By
Phil Leckman
Shuggie Otis
Inspiration Information
(Luaka Bop)
Grade: B +
Sometimes, the music industry just isn't fair. Take singer-guitarist Shuggie Otis, for instance. Back in 1974, this promising artist seemed to have a sure-fire recipe for success - a musical pedigree (his father was R & B bandleader Johnny Otis), flawless guitar technique, a great afro, and Inspiration Information, a debut album that made the critics rave. But critical kudos don't always equal album sales - Shug's spacey funk sank like a stone, and his label dropped him cold.
Twenty-six years later, Shuggie Otis can barely get a gig, and Inspiration Information remains an obscure gem, one of those great records unknown to everyone except guys who own record stores.
But Otis may be getting a second chance at success beyond the "High Fidelity" crowd. Inspiration has been re-released, by David Byrne's Luaka Bop label, accompanied by a full-throttle media barrage that might make Britney Spears' publicist blush. Happily, it very nearly lives up to the hype. His mostly-instrumental jams are probably still too far out for most mainstream audiences, but it's easy to see why Otis is getting props.
Inspiration is chock full of spacey musical innovation, but somehow it strikes a balance between intricate guitar textures and pure funky listening pleasure. The album is both serious listening material to rival Pink Floyd's The Dark Side of the Moon and pure, breezy, listening pleasure - music suitable for both an intensive session with the headphones and an afternoon in the park.
Otis's influence extends from post-rock hipsters like the Sea and Cake to hip-hop visionaries like Outkast (whose recent "Ms. Jackson" borrows the melody from "Strawberry Letter 23"), but here's hoping this record lets him get the respect and fame he's long deserved.
