Silk Degrees

Hitting stores today is the expanded remaster of the Boz Scaggs classic Silk Degrees. Originally released in 1976, it is slick, mainstream American rock with a touch of blue eyed soul, definitely of it's era. It is also disco kissed - the beats, string arrangements and backing vocals are all influenced by the then thriving disco era. The backing band is notable, featuring Steely Dan session players David Paich on keys and Jeff Porcaro on drums, as well as David Hungate on bass. It was during these recording sessions that these 3 cooked up their future band, Toto. Little Feat's Fred Tackett plays guitar. The end result is a collection of Texas blues pop songs given the LA session treatment. When I was a kid I was enamored of the big hits from this album, although I never bought it at the time. Today is the time. I now own a copy, and so without further ado enjoy the classic disco vibe of Lowdown and the rocking, horn filled boogie of Lido Shuffle - killer synth solo alert!