Long ago, I bought Nile's first solo record, "Adventures In The Land of the Good Groove" and loved all the songs on it. Later, I heard about his second record and the single, "Let's Go Out Tonight" but never saw the disc on the shelves at the stores.
Fast forward to 2005.
I found "B-Movie Matinee" on cdnow.com and swooped in on the opportunity to buy it! I wondered how Mr. Rodgers could possibly follow up "Adventures..." - a largely ignored record that was truly worthy of greater recognition. Unfortunately, Nile and his partner-in-crime were being celebrated more for the music they created for other artists. I only heard "Yum-Yum" (extended version with a beautiful guitar passage) once on an R&B station and somebody had to tell me about the title track. It appears the same is true for this set as well, as sad as that is.
There is some really good music on this disc. It follows the lead set by "Adventures..." with programmed drums and lots of synthesizers - only moreso.
My favorite is "State Your Mind" - a song with a strong steady beat, as if former Chic drummer Tony Thompson was holdin' it down. Nile delivers another great guitar solo on this tune. The chorus is sung with the type of deliberation that Chic used in "Give Me The Lovin". There is a timeless quality to this song - it almost could have made the cut for Chic's later CD, "Chic-ism" which was out in 1992!
The most commercially oriented cut, "Let's Go Out Tonight" features Chic vocalist Alfa Anderson. It features a touch of Japan including Japanese rap.
"Groove Master" is a synthed-out track highlighting Nile's skills on bass and guitar, while "Stay Out of the Light" takes it a step farther with a spaced-out, Twighlight Zone sound. With its chorus repeated over and over, it manages to evoke earlier Chic cuts like "So Fine" from "Take It Off", "City Lights" from "Tongue In Chic", and "You Got Some Love For Me" from "Believer".
"Wavelength", the ballad, is breezy and relaxed compared to the kinetic energy of some of the other cuts.
This CD has pretty good production quality for a disc that was released years ago. A small strip across the upper left corner announces that this is a digital recording - which was a big deal in those days. There is also the ever-present reverberation of the "Chic sound" - after all, Nile Rodgers is one of the two masterminds behind that sound!
It's a shame that this album went largely ignored; this is fun music! The contrast of synthesizers/drum machines/vocal effects against Nile's guitar makes for a unique sound that's irresistibly music to my ears!