J. Geils Band Albums (14)
What The Critics Say
The J. Geils Band's sixth studio album, 1975's Hotline, didn't spawn any hits, didn't reach very high on the charts, and was very true to the band's formula (going back to a mix of originals and covers after two all-original albums). It is also one of their most cohesive, satisfying, and fun albums. Kicking off with one of their live favorites, a barn-burning cover of Harvey Scales & the Seven Sounds' obscure soul nugget "Love-Itis," the disc runs through hard-edged blues, funky soul, rip-roaring rock & roll, and a ballad or two. The bandmembers show no signs of letting down and sound as dedicated to their house-party ethic as ever. Along with "Love-Itis," at least half of the record would have sounded excellent blasting from AOR stations. Why none of them, like the driving "Easy Way Out," the peppy "Jealous Love," and the cold as ice "Mean Love," never got much airplay is a mystery. Elsewhere, the band shows nice restraint on the heartbroken ballad "Think It Over," exhibits blazing blues chops on John Brim's "Be Careful (What You Do)" and Eddie Burns' "Orange Driver," and get very funky on "Fancy Footwork." The one song that sounds like their hearts aren't all the way in it, the cover of the Impressions' "Believe In Me," is still a rollicking good time. This is one of the overlooked gems in the band's catalog, not as strong as their best work but certainly worth many listens. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
'You're Gettin' Even While I'm Gettin' Odd'
Release Date 1/1/1984
Tracks 9
Label EMI
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
This doesn't sound like the J. Geils Band folks know and love, since Peter Wolf has left the band; You're Gettin' Even While I'm Gettin' Odd is mainly keyboardist Seth Justman's baby, and he uses banks and banks of synths along with more traditional keyboards to come up with the palette of sounds used here. The cut "Californicating" glides along courtesy of J. Geils' guitar and there's a slow blues titled "The Bite from Inside," but other than that, much of what's here is simply ordinary. Justman and drummer Stephen Bladd cover the vocals this time out, but they are no match for Wolf's old growl. Lots of production dazzle with none of the bite of old. ~ James Chrispell, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
A great live band recorded on stage in a city that loves them. What could go wrong? Enough. For one thing, the material is not as strong as on the 1972 classic Full House Live, also recorded in Detroit. And this release is marred by a witless, overlong Peter Wolf intro to "Love Stinks." He was ousted not long after this album, and the band dispersed after one album without him. To hear this sextet at its crowd-pleasing best, delve back another decade and pluck Full House Live. ~ Mark Allan, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Tempering their bar band R&B with a touch of new wave pop production, the J. Geils Band finally broke through into the big leagues with Freeze Frame. Fans of the hard-driving rock of the group's '70s albums will find the sleek sound of Freeze Frame slightly disorienting, but the production gives the album cohesion. Good-time rock & roll remains at the core of the group's music, but the sound of the record is glossier, shining with synthesizers and big pop hooks. With its singalong chorus, "Centerfold" exemplifies this trend, but it's merely the tip of the iceberg. "Freeze Frame" has a great stop-start chorus, "Flamethrower" and "Piss on the Wall" rush along on hard-boogie riffs, and "Angel in Blue" is terrific neo-doo wop. There are still a handful of throwaways, but even the filler has a stylized, synthesized flair that makes it enjoyable, and the keepers are among the band's best. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Released some two years after the band's EMI debut, Sanctuary, the Love Stinks project would see the J. Geils Band going in an even more commercial-leaning direction than its predecessor. Taking over the main production duties, keyboard player/main songwriter Seth Justman set out to better the band's gold-plus-selling Sanctuary. And to some degree, he wildly succeeded. Although not as consistent or diverse as Sanctuary, Love Stinks would feature one of the band's most recognizable FM songs ever -- the album's infectious title track "Love Stinks." In a live setting, the track would often turn into a veritable tour de force only to be outdone by Peter Wolf's hilarious rap about "Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden smoking weed together," which would introduce the song (often on a nightly basis). "Night Time" is another great, although somewhat typical "rave-on" type of J. Geils song; "No Anchovies Please" is a little strange; and closer "Till the Walls Come Tumblin' Down" is, as the song title hints, just that. Bolstered by "Just Can't Wait," another good album opener, Love Stinks turns out to be solid effort, but one that sounds a little outdated at times due to its acerbic, synth textures. Not one of the band's best overall records but one that would allow the band to outdo itself with the classic Freeze Frame a year later. ~ John Franck, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
After the release of 1977's Monkey Island, the J. Geils Band severed ties with Atlantic and signed a fresh deal with EMI Records. The band's tenure with Atlantic only yielded a few successes, and on paper, teaming up with producer Joe Wissert, the man responsible for many of Earth, Wind & Fire's and Boz Scaggs' biggest hits, seemed like an odd choice. However, Sanctuary was a rebirth of sorts for the sextet: Wissert crystallized the band's attack, working off their leaner songwriting and simplifying their arrangements. Keeping their boogie-woogie bar band attack intact, Peter Wolf and Seth Justman delivered first-rate material, including the down and dirty opener "I Could Hurt You," the sublime title track and the lovely "One Last Kiss," which cracked the Top 40 in early 1978. The Stevie Wonder-ish "Take It Back," also a mild hit, predicted the commercial direction the band took on Freeze Frame three years later. The beautiful "Teresa," a heartbreaking ballad executed with help of a simple vocal/piano arrangement courtesy of the Wolf/Justman team, and "Wild Man,," which sounds like a leftover from the Atlantic years, are also highlights. Sanctuary's final song, the rollicking, Magic Dick-driven "Just Can't Stop Me," encapsulates everything magical (pun intended) and soulful about this band. With its effortless playing and a breakdown that'll have you on the edge of your seat, it served as the band's call into battle for the Freeze Frame tour. The Razor & Tie reissue features covers of "I Do" and "Land of a Thousand Dances" from the band's live record Showtime, recorded at the height of their Freeze Frame period. "Land of a Thousand Dances" in particular reminds you just how incredible these guys were live. ~ John Franck, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The J. Geils Band's chart profile had been steadily slipping since the Top Ten success of their third record, Bloodshot. Even the awe-inspiring live album Blow Your Face Out, the band's near-maniacal dedication to the live stage, and their nonstop presence on the FM dial couldn't get them a hit album. By the time of 1977's Monkey Island the band seemed a little confused by it all and maybe even a bit weary of the effort to make it on their own terms. In most cases this would make for an artistic disaster, but hearing Geils branch out and lie back makes for one of their more interesting and challenging, if not most coherent, releases. Ranging from the wall-shaking funk of "Surrender" to the soft rock sweetness of "You're the Only One" (which comes complete with Magic Dick impersonating Stevie Wonder at his most romantic), the bopping AM-friendly R&B of "I Do" (the album's only cover), and the roaring hard rock of "Somebody," the album covers a lot of territory. Add to that the epic-length and overblown "Monkey Island," the smooth ballad "I'm Falling," and the shockingly slick modern R&B confection "So Good," and the album becomes near schizophrenic. Luckily, despite all the soul searching, dead ends, and obvious commercial overtures, the album retains enough of the innate Geils Band charm (and a couple good tracks like "Surrender," "So Good," and the loose blues rocker "I'm Not Rough") to make it work to a certain extent. Not a classic by any means but worth hearing at least once if only to hear why Sanctuary(on which they figure out how to make a totally commercial record the Geils way) was such a stunning return to form. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Double-album live sets came into vogue in 1976 after Peter Frampton's sales went through the roof for A&M, Bob Seger found fame with Live Bullet on Capitol, and the J. Geils Band released its second in-concert document in four years, Blow Your Face Out. There is great power in these grooves recorded over two nights, November 15 and November 19, at the now deconstructed Boston Garden and in Detroit at Cobo Hall. Here's the beautiful dilemma with the Geils band: Live: Full House, recorded in Detroit in April of 1972, contains five songs that became J. Geils standards, and none of them overlap on the 1982 EMI single live disc, Showtime, chock-full of their latter-day classics. Can you believe there is absolutely no overlap from the first or third live album on this double disc, which came in between (except for "Looking for a Love," uncredited, which they slip into the intro of "Houseparty" on side two)? The Rhino CD contains Jeff Tamarkin's liner notes, while the original Atlantic album has an exquisite gatefold chock-full of photos, and inner sleeves with priceless band memo stuff à la Grand Funk's Live Album. Sides one and two are great, and three and four are even better. "Detroit Breakdown" rocks and grooves, with tons of audience applause...Wolfy and the polished authority of his monologues are in command as the band oozes into "Chimes" from 1973's Ladies Invited. About three and a half minutes longer than the five-minute original, it is one of many highlights on this revealing pair of discs. A precursor to 1977's title track, "Monkey Island," "Chimes" gives this enigmatic band a chance to jam out slowly and lovingly over its groove. There is so much to this album: the Janis Joplin standard "Raise Your Hand" written by Eddie Floyd, Albert Collins' "Sno-Cone" from their first album, and "Truck Drivin' Man" beating Bachman-Turner Overdrive to the punch. B.B. King producer Bill Szymczyk does a masterful job bringing it all together, and the band photos on back look...roguish. "Must of Got Lost," "Where Did Our Love Go," and "Give It to Me" are here in all their glory, a different glory than the studio versions, on an album that should have done for Geils what Live Bullet and Frampton Comes Alive did for their respective artists. If only a legitimate release of their 1999 tour would be issued to stand next to this monster -- during that tour they combined the best elements of all three of their previous live discs. The J. Geils Band is more important and influential than the boys have been given credit for. It will be the live documents that ensure they eventually get their due, and Blow Your Face Out is a very worthy component that can still frazzle speakers. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide
'Nightmares...and Other Tales from the Vinyl Jungle'
Release Date 1/1/1974
Tracks 9
Label Atlantic
See Album Tracklist and Review
What The Critics Say
Nightmares...and Other Tales From the Vinyl Jungle spawned the biggest Atlantic hit for the J. Geils Band, the wonderfully obsessive, questioning dilemma titled "Must of Got Lost." Here the Geils Band are at the peak of their powers in the days prior to Freeze Frame and lustful songs like "Centerfold," "Must of Got Lost" being the only of their three Atlantic Top 40 hits to land in the Top 15. Seth Justman and Peter Wolf share all the songwriting credits here, save the intriguing camp/funk of the Andre Williams/Leo Hutton composition "Funky Judge." It's Peter Wolf's pantomime vocal entwined with the band's serious blues that creates something very special. The final track, "Gettin' Out," is five-minutes-plus of this intense, earthy rock, producer Bill Szymczyk capturing in the studio that energy the band generated in concert. Bassist Danny Klein told AMG he loved the Jean Lagarrigue drawing on the album jacket, noting, "Wolf found the hand painting...(it) got in a best rock album cover art book." This was a natural progression from 1973's Ladies Invited, the band's arrangements working perfectly with Szymczyk's production, with "Detroit Breakdown" being a tip of the hat to the group's second home outside of Boston. Magic Dick makes a great statement over Seth Justman's foundation piano sound, one that evolves from that instrument to organ, giving J. Geils a chance to throw some haunting guitar work over its conclusion. The song's six-minute length is topped only by the nearly seven minutes of "Stoop Down #39," perhaps a dig at the James Gang's "Funk #49" from four years prior. "Givin' It All Up" and "Look Me in the Eye" are the band showing precision in their craft, releasing quite a bit of music between 1973's popular "Give It to Me," the Ladies Invited album that same year, and this solid effort. The short, one-minute-14-second title track, "Nightmares," sounds like an ode to nitrous oxide (laughing gas), and probably was. The album produces one of the effects of that drug: exhilaration, and is a fine example of their creative musical journey. ~ Joe Viglione, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
The J. Geils Band were coming off their biggest album yet (Bloodshot, which hit the Top Ten on the Billboard album charts) when Ladies Invited appeared in 1973. It didn't reach the same level of sale (peaking at number 51) and none of the songs became AOR staples. Despite this, the record is solidly entertaining Geils, full of jumping party tunes and heart-punching ballads all composed by the band itself. As usual the up-tempo songs are the best: "Did You No Wrong" is a dynamic rocker with some blistering J. Geils guitar work, "I Can't Go On" is a full-out funky jam, and "Lay Your Good Thing Down" is fine blue-eyed soul with slick hipster vocals from Peter Wolf. The ballads here show a level of emotion and commitment that you might not expect: "My Baby Don't Love Me" is a countrified, tear-in-my-beer weeper with aching harmony vocals from Seth Justman, "Chimes" is an atmospheric, paranoid tune with great dynamics and a vocal from Wolf that veers between intimate and over-the-top howling, and probably best of all is the laid-back, Stonesy "That's Why I'm Thinking of You." It is really a shock that none of these songs caught on with AOR programmers. The only one that got a few spins was "No Doubt About It," and it is the album's highlight, a low-down and nasty blues rocker featuring the one and only Magic Dick getting down on his lickin' stick. That and stuff like the driving "Take a Chance (On Romance)" and the corny but fun "Diddyboppin'" should have been blasting out of radios up and down the strip, in high-school parking lots, and on the beach -- basically everywhere AOR sounds the best. Don't let anyone tell you that Ladies Invited is one of Geils' lesser works. It is just one of the band's overlooked works that deserve a second listen. ~ Tim Sendra, All Music Guide
