Chaka Khan
What Cha' Gonna Do For Me

THE REVIEW

Chaka Khan: an alluring, magnetic gaze. A contagious smile that conveys energy and a lust for life. A monumental stage presence. A superb, powerful, expressive voice, with a range of five octaves. Some say: the heir of Aretha Franklin. A life marked by excesses, drug and alcohol abuse, but also by civil commitment: from her youthful involvement with the Black Panthers, to adopting an African name, to more recently establishing a foundation in her name to help mothers in need and autistic children.

"What Cha' Gonna Do For Me", from 1981, is an intriguing mix of soul, R&B, funk, and disco music, produced by Arif Mardin, arranged and played by the best session musicians of those years. The arrangements hark back to the luxurious soul-funk of the late '70s, with an abundance of rhythm guitars, choruses, and sonic walls raised by the horn section (Michael and Randy Brecker, no less), uptempo beats in the hands of drummer Steve Ferrone, while on bass we find the talented Anthony Jackson. Notable guests like Hiram Bullock, and in the reinterpretation of the jazz classic "A Night In Tunisia" there's Dizzy Gillespie and Herbie Hancock, who delivers a fine synth solo. It's impossible to stay still in front of tracks like "I Know You, I Live You", "Fate", "Heed The Warning", which after just a few bars will seem as if you've known them forever.

No abysmal dives into the depths of the human soul, certainly not; but there are assured forty minutes of genuine fun, wholesome epidermal enjoyment, with Ms. Yvette Marie Stevens' voice frequently and willingly testing the tweeters of your speakers (the implacable rhythm section will take care of the woofers...), reaching truly incredible heights.