Eddie Hazel - From the Bottom of my Soul
A rousting twelve minute extended jam session transforms into one of the most beautiful, profound & memorable guitar solo's ever from Eddie Hazel. The Funkadelic guitarist has been acclaimed up there with the likes of Hendrix, Curtis Mayfield & Prince as being one of the most talented guitarist's of his time. Standout performances on tracks like Maggot Brain & Good Thoughts, Bad Thoughts prove that he was an exceptional virtuoso of his g-tar.
Hazel battled for years from drug addiction & was imprisoned for assaulting an airline stewardess. After releasing producing his own solo project: Games, Dames & Guitar Thangs which offered an incredible power soul/funk cover of California Dreaming- which in my opinion is one of the best covers of all time-Eventually he stopped making music & occasionally did guest appearances on several George Clinton album's including: You Shouldn't Nuf Bit Fish. He sadly died in 1992 two days before Christmas from liver failure & never achieved the fame he truly deserved. On the contrary in 1994 a short ep entitled: Jams From The Heart showcased new work which he had started on a possible follow up album? The quality of tracks resemble bedroom recordings as it was recorded in his own home studio. The tracks are indeed earlier demos/jam sessions that showcase a change in direction was in motion.
Hazel battled for years from drug addiction & was imprisoned for assaulting an airline stewardess. After releasing producing his own solo project: Games, Dames & Guitar Thangs which offered an incredible power soul/funk cover of California Dreaming- which in my opinion is one of the best covers of all time-Eventually he stopped making music & occasionally did guest appearances on several George Clinton album's including: You Shouldn't Nuf Bit Fish. He sadly died in 1992 two days before Christmas from liver failure & never achieved the fame he truly deserved. On the contrary in 1994 a short ep entitled: Jams From The Heart showcased new work which he had started on a possible follow up album? The quality of tracks resemble bedroom recordings as it was recorded in his own home studio. The tracks are indeed earlier demos/jam sessions that showcase a change in direction was in motion.
In the middle of the EP the track From the Bottom of my Soul rests as an penultimate track but realistically it feels more like a climax. The track is totally different to the aggressive funk workout's as this feels more spiritually & emotionally charged over those tracks. The song itself is a true slow burner in the truest sense-which then blossoms into a truly stunning, beautiful piece of extended soloing and guitar playing which fans of guitar playing will appreciate. His vocals are profoundly moving & truly sound like they were indeed coming directly from the bottom of his soul,at the time of the recording. It feels almost as if you can hear the pain inside of him & a realization that he was recording this for himself plus possibly coming to terms that where he was at was possibly the best he was likely to achieve in his lifetime? I'll leave that for you to decide.
RIP EDDIE HAZEL. Your music lives on in the hearts and souls of all music fans and myself!
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