Funk on Fire: The Mercury Anthology

Disc 1
1	Skin Tight 7:52
2	Jive Turkey 7:08
3	Heaven Must Be Like This 7:17
4	Fire 4:34
5	Together 3:06
6	I Want to Be Free 6:49
7	It's All Over 4:12
8	Piano Ballad (Just Right) 2:30
9	Fopp 3:52
10	Sweet Sticky Thing 6:15
11	Love Rollercoaster 4:47
12	Honey 5:18
13	There It Is 5:43
14	Happy Holidays, Pts. 1-2 8:25
Disc 2
1	Who'd She Coo? 4:31
2	Bi-Centennial 3:47
3	Far East Mississippi 4:54
4	Only a Child Can Love 4:12
5	Angel 7:28
6	O-H-I-O 3:08
7	Body Vibes 7:13
8	Alone Live 7:18
9	Good Luck Charm 9:35
10	Funk-O-Nots 4:53
11	Time Slips Away 4:44
12	Shady Lady 3:51
13	Wonderful 5:06
14	More Than Love 5:44

Barnes & Noble

They may have started out as the Ohio Untouchables on the Dayton R&B scene when they formed in '59 in order to back up the Falcons with Wilson Pickett in Detroit, but the music they turned out as Ohio Players (formed in '67) was anything but inaccessible. Together Marshall Jones, Clarence "Satch" Satchell, "Pee Wee" Middlebrooks and the more short term personnel defined sensuality with their simultaneously tight and voluptuous multilayered sound. Their style also betrayed the fact they were staying in touch with their distinctly Midwestern roots in the context of powerhouses such as James Brown, the Isley Brothers and Bootsy Collins. Songs like the classic "Skin Tight," "Sweet Sticky Thing," and "Jive Turkey" showcase the groups ability to combine astute musicianship with a sense of humor -- usually about sexual subjects, squeals included. "I Want to Be Free" operates not only as a manifesto for this compilation, but for the band's whole career. Songs like the intergalactic, irreverent and hugely successful "Fire" blazed trails fusing rock, funk and raw drums (they still seem almost sacrilegious together, but that's what makes it so good.) The Player's loosely-organized beats are futuristic even today. They've influenced and have been sampled by contemporaries in every genre--from Soundgarden to Dr. Dre. Still hot, still on fire and still crazy after all these years, the only things lacking on this indispensable collection are the outrageously suggestive album jackets. Martine Bury

All Music Guide

One hour, 54 minutes, and 12 seconds of innovative funk on two discs is nothing to sneeze at, particularly when the tracks are prime Ohio Players cuts. Mercury adroitly chronicles their chart-blazing career with full-length, unedited versions of winners and album treats. From the bluesy, strutting "Jive Turkey" to "More Than Love," the group displays its superb musicianship and ingenuity on 28 slabs of funk and soul. The guys proved they can slow jam with anyone on "Together" and the super-lush "Honey." The Ohio Players were affectionately known as Sugarfoot, Billy, Pee Wee, Merv, Diamond, Rock, and Satch, all of whom contributed collectively in the writing and production of all the songs. Everyone is familiar with the hits, and most of their fans already have them; it's the unsung pearl like "Good Luck Charm" that makes Funk on Fire a must -- along with the convenience of having all these smokin' grooves in one sweet package. Andrew Hamilton