The Payback
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| The Payback | ||
 |
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| Studio album by James Brown | ||
| Released | December 1973 | |
| Recorded | 1973 | |
| Genre | Funk/R&B | |
| Length | 72:52 | |
| Label | Polydor | |
| Producer(s) | James Brown | |
| Professional reviews | ||
|---|---|---|
| James Brown chronology | ||
| Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (album) | The Payback (1973) |
Hell (1974) |
The Payback is a 1973 double album by James Brown. It was originally scheduled to become the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film Hell Up in Harlem, but was rejected by director Larry Cohen for "not being James Brown enough."
The Payback is considered a high point in Brown's recording career, and is now regarded by critics as a landmark funk album. Its revenge-themed title track, a #1 R&B hit, is one of his most famous songs and an especially prolific source of samples for record producers. Musically the album is largely based around cyclic grooves and jamming, but it also features departures into a softer blues-based sound on tracks like "Doing the Best I Can." The song 'The Payback' also known as 'The Big Payback' is widely considered one of the first "Gangsta" songs that rappers a known for.
The album was reissued on CD in 1992 with liner notes by Alan Leeds.
[edit] Track listing
- "The Payback" – 7:39
- "Doing the Best I Can" – 7:39
- "Take Some...Leave Some" – 8:20
- "Shoot Your Shot" – 8:19
- "Forever Suffering" – 5:39
- "Time Is Running Out Fast" – 12:58
- "Stone to the Bone" – 10:14
- "Mind Power" – 12:04
[edit] Charts
Album — Billboard (North America)
| Year | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|
| 1974 | Billboard's Pop Albums | 34 |
