Back in July 1975, when roaming Milwaukee's Summerfest grounds, trying to sneak into Shank Hall for a beer, and searching out heavy rock while wearing the quintessential "Disco Sucks" t-shirt, it would have been unconscionable for me to own KC and the Sunshine Band. Even thinking about it would have been the equivalent of suicide amongst peers.
But in retrospect, it's an amusing record. With so many 70s rock platters being remastered to death, I applaud Mobile Fidelity for having the guts to step so far out of the audiophile box and produce something this much fun. And since I happened to have an early pressing on hand for comparison—Columbia House sent it as a Selection of the Month and I forgot to return it, honest—I was surprised at just how good this reissue sounds.
MoFi Silver Label, 140g LP
Of course, what really makes this record click are the three hits you know by heart: "That's the Way (I Like It)," "Boogie Shoes," and of course, "Get Down Tonight." Heavy with funk riffs and analog synth fills, KC and the Sunshine Band finally has some solid bass response—even if TONE's art director caught me goosing up the Gotham subwoofer's level control when cranking "Get Down Tonight." Given the additional bass energy, most of the murkiness from the original is gone, leaving behind some serious dynamic range. The original is so heavily compressed for radio play that it doesn't have more than a couple of dB total.
The end result moves to the top of my audiophile pressing guilty pleasure list. You know you want it too. —Jeff Dorgay