Sweat is the eighteenth studio album by the band Kool & the Gang, released in 1989 following a three-year gap between albums. James "J.T." Taylor, Khalis Bayyan and Robert "Spike" Mickens had departed, and this album showed a refocused band.
| Sweat | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 1989 | |||
| Recorded | September 1988 – March 1989 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 52:37 | |||
| Label | Mercury | |||
| Producer |
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| Kool & the Gang chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Sweat | ||||
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Singles
editBoth "Raindrops" (peak #27) and "Never Give Up" (peak #74) on the Billboard Hot Soul Songs chart.[1]
Critical reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [2] |
Ron Wynn of AllMusic called the album "a completely faceless, aimless record ... probably the worst album of their career".[2] Hugh Wyatt of the New York Daily News called Sweat "one of the year's best recordings".[3]
Track listing
edit| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I Sweat" | Bayyan | 4:22 |
| 2. | "This Is What a Love Can Do" | Bokowski, Varner | 4:13 |
| 3. | "Never Give Up" | Bellochio, Habeeb | 4:42 |
| 4. | "You Got My Heart on Fire" | Haynes, Williams | 6:29 |
| 5. | "Someday" | Bayyan, Martin | 4:58 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Raindrops" | Booker | 3:50 |
| 2. | "In Your Company" | Booker | 5:53 |
| 3. | "I'll Follow You Anywhere" | Gazeley, Scher | 5:37 |
| 4. | "All She Wants to Do Is Dance" | Booker | 3:55 |
| 5. | "How Can I Get Close to You" | Brown, Thomas | 4:22 |
| 6. | "You Are the Meaning of Friend" | Block, Smith | 5:06 |
Personnel
edit- Robert "Kool" Bell – bass
- Ronald "Khalis" Bell – tenor saxophone, keyboards
- Claydes Charles Smith – guitar
- Gary Brown – vocals
- Sennie "Skip" Martin – vocals, trumpet, percussion (lead on 3–9, 11)
- Odeen Mays – vocals, keyboards (lead on 1, 2, 4, 7, 10)
- Larry Gittens – trumpet, vocals, keyboards
- Michael Ray – trumpet
- Clifford Adams – trombone, vocals
- George Brown – keyboards
- Robert "Robbie G" Goble – drums
Charts
edit| Chart (1989) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| German Albums (Offizielle)[4] | 28 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[5] | 29 |
| Swiss Albums (Hitparade)[6] | 30 |
| US Billboard Top Soul Albums[7] | 52 |
References
edit- ^ "Kool & the Gang: Raindrops (Hot Soul Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ a b Wynn, Ron. "Kool & the Gang: Sweat at AllMusic. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
- ^ Wyatt, Hugh (July 28, 1989). The Gang's still Kool, and still hot. New York Daily News. p. 59.
- ^ "Kool & the Gang: Sweat". offiziellecharts.de. Offizielle Charts.
- ^ "Kool and The Gang: Sweat". infodisc.fr. SNEP.
- ^ "Kool and The Gang: Sweat". hitparade.ch. Hitparade.
- ^ "Kool & the Gang: Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
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