Flood of Grooves

Aren’t the Headhunters just the greatest funk groovers ever? For me they certainly are. In the half a decade in which Herbie Hancock was involved with funk, together with the band, he created the coolest, funkiest, bad-ass grooves ever. But the things that fascinate me the most about that group are their live performances, in which the interplay, the intensity, and the energy are on such a high level that no one can resist the flow of rhythmic patterns which blend into a superb groove.

The concert I would like to present to the readers was recorded in Japan in 1975 with the lineup of Mike Clark (drum set,) Paul Jackson (Fender bass,), Bennie Maupin (soprano, tenor, saxophone, saxello, bass clarinet, flute, percussion,), Dewayne «Blackbyrd» McKnight (guitar ), Bill Summers (congas, percussion,) and, of course, Herbie Hancock on acoustic piano, Fender Rhodes, clavinet, and ARP Odyssey. It was released in Japan as a double LP the same year under the title “Flood,” and it is Hancock’s eighteenth official album. The performance is so elevated that the reactions of the audience are pretty euphoric. In the words of Richard S. Ginell, “ this was a great funk band, not all that danceable because of the rapid complexities of Mike Clark's drumming, and quite often, full of harmonic depth and adventure.” Enjoy!