James Brown · Concert filmé, 1981 · 1981
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Live video · Soul · 1980s
James Brown — Live in Concert, 1981
Why this recording
North Sea Jazz Festival, Congresgebouw, The Hague, July 11, 1981: James Brown played two shows that day, and the World of Jazz channel presents this video as the first, with the second posted separately and a different running order. The partial list in the description pairs soul staples such as “Try Me”, “Please Please Please” and “Sex Machine” with “Georgia On My Mind” and the funk numbers “We Are The Funky Men” and “It's Too Funky In Here”. The picture is standard definition, as in the transfer posted in 2017.
Simon Janvier, live-sound professional and editor of the catalogue
Live recording of a James Brown concert filmed in 1981. This full concert shows the Godfather of Soul at the height of his stagecraft, fronting his revue and band in the show format that revolutionised American popular music. The inventor of funk and a tutelary figure of soul, James Brown here unfolds his mastery of groove, his razor-sharp breaks, his lightning dance steps and that almost liturgical interaction with his musicians, where a single glance is enough to launch or cut a song. The concert runs through the fundamentals of his repertoire, between incandescent soul, brass-driven funk and gospel emphasis, driven by relentless energy. The recording conveys the discipline and fervour of one of the greatest showmen in history, whose influence runs through soul, funk, disco and hip-hop. A valuable document for lovers of soul and funk in concert, illustrating the stage art of an artist whose every performance was a lesson in rhythm and presence, preserved here as a full live set from the early 1980s.
Personnel & credits
- James Brown — vocals
