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In Heat

Having acquired the soubriquet "the walrus of love", Barry White thereafter became something of a figure of fun, something that misled me (and presumably others) into disregarding his music. Only within the last few years have I begun to pay it more attention. After picking up a copy of his '74 album Can't Get Enough last summer, which I loved, I sought out some of the music by his protegés Love Unlimited. From a Discogs seller I ordered well-used copies of Under the Influence of... ('73) and In Heat ('74) for only £6.25.

The only unappealing thing about In Heat is its awful title. The songs and the singing are strong; the arrangements rich & warmly enveloping. As one would expect from White, the thematic focus is firmly fixed on amatory matters. The opening number 'Move Me No Mountain' (the only one on the record not written by White) offers a refreshing rebuttal to the kind of lyrical hyperbole in songs like 'Ain't No Mountain High Enough' or 'River Deep, Mountain High'.

'Share A Little Love In Your Heart' is a leisurely stroll of a song with a delightful chorus; 'Oh I Should Say, It's Such A Beautiful Day' is a fine example of White's preference for a longer song-title, with its instrumental undergarmets including both wah-wah guitar and a hint of harpsichord. The centrepiece on Side B is the ballad 'I Belong to You' - the album's hit single. And the final track is a version of 'Love's Theme', originally an instrumental, but performed here with vocals on top of the a soft mattress of strings and a smoothly funky rhythm section.

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