This year marks the 35th anniversary of Vivid, a rule-breaking, ass-shaking, floor-quaking slab of rock ‘n’ roll brilliance from the mighty Living Colour. Much undulation, wagging of asses, and crowd surfing soon followed. Seriously, I openly defy you to stay still during “Glamour Boys”.
When Vivid was released in May of 1988, the band’s label, Epic Records, wasn’t entirely sure how to market the band. Elektra Records and Warner Brothers had previously turned the band down due to the belief that the band was “too rock” for the black audience and too, well “black” for the white audience. Was it rock? Was it funk? Was it jazz? Was it metal? In a word, yes, it was all of those things. In response to label confusion, Living Colour did what it’s always done best: it hit the road. Playing a batch of incendiary theater gigs that rivaled the famous CBGB gigs that got them signed in the first place, the band opened the eyes and ears of a whole new batch of fans.
Though the band’s lead single “Middle Man” kicked away at the doors of convention, it had stalled out on the charts quickly after its release. However, “Cult of Personality”, the frantic ‘mistake’ that was written during a rehearsal after guitarist Vernon Reid stumbled upon the now iconic riff while noodling around on a different song, knocked the doors clean off their hinges, catapulting the band into the rock ‘n’ roll stratosphere. An opening slot on the Rolling Stones’ Steel Wheels stadium tour followed, cementing the band as one of the biggest and best live acts around.
Pulling from their many influences, the members of Living Colour introduced a generation of myopic metalheads to jazz, funk, reggae, rap, and soul. Guest appearances by the legendary Mick Jagger, whom the band had met after Reid went to an open audition for Jagger’s next solo album (and who lent the band studio time during the Primitive Cool sessions while also producing “Glamour Boys” and “Which Way To America”) as well as hip-hop royalty Chuck D and Flavor Flav only added to the tapestry of sound put forth by the band. This wasn’t “rockin’ steady in her daddy’s car” or “hubcap diamond star halo”, though that all certainly has a special place in my heart. This was something altogether different —weightier.
Whether it was Corey Glover’s soulful vocal dexterity, Vernon Reid’s Ornette Coleman-meets-Eddie Hazel-meets-Eddie Van Halen guitar wizardry, Muzz Skillings’s intensely melodic-yet-complex bass thunder, or Will Calhoun’s undeniably funky, jazzy, fusion metal drum groove, Vivid sways, grooves, and bangs its head with reckless abandon. Living Colour doesn’t play music; the band becomes it, filtering it through the collective soul of the members, and attacking the listener with sound. This is music that makes you think at least as much as it makes you bob your head. If Basquiat, Pollock, De Kooning, and Picasso all painted away on the same canvas, the musical embodiment of such a display would be Living Colour.
35 years later, the band is as as vital as it was in ’88. The sound remains impeccable, the live shows are must-see, and the records are all required listening.
If you’ve not heard Vivid, do yourself a massive favor and give it a listen. If you have heard it, well, it’s probably time to hear it again. Fresh ears bring fresh feelings about an album so magically constructed.
Track List:
- Cult of Personality 10/10
- I Want To Know 10/10
- Middle Man 10/10
- Desperate People 10/10
- Open Letter (To A Landlord) 10/10
- Funny Vibe 8/10
- Memories Can Wait 8/10
- Broken Hearts 8/10
- Glamour Boys 9/10
- What’s Your Favorite Color? 8/10
- Which Way To America 8/10
Grade: 91
Illegal Foreign Object 
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