Joyous

名盤『Dust Yourself Off』や『Accept No Substitutes』等で知られるジャズ・ファンク・グループ、PLEASUREがFANTASYからリリースした1977年作が復刻。ULTIMATE BREAKS & BEATSにも収録されサンプリング・ソースとしても知られるクラシック「Joyous」を筆頭に、ハウス～ブラジル・ファンにも人気の高い「Sassafras Girl」、さらには「Let Me Be The One」や「Only You」あたりも人気高し！レア・グルーヴ・ファンだけでなく幅広いジャンルで人気の1枚。
P-VINE

Pleasure couldn't have asked for a more appropriate producer when, in late 1976, it employed Wayne Henderson on Joyous. A band that frequently brought jazz overtones to its funk-soul foundation, Pleasure needed someone who held jazz and R&B in equally high regard -- and Henderson easily fit that description. The Texas trombonist first made a name for himself playing hard bop with the Jazz Crusaders, but as the 1970s progressed, he became increasingly R&B-friendly. Henderson was exactly the sort of producer that Pleasure needed, and the band's appreciation of jazz comes through on the up-tempo funk numbers (which include "Dance to the Music," "Let Me Be the One," and the title song) as well as the dreamy quiet storm gem "Sassafras Girl." Pleasure brings this vinyl LP to an appealing close with a jazz-funk instrumental titled "Selim," which isn't typical of Joyous on the whole -- most of the tunes are vocal-oriented. This is a funk-soul record first and foremost, and it is also a classic that underscores Pleasure's risk-taking nature. ~ Alex Henderson