Star Time is a four-CD box set by American musician James Brown. Released in May 1991 by Polydor Records, its contents span most of the length of his career up to the time of its release, starting in 1956 with his first hit record, "Please, Please, Please", and ending with "Unity", his 1984 collaboration with Afrika Bambaataa. Writing in 2007, Robert Christgau described it as "the finest box set ever released... as essential a package as the biz has ever hawked, not just because it's James Brown, but because compilers Cliff White and Harry Weinger invested so much care and knowledge in it."[7] Its title comes from the question Brown's announcer would ask concert audiences, as heard on the album Live at the Apollo: "Are you ready for star time?"
| Star Time | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Box set by | ||||
| Released | May 7, 1991 | |||
| Recorded | 1956–1984 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 292:12 | |||
| Label | Polydor | |||
| Producer | Various | |||
| James Brown chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [1] |
| Robert Christgau | A+[2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A[3] |
| Mojo | |
| Q | |
| Rolling Stone | [4] |
| Uncut |   [5] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [6] |
Star Time's liner notes, written by Cliff White, Harry Weinger, Nelson George, Alan Leeds, and Brown himself, won a 1991 Grammy Award for Best Album Notes. The notes also include a discography and a one-page comic by Mary Fleener, a visual interpretation of the song "I Got You (I Feel Good)."
In 2003, the album was ranked number 79 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.[8] It was the second-highest ranking box set on the list. In 2012, it moved up to 75,[9] while in its 2020 revision, it moved to number 54.[10]
Track listing
editAdapted from CD booklet's liner notes.
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Please Please Please" | James Brown, Johnny Terry | Debut single, A-side, mono, March 1956 | 2:43 |
| 2. | "Why Do You Do Me" | Bobby Byrd, Sylvester Keels | Debut single, B-side, mono, March 1956 | 2:59 |
| 3. | "Try Me" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, October 1958 | 2:30 |
| 4. | "Tell Me What I Did Wrong" | Brown | B-side of "Try Me", mono, October 1958 | 2:20 |
| 5. | "Bewildered" | Leonard Whitcup, Teddy Powell | Think! (1960) | 2:21 |
| 6. | "Good Good Lovin'" | Brown, Albert Shubert | Single, A-side, stereo, July 1959 | 2:18 |
| 7. | "I'll Go Crazy" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, January 1960 | 2:05 |
| 8. | "I Know It's True" | Brown | B-side of "I'll Go Crazy", stereo, January 1960 | 2:40 |
| 9. | "(Do the) Mashed Potatoes, Pt. 1" | Dessie Rozier | Single, A-side, mono, February 1960 | 1:39 |
| 10. | "Think" | Lowman Pawling | Single, A-side, mono, May 1960 | 2:46 |
| 11. | "Baby, You're Right" | Brown, Joe Tex | Previously unreleased alternate take, September 1960 | 2:58 |
| 12. | "Lost Someone" | Brown, Byrd, Lloyd Eugene Stallworth | Single, A-side, stereo, November 1961 | 3:28 |
| 13. | "Night Train" | Oscar Washington, Lewis Simpkins, Jimmy Forrest | James Brown Presents His Band, October 1960 | 3:38 |
| 14. | "I've Got Money" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, November 1962 | 2:29 |
| 15. | "I Don't Mind (live)" | Brown | Live at the Apollo (1963) | 2:29 |
| 16. | "Prisoner of Love" | Leo Robin, Russ Columbo, Clarence Gaskill | Single, A-side, stereo, April 1963 | 2:24 |
| 17. | "Devil's Den" | Ted Wright | Two-part single, mono, April 1963 | 4:48 |
| 18. | "Out of the Blue" | Wright, Terry | Previously unreleased alternate take, March 1964 | 2:15 |
| 19. | "Out of Sight" | Wright | Single, A-side, mono, July 1964 | 2:19 |
| 20. | "Grits" | Nat Jones, Wright | Grits & Soul (1964) | 3:58 |
| 21. | "Maybe the Last Time" | Wright | B-side of "Out of Sight", stereo July 1964 | 3:02 |
| 22. | "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" | Brown, Betty Newsome | Previously unreleased stereo mix, June 1964 | 3:22 |
| 23. | "I Got You" | Wright | Withdrawn single version, September 1964 | 2:27 |
| 24. | "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag, Pts. 1, 2 & 3" | Brown | Previously unreleased original complete take, February 1965 | 6:56 |
| Total length: | 70:54 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag, Pt. 1" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, July 1965 | 2:06 |
| 2. | "I Got You (I Feel Good)" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, November 1965 | 2:45 |
| 3. | "Ain't That a Groove" | Brown, Jones | Previously unreleased unedited version | 3:31 |
| 4. | "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" | Brown, Newsome | Single, A-side, mono, April 1966 | 2:46 |
| 5. | "Money Won't Change You" | Brown, Jones | Previously unreleased complete version | 6:01 |
| 6. | "Don't Be a Dropout" | Brown, Jones | Previously unreleased unedited version | 4:31 |
| 7. | "Bring It Up (Hipster's Avenue)" | Brown, Jones | Previously unreleased unedited version | 3:48 |
| 8. | "Let Yourself Go" | Brown, Bud Hobgood | Previously unreleased unedited version | 3:53 |
| 9. | "Cold Sweat" | Brown, Alfred Ellis | Cold Sweat (1967) | 7:30 |
| 10. | "Get It Together" | Brown, Hobgood, Ellis | Two-part single, mono, October 1967 | 8:57 |
| 11. | "I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me), Pt. 1" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, December 1967[note 1] | 3:29 |
| 12. | "I Got the Feelin'" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, April 1968 | 2:39 |
| 13. | "Licking Stick-Licking Stick" | Brown, Byrd, Ellis | Two-part single, stereo, May 1968 | 4:52 |
| 14. | "Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud, Pt. 1" | Brown, Ellis | Single, A-side, stereo, August 1968 | 2:59 |
| 15. | "There Was a Time (live)" | Brown, Hobgood | Previously unreleased | 4:59 |
| 16. | "Give It Up or Turnit a Loose" | Charles Bobbitt | Single, A-side, stereo, January 1969 | 3:10 |
| 17. | "I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing (Open up the Door I'll Get It Myself)" | Brown | Two-part single, stereo, March 1969 | 5:59 |
| Total length: | 73:55 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Mother Popcorn" | Brown, Ellis | Two-part single, stereo, June 1969 | 6:18 |
| 2. | "Funky Drummer" | Brown | Two-part single, stereo, March 1970 | 7:00 |
| 3. | "Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine" | Brown, Byrd, Ron Lenhoff | Two-part single, stereo, July 1970 | 5:15 |
| 4. | "Super Bad, Pts. 1 & 2" | Brown | Previously unreleased stereo mix[note 2] | 4:26 |
| 5. | "Talkin' Loud & Sayin' Nothing" | Brown, Byrd | Previously unreleased original extended version[note 3] | 8:59 |
| 6. | "Get Up, Get into It and Get Involved" | Brown | Previously unreleased stereo mix[note 4] | 7:03 |
| 7. | "Soul Power, Pts. 1 & 2" | Brown | Previously unreleased unedited stereo version[note 5] | 4:25 |
| 8. | "Brother Rapp/Ain't It Funky Now (live)" | Brown | Previously unreleased live performance[note 6] | 7:44 |
| 9. | "Hot Pants, Pt. 1" | Brown, Fred Wesley | Single, A-side, mono, July 1971 | 3:06 |
| 10. | "I'm a Greedy Man, Pt. 1" | Brown, Bobbit | Single, A-side, stereo, November 1971 | 3:36 |
| 11. | "Make It Funky, Pt. 1" | Brown, Bobbit | Single, A-side, mono | 3:34 |
| 12. | "It's a New Day (live)" | Brown | Revolution of the Mind: Live at the Apollo, Volume III (1971) | 3:48 |
| 13. | "I Got Ants in My Pants, Pt. 1" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, November 1972 | 3:01 |
| 14. | "King Heroin" | Brown, Bobbit, Dave Matthews, Manny Rosen | Single, A-side, stereo, February 1972 | 3:57 |
| Total length: | 72:12 | |||
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Source | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "There It Is, Pt. 1" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, February 1972 | 3:20 |
| 2. | "Public Enemy #1, Pt. 1" | Brown, Bobbit, Henry Stallings | There It Is (1972) | 5:09 |
| 3. | "Get on the Good Foot" | Brown, Wesley, Joseph Mims | Single, A-side, mono, July 1972 | 4:07 |
| 4. | "I Got a Bag of My Own" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, November 1972 | 3:44 |
| 5. | "Doing It to Death" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, April 1973[note 7] | 5:14 |
| 6. | "The Payback" | Brown, Wesley, John Starks | The Payback (1973) | 7:28 |
| 7. | "Papa Don't Take No Mess, Pt. 1" | Brown, Wesley, Starks, Bobbit | Hell (1974) | 4:22 |
| 8. | "Stoned to the Bone, Pt. 1" | Brown | Single, A-side, mono, November 1973 | 3:28 |
| 9. | "My Thang" | Brown | Previously unreleased mix[note 8] | 4:37 |
| 10. | "Funky President (People It's Bad)" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, October 1974 | 4:01 |
| 11. | "Hot (I Need to Be Loved, Loved, Loved)" | Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, December 1975 | 5:03 |
| 12. | "Get Up Offa That Thing (Release the Pressure)" | Diedre Jenkins, Deanna Brown, Yamma Brown | New edit created for Star Time[note 9] | 6:14 |
| 13. | "Body Heat, Pt. 1" | Jenkins, D. Brown, Y. Brown | Single, A-side, stereo, December 1976 | 4:29 |
| 14. | "It's Too Funky in Here" | George Jackson, Walter Shaw, Brad Shapiro, Robert Miller | The Original Disco Man (1979) | 5:39 |
| 15. | "Rapp Payback (Where Iz Moses)" | J. Brown, Susaye Brown, Henry Stallings | Single, A-side, stereo, October 1980 | 4:36 |
| 16. | "Unity, Pt. 1" | Brown, Khayan Aasim Bambaataa, Douglas Wimbish, Bernard Alexander, Keith LeBlanc, Robin Haplin | Single, A-side, stereo, July 1984 | 3:40 |
| Total length: | 75:11 | |||
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[11] | Gold | 125,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Huey, Steve. "Star Time – James Brown". AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "CG: James Brown". robertchristgau.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ Aletti, Vince (March 31, 2007). "Star Time – Music Review". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on April 1, 2007. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ Considine, J.D. (June 17, 1997). "Star Time – James Brown – Review". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on November 12, 2007. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ "James Brown – Star Time". Uncut. August 1, 2004. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2007). Encyclopedia of Popular Music (4th ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0195313734.
- ^ "Robert Christgau: The Genius: James Brown".
- ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. 2003. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012. Retrieved September 23, 2019.
- ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. 2012. Archived from the original on August 11, 2018. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time: James Brown, 'Star Time'". Rolling Stone. September 22, 2020. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
- ^ "American album certifications – James Brown – Star Time". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved May 12, 2022.
Notes
edit- ^ The single version was released at a slower speed. The version on Star Time is at its original recorded tempo.
- ^ Released as a single A-side in mono in October 1970.
- ^ Released as an edited two-part single in stereo in February 1972.
- ^ Released as a two-part single in mono in December 1970.
- ^ Released as an edited three-part single in mono in March 1971.
- ^ Initially, this was meant to appear on Love, Power, Peace, which was shelved until 1992.
- ^ Released under the name "Fred Wesley & The J.B.'s".
- ^ Released as a single A-side in stereo with percussion overdubs in April 1974.
- ^ Original mix released as a two-part single in stereo in May 1976.
External links
edit- Star Time at Discogs (list of releases)
- Rolling Stone story
- Overview at MP3.com