As mentioned in my review for The Aura Will Prevail, I came to George Duke via his work with Frank Zappa, so when I began seeking out his solo material I was searching for music with a likeminded mentality. Not the overt humor so much, but the “eyebrows” as Zappa himself would put it. As the second of two releases Duke put out in 1975, I Love The Blues, She Heard My Cry is a gorgeous title, subtly hiding the eyebrows that are in plain sight when you put the actual record on. Featuring huge cast of rotating musicians, including a number of vets from Zappa’s band, this album eases up on the jazz fusion and proggy elements of the previous record just enough to let the rock in. There’s still a whirlwind of influences at play, and out of the trio of records I own from Duke, this is the one I go back to the most.

“Chariot” kicks the album off with a funky bang, bringing back Leon “Ndugu” Chancler on drums but replacing Alphonso Johnson with Tom Fowler on bass. We also get some scorching guitar on the track thanks to jazz great Lee Ritenour. It’s a short burst of funky fun, and it gets even better with “Look Into Her Eyes” which moves from jazz fusion and Latin percussion (yup, Airto Moreira is back) to a slinky, greasy shuffle featuring another killer guitar solo courtesy of George Johnson. Throughout Duke’s vocals continue to be a highlight, using his whispery high register to lay down the melodies while spreading his keyboards across the soundstage. I love the call and response between Duke and Flora Purim, another Brazilian musician known for her fusion work.

Things slow down a bit for “Sister Serene”, letting Duke’s synthesizers take the lead against a mellow backdrop with superb bass work from Byron Lee Miller. The cast of players is long, and despite not having a single until go through the tunes there’s still a sense of cohesion at play throughout I Love The Blues, owing to how locked in Duke and Chancler – the only other real mainstay – are. “That’s What She Said” is a straight-up fusion jam, filled with the kind of melodies Zappa would routinely inject into his songs, but with a virtuosic swing that only comes with a group of seasoned jazz vets allowed to let loose. It’s the only time we get to hear Daryl Stuermer on guitar, who played live for Genesis and rips a sublime solo here. Next up is the brief percussive and sinister “Mashavu” which sounds like terrified cats stuck in a pipe. It’s just short enough that I don’t skip it, but it’s by far the weakest track on the album. The side ends with the tongue-in-cheek caterwaul (in a good way this time) “Rokkinrowl, I Don’t Know”. Fowler and Ritenour return and despite the overt garage rock vibe, Duke can’t help but throw in little fusion flourishes that amp up the simplistic song structure.

Side B opens with another great blend of jazz funk fusion, and I really like the way “Prepare Yourself” intersperses these moments of drama in Duke’s funky vamps. Byron Lee Miller’s bass is enormous, and like The Aura Will Prevail, I’m really taken with how much Duke allows his band to shine through, never solely hogging the spotlight.

I don’t know if you’d call it the highlight of I Love The Blues, She Heard My Cry like I do, but the thematic centerpiece is certainly “Giant Child Within Us – Ego”. There’s an immediate tonal shift here, as it’s the first time we get Duke on acoustic piano, laying out the primary melody. Then some serious rejoicing on my end, because this is where everyone shows up, starting with the incredible Ruth Underwood, whose marimba playing here is unmistakeable. If any track here could be called Zappa-esque, it’s this one, aided by the fact Underwood and Bruce Fowler (Tom’s MIA on this track, ceding the bass duties to Duke’s pedals) show up to add their touches to the track. Besides the Zappa influence, I can also hear some Mahavishnu Orchestra in the way Duke arranges the instrumentation and whips through some of those fiery lead lines.

“Someday” is another fantastic Duke vocal piece, his keyboards doubling his voice as he rises up right before the second verse. It’s a brief by lovely song, giving us a touch of space before diving into the final track, and really the only blues number on the album. “I Love The Blues, She Heard My Cry” is also our last Zappa touchstone, showcasing the guitar and vocals of Johnny “Guitar” Watson who was always a delight when he’d show up on a Zappa track. Loose and rambling in the best way a blues track can be, it’s a great way to end I Love The Blues, She Heard My Cry and an excellent capper to a banner year for Duke, 50 years ago.