he recorded and produced Natural Juices, a Soul record with strong jazzy overtones that featured only his own compositions. It was overlooked then and it still is. The reasons are diverse, but the fact that it didn't follow the current trend (Disco) and that the songs are romantic and mostly slow, contributed to it having been overlooked. The record has never been released on CD.

A casual glimpse might create the impression that the record is average and forgettable. But Can't Get Enough Of You is remarkable and from there on, the music is great. River and Waterfall have lyrics that focus on freedom, both are songs that are only waiting to be discovered. Natural Juices is the record that best shows what a good singer Gene McDaniels was.