G. Love and Special Sauce: The Electric Mile : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

G. Love has always had his hands in the cookie jar of black culture. Yet he and his band Special Sauce have always done their plundering with taste, style and a deep affinity for the holy groove. So what are the boys "feelin'" these days? Soul, blues, reggae, hip-hop and a little country -- same as always. Electric Mile grooves along like one big outdoor party, where everyone is meant to have a funky good time. Tracks like "Unified" and "Night of the Living Dead" ooze with funk and feeling, and guest John Medeski's keyboards add spice to the mix. Fans of G. Love's lovably sloppy early albums may find Electric Mile a little too polished (note how Love no longer sounds like he's dropped his guitar pick every time he takes a solo), the trade-off a relatively simplistic band makes in trying to mature its sound. (EVAN SCHLANSKY -- April 24,2001)