Rufus with Chaka Khan | Camouflage
Album Review: Rufus with Chaka Khan | Camouflage
By Randy Holmes
On this sorely underrated 1981 ten selection MCA Records release, Rufus' 9th studio release, are songs that run the gamut from Funk,ballads, to straight up R&B. This coming from a band the world have come to know & love. I don't feel the need to dwell on the major contributions this collective blessed the rich history of Soul, in any incarnation of the group. Their work throughout the years is pretty much self explanatory. From the time Chaka blessed the world with her undeniable vocal abilities, to the albums that were recorded without her (Please refer to "Party Til You're Broke" and "Seal In Red" GREAT ALBUMS!!), this band funked the universe time after time again. Still to this day, Rufus is still going strong ..... and thank GOD for that!
Starting this album off in the right direction, we have "Better Together" consisting of Tony Maiden on guitar & bass, Hawk Wolinski and Kevin Murphy on keys, session powerhouse John "J.R." Robinson, and last, but certainly not least, the iconic Miss Chaka Khan, laying down a dance groove that had clubs bumpin this track into the wee hours of the night.
Another great uptempo & funky track featured here is "Secret Friend".From the 4/4 time signature steady back beat thump of J.R., to the great string and horn arrangements of Jerry Hey, this track features a great lead vocal performance from Tony Maiden. Happy, feel good melody,festive is how to best describe this song.
My personal favorite cut, the J.R. Robinson/Hawk Wolinski penned, "Music Man (The DJ Song)", should've been a single. Great bass synth performance, the funky and powerful lead and background vocals of Chaka, the ultra tight horns,and overall marvelous throw downs from the band, had me blasting this jam all night ! Check out the ear piercing horns parts in the bridge! WHOA!!
Another cut I felt should have received major accolades, is the Hawk Wolinski penned track, "True Love". Beautiful string arrangements, the presence of Ms. Angela Winbush on background vocals, the lyrical content, great bass playing courtesy of Bobby Watson, and Blues like guitar licks from Tony Maiden, had hit written all over it ! I wish I had A&R'd this record. I would've made sure this song received airplay on every Black radio station on their "Quiet Storm" format ..... Only problem, I was in high school at the time .
Other cuts, the funky and uptempo "Jigsaw", "Sharing The Love", the part reggae, adventurous, part classical-esqe strings of "Quandary", "Lilah", the mellow and smooth "Losers In Love" and the shuffle groove feeling of "Highlight", made this album one of my personal highlights of 1981.
Happy Listening!
Randy Holmes
The Urban Music Scene
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