AMG Review of Super Bad

Stephen Thomas Erlewine
All Music Guide

Great American's 2009 release, Super Bad, rounds up a bunch of sides Don Covay cut in the early '70s, including selections from LPs and a bunch of stray tracks released during this era. Much of this music is so funky it's a bit rough -- the rhythms don't hold, chords slip, the sound is skinny, recording is thin -- but its appeal is its period vibe, right down to how he does a funky workout on Vanity Fare's "Hitchin' a Ride." Covay's considerable vocal skills are always evident, so much so that it's hard not to wish that Covay had a better set of songs or a bigger budget worthy of his talents, but there are enough good moments -- coming from Covay and his backing band -- to make this a good sampler of this forgotten era.