I've previously marveled at what a diverse line-up this festival had, and Rick James is another example. It's hard to imagine any other festival that had 1960s country star Skeeter Davis and funkster Rick James on the same bill!
Cocaine is a hell of a drug. Rick James, who died in 2004 at the age of 56, had a wild roller coaster of a music career. There really should be a movie about his life, because he lived the stereotypical life of an out of control music star, with the sex and drugs in particular dialed up to 11. James later said, "I could have brought Monte Carlo as much as I’ve snorted. ... I [went through] five yachts, three planes, 17 cars, four mansions, any [woman] that I wanted, and had $30 million in the bank. People were disgusted with the way I lived. Let’s talk real. I was a dumb motherf*cker."
After many, many years trying to get famous (including being in a band with Neil Young in the 1960s called the Mynah Birds, believe it or not), he finally hit the big time in the late 1970s. 1981 was probably his biggest year, with the album "Street Songs," which sold four million copies worldwide, and the hit song "Super Freak." But his 1982 album "Throwin' Down" was very successful too.
Unfortunately, by 1982, James discovered crack cocaine. He'd been using drugs, even heroin, since he was an young teenager, but crack was so powerful that he slowly lost his considerable musical abilities. His life spiraled down and down to what he later called "the lowest level of hell," including years in prison.
However, even though he had to be using crack at the time of this concert, he was still very functional, and put on a solid performance.
This album is an hour and 29 minutes long.
29 talk (Rick James)
30 Ghetto Life (Rick James)
31 talk (Rick James)
32 Standing on the Top (Rick James)
33 Love Gun (Rick James)
34 Instrumental - Star Spangled Banner (Rick James)
35 Fire and Desire (Rick James)
36 Hard to Get (Rick James)
37 Mary Jane (Rick James)
38 You and I (Rick James)
39 Give It to Me Baby (Rick James)
40 Super Freak (Rick James)
41 Instrumental (Rick James)
42 talk (Rick James)
43 There's a Party Going On (Rick James)
44 Dance wit' Me (Rick James)
The cover photo comes from this exact concert.
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