VA - The Funky End (2000)

The last decade or so has seen a flood of compilations from the funky end of jazz so another one, and a double one at that, hardly seems to be something to get too excited about. But it is. Funky End is a superlative collection of familiar and not so familiar funk tunes from a diverse range of artists. It not only includes such funkmeisters as James Brown, Parliament and the Average White Band but also giants from the jazz world like Miles Davis, Pharoah Sanders, Donald Byrd and Roy Ayers. Stand-out tracks are far too many to mention, although a personal favourite is the jaw-dropping cover by Sergio Mendes and Brasil 66 of Buffalo Springfield's "For What It's Worth". With such variety Funky End could easily have become a patchwork, but it manages to avoid the pitfall of many compilations and retain a sense of unity. And unity is what the funk is all about. Awesome. -- Phil Brett