Turn This Mutha Out
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Album Summary
Turn This Mutha Out arrived in 1977 on Kudu Records, the soul-jazz and funk-leaning subsidiary of CTI Records that had built a reputation for lush, groove-heavy productions throughout the decade. The album was helmed by producer Bob James, whose ear for blending jazz sophistication with dancefloor heat made him the perfect architect for this session. Idris Muhammad — born Leo Morris in New Orleans — had spent years as one of the most sought-after drummers in New York, lending his thunder to artists across jazz, soul, and R&B. With this record, Muhammad stepped fully into the spotlight as a bandleader, and the timing could not have been more right, catching that beautiful late-seventies wave where jazz, funk, disco, and soul were all swirling together into something that felt like the future.
Reception
- The album found a warm and receptive audience within the jazz-funk and soul-jazz market, drawing fans from both the loyal CTI and Kudu followings and the wider funk scene that was very much alive and kicking in the late 1970s.
- Critics took note of the title track's irresistible groove, with Muhammad's drumming singled out as the rhythmic engine driving the record's dancefloor power and infectious energy.
- The album did important work in establishing Muhammad as more than a sideman, proving he could carry a commercially accessible jazz-funk session as the featured artist and bandleader.
Significance
- The album stands as a prime example of the late-1970s jazz-funk aesthetic that Kudu Records championed — music that honored the discipline and swing of acoustic jazz while embracing the heat and momentum of soul and disco without apology.
- Muhammad's performance on this record has been cited by DJs and producers as a foundational document of funk drumming, a record that lived in crates and influenced the rhythm-forward thinking of a generation of music makers.
- Turn This Mutha Out represents a meaningful chapter in the broader story of jazz musicians navigating the commercial landscape of the late 1970s, demonstrating that artistic integrity and dancefloor relevance were never mutually exclusive.
Samples
- "Turn This Mutha Out (Part 1)" — one of the most heavily sampled cuts in Idris Muhammad's catalog, with its drum breaks and basslines mined extensively by hip-hop producers across multiple decades of sampling culture.
Tracklist
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A Turn This Mutha Out (Part 1) —
3:40
-
B Turn This Mutha Out (Part 2) —
3:55
Artist Details
Idris Muhammad was a New Orleans-born drumming genius who came up through the church and the clubs before setting the jazz and soul world on fire, laying down some of the funkiest, most deeply swinging grooves the world had ever heard across recordings for labels like Prestige and CTI throughout the 1970s. His 1977 album *Power of Soul* became a cornerstone of the rare groove and hip-hop sampling culture, with tracks so infectious they practically forced your body to move, and his work as a sideman with legends like Lou Donaldson and Pharoah Sanders cemented his reputation as one of the most versatile and spiritually driven percussionists of his generation. Born Leo Morris, he took the name Idris Muhammad after converting to Islam, and his entire musical journey stands as a testament to the deep spiritual and cultural transformations that shaped Black American music from the civil rights era right on through the soul jazz renaissance.
