Where have all the flowers gone?
Hot Chocolate were so much of a singles band they didn't get around to making an album until five years after their first hit. It was worth waiting for though. That 1974 debut "Cicero Park" was obviously influenced by the whole Superfly/Shaft sound and the socially-concious attitude of soul music at the time but it still sounded very Hot-Chocolatey - partly down to the really excellent production by Mickie Most. It's not exactly groovy party music though. The album included the moody singles "Emma" (suicide!) and "Brother Louie" (racism!) and the title track is even heavier with it's murky groove and dark lyrics. There's me thinking "Cicero Park" is probably some patch of grass on a council estate but for Errol Brown it's a metaphor for the death of love and hope. For someone who wrote such snappy tunes he sure could be a miserable bastard.
Needless to say this great album is out print but this track is included on "The Essential Collection" along with another cut, "Could Have Been Born In The Ghetto."
[Download]
Cicero Park - Hot Chocolate
6 Comments:
As Quasimodo once said, "It started with a cyst".
Haven't heard this for over 30 years, and I still recall hearing 'Emma' for the first time. If ever there was a sound that summed up the 70s, it's this lot. The Chocolate was Hot, til it cooled to a lumpy luke-warm in later days.
Nice work Lee.
this is AWESOME thanks!!!!
Wow!I recall hearing 'Emma' and 'Brother Louie'...possibly on TOTP...Radio 1...Radio Luxembourg...on lo-fi medium wave BUSH transistor radio...cool singles...the famous pop hits are,well'famous'...but this is THE SHIT!
only a couple weeks ago i realized how great of a song "You Sexy Thing" is.
it's a culturally-ambient song but it never really got my attention until a roommate was playing it recently, as part of a colossal dance-mix.
and now this.
(great site by the way, i can't stress that enough)
and i had actually never even heard of "Hot Chocolate" until recently.
(i'm a little young and ignorant.)
i heard the song through several layers of walls, and thought to myself, "This is awesome. Is that Al Green? It sounds exactly like Al Green."
keep in mind the sound was muffled aross the apartment. some of the harmony and production of You Sexy Thing sounded undeniably al green, and even the vocals make me think of a slightly coked-up al green with a megaphone. (especially the jump to the high notes on "MIRAcles")
Excellent choice! I love this song and am glad to see you praising it. Of course this song will be in Heaven :)
Matt
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