Audio CD review:
Kid Creole & the Coconuts - Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places

Kid Creole & the Coconuts - Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places

Band: Kid Creole & the Coconuts Title: Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places Rating: Release Date: 19 August, 2002 Media: Audio CD Tracks: 1: Going Places 2: In the Jungle 3: Animal Crackers 4: I Stand Accused 5: Latin Music (Que Pasa) 6: Musica Americana 7: I Am 8: Schweinerei 9: Gina, Gina 10: With a Girl Like Mimi 11: Table Manners 12: Dear Addy 13: Table Manners [Remix Version][*] 14: Que Pasa/Me No Pop I [Coati Mundi 12" Mix][*]

Customer Reviews A Lost Treasure Way Ahead Of Its Time Its tropical cocktail of salsa, reggae, rap and disco was indeed way over the heads of listeners back in the early 80s; though well-received critically it didn't register a blip on the public consciousness. It was great to read the above reviews as I often felt I was the only one in the world who thought that "Fresh Fruit In Foreign Places" was a minor masterpiece (the best kind). It's a wildly imaginative concept album with bold Latin horn arrangements. Just try to find anything equal to the surging horn charts in "With A Girl Like Mimi" in pop music today. The playful, rhyming chorus of "I Am" would set the charts on fire if re-released as a single today (the dated Ayatollah reference notwithstanding). I had to dig through the dusty record bins to get to hear it again, but it's great to know that others don't have to do the same in order to enjoy the delightful ear candy of "Fresh Fruit" today. Classic Kid Creole They were probably way over the heads of most listeners despite their commercial potential. Kid Creole & the Coconuts were one of the most innovative and underrated bands of their era. Their first albums combine some of the best aspects of disco, new wave and early jazz. Not to mention the fact that their albums were uncommonly consistent and solid, listenable from start to finish. The genuinely funny and outré lyrics make even the less hooky songs fun. Their 1981 album Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places is an exhilarating and hypnotic listen. The All Music Guide reviewer called it 'esoteric' and 'an acquired taste', but this ignores the immediacy and catchiness of the material. Kid Creole seems to be a sort of living transportation of Cab Calloway to the disco era, with the same sort of manic energy, charisma and naughty feel. The music is quite similar to the wonderful work of Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band (part of that group went on to form the Coconuts). Kid Creole didn't suffer from the chunky, dated production values of his contemporaries, however, (at least not until his next album, 1983's Tropical Gangsters, which had strong melodies but was comparatively underwhelming) and his music sounds fresher than any other pop group of the era. Some highlights: the infectious Table Manners, the clever Animal Crackers, With a Girl like Mimi and In the Jungle. An amazing record - period. Though they are all worth picking up, "Fresh Fruit" really stands out to me as the best of those four. After hearing August Darnell (Kid Creole)'s production work on Cristina's debut album (and also helped along by memories of my father playing "Don't Take my Coconuts" a lot when I was a kid) I decided to give this band a real chance, and picked up all four of the ZE releases on vinyl. There is not one song on here that I can say I dislike. What really grabs me about it is that every song is different, stylistically, but still maintains a "sound" that connects all of them. Among the tracks, "Animal Crackers" (a reggae-ish number about customs denying entrance of such things as frosted flakes and coffee cakes), "Going Places", "I Am", "I Stand Accused" and "Table Manners" are my personal favorites, but this is not to discount the other amazing tracks. Darnell's lyrics are astounding once you pay attention to them, and the fusion of latin/r&b/disco/rock/caribbean/reggae is just unequalled by anyone else. Also, the bonus tracks make this worth buying alone. The 12" version of Table Manners is a godsend -- and the Coati Mundi track "Me No Pop I" is quite possibly the best thing to come out of Andy Hernandez. The remaster quality is insanely wonderful - so much detail brought out that the LP format tended to bury. I feel like I'm mumbling here - but this is just a landmark in modern music and it should be in everyone's collection regardless of their musical inklings. Intelligent, funny, groovin' -- just try to not be happy when listening to this. Awesome. . You can see a complete list of all Kid Creole & the Coconuts discography, or go back to the Kid Creole & the Coconuts tabs