Sanford and Son [First Season] (1972)

Starring:

• Red Foxx
• Demond Wilson

Episode Guide
TV.com

Red Foxx is just simply hilarious. I watch this guy all the time and none of his shows get old to me.


Amazom.com
One of television's all-time classic sitcoms, the Norman Lear-produced "Sanford and Son" debuted just three days after the one-year anniversary of Lear's fabulously successful, "All in the Family." Fred Sanford is a cantankerous 65-year-old, black, widowed junk dealer living in Los Angeles' Watts neighborhood. Helping him is his restless son, 34-year-old Lamont; Fred's beloved wife and Lamont's mother, Elizabeth, had died more than 20 years earlier. Fred's schemes and bigotry especially toward Julio, a Puerto Rican who was Lamont's friend, whites and other minorities often frustrated Lamont. Fred also showed overt disdain for his sister-in-law, Aunt Esther (the feeling was mutual). Many times, Lamont threatened to leave for meaningful work, but Fred faked a heart attack each time ("Oh, this time its real, I'm a-comin' 'Lizabeth!") as a sympathy ploy to get his son to stay. By 1977, Fred and Lamont had sold their business (stars Foxx and Wilson wanted to leave the series); it became the Sanford Arms, a rooming house. The show continued as the short-lived "Sanford Arms" (without Foxx or Wilson); it was revived in 1980 on CBS as "Sanford" (starring Foxx and without Wilson).

Melvin Van Peebles - Sweet Sweetback's Badasssss Song (1971)

1. Sweetback Losing His Cherry
2. Sweetback Getting It Uptight and Preaching It So Hard the ...
3. Come on Feet
4. Sweetback's Theme
5. Hoppin' John/Voices
6. Mojo Woman/Voices
7. Sanra Z/Voices
8. Reggin Hanging on in There as Best They Can (Bye and Bye)/Voices
9. Won't Bleed Me
10. Man Tries Running His Usual Game But Sweetback's Jones Is So Strong He

Blaxploitation.com
Alongside Shaft, this is the album that started the whole blaxploitation boom. A young Earth, Wind and Fire (friends of one of the film's production crew) provide a great, driving psychedelic theme. Interspersed with dialogue you'll find a number of strong funky soul vocal tracks.

James Brown - Slaughter's Big Rip-Off (1973)

1. Slaughter Theme
2. Tryin' To Get Over
3. Transmograpfication
4. Happy For The Poor
5. Brother Rap
6. Big Strong
7. Really, Really, Really
8. Sexy, Sexy, Sexy
9. To My Brother
10. How Long Can I Keep It Up
11. People Get Up And Drive Your Funky Soul
12. King Slaughter
13. Straight Ahead

Blaxploitation.com
Without a doubt, one of James Brown's finest tracks is featured on this album. "People Get Up (And Drive Your Funky Soul)" is worth the album price by itself - the rest of the LP shows James and the JBs at their creative strongest.

Don Julian - Shorty The Pimp (1973)

1. Shorty The Pimp
2. Message From A Black Man
3. Vato's Brew
4. Schoolin' & Foolin'
5. Super Slick
6. Brother What It Is
7. (Ooh Baby) I Love You
8. Show & Tell
9. Check Your Mind
10. Hell Below
11. Just Tryin' To Make It Pt. I
12. Just Tryin' To Make It Pt. II
13. A Woman Ain't Nothing But A Stone Trip
14. Respect Yourself
15. Inner City Blues
16. I Love You
17. My Cherie Amour
18. The Look Of Love
19. Win Your Love

Blaxploitation.com
A new addition to the blaxploitation catalogue, this album from Don Julian & The Larks was never issued in its entirety through Money Records, unlike their Savage soundtrack LP. The theme and several other tracks from this album were issued as singles. The film itself is equally obscure and never saw a cinema release. It is rumoured that Quentin Tarantino owns one of the few remaining prints, in which Don Julian's band take a starring role. The music is a great mix of appropriate cover versions and small group funk with a 'lounge' edge compared to the Savage LP. The original tracks, particularly the theme, make this album worth buying. Note that many of the tracks were previously unissued.