In the 1980s many of go-go's supporters insisted that it was going to become as big as rap. Regrettably, that never happened. Go-go was huge in Washington, D.C., where a
Chuck Brown or
Rare Essence show was as big a deal as a
George Clinton concert, and a go-go release could be as impressive a seller as the latest
Rick James record. But nationally, only a few go-go songs became major hits:
E.U.'s
"Da Butt" was huge in 1988, and
Chuck Brown soared to the top of the R&B charts in 1978 with the insanely funky
"Bustin' Loose." Brown and his band,
the Soul Searchers, showed a great deal of promise on this debut album, which
James Purdie produced at the famous
Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia. The title song is one of go-go's all-time classics, and anyone with a taste for sweaty, hard-driving funk will also find a lot to love about
"If It Ain't Funky" and
"I Gotcha Now." But not everything on the album is aggressive. Even though
Brown is best known for his gutbucket funk grooves,
"Could It Be Love" and an inspired cover of the
Jerry Butler/
Gamble & Huff pearl
"Never Gonna Give You Up" demonstrate that he has no problem handling romantic ballads and slow jams. It isn't surprising that the album's slower tracks are so heavily influenced by Philly soul. After all,
Sigma Sound is where
the O'Jays,
the Intruders,
Blue Magic,
Teddy Pendergrass,
the Stylistics,
Billy Paul, and countless others recorded their biggest hits. Most of
Bustin' Loose, however, isn't typical of recordings made at
Sigma; the majority of the material is pure go-go, and
Bustin' Loose went down in history as one of go-go's most essential releases. ~ Alex Henderson
![The Very Best [Blue Note]](http://prodimage.images-bn.com/pimages/0724347740329_p0_v1_s90x140.jpg "The Very Best [Blue Note]")
