I’m not sure if anyone would put Portland, Oregon as the capital of Funk, but for a couple of years in the late eighties, it was Funk central – thanks to the Dan Reed Network. The band actually formed back in ’84, but it wasn’t until ’88 that they secured a record deal with Mercury. So what happens when you give a big rock production to the catchiest funk and R&B songs ever written? Well, the short answer is this beast of an album! The band were put together with mega producer Bruce Fairbairn, and engineer Mike Fraser. With those two at the helm, and some killer tunes, it was impossible not to score big.

Every song on this album screams hit – I kid you not! After the rap intro of World Has A Heart Too, the next three songs are just perfection. Get To You was released as a single and is a superb funk groove masterpiece. Ritual has a more rocky approach, but again is a great tune, and that is followed by Forgot To Make Her Mine – what a 1, 2, 3 that is. Bands would kill for just one of those songs. Tamin’ The Wild Nights is the obligatory ballad that was in the contract in the eighties. The side closes with I’m So Sorry which is a fantastic pop song. I think you would agree that was a pretty awesome first side.

Side 2 starts with the band’s big number of this record, Resurrect, and is contender for the “best song they did” trophy. This song as everything: it rocks, it seriously grooves, and it has one hell of a sing-a-long chorus and melody. I defy anyone not to move to this song. Baby Don’t Fade is a slowed down dirty funk tour-de-force – with a groove and melody to die for. Jeez I forgot how good this album is. Human is next and is more of a straight up pop tune – again, melody is high on the list of priorities. Halfway Around The World is the Side 2 ballad, again eighties contracts deems it so. Which brings us to album closer, Rock You All Night Long, and it does what it says on the tin, but with a funky groove.

The album after this, Slam, is also a great record, but then it slowly faded away and Dan went a bit fruit loops and new age, and disappeared for a long time. You guessed it, it’s another everyone should own one!

9.5/10 from The Grooveman.