Keem-O-Sabe
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Album Summary
The Electric Indian was a studio project assembled in Philadelphia in 1969, brought to life under the United Artists label and shaped by the production team working within the fertile Philly soul and funk ecosystem of the era. 'Keem-O-Sabe' was built around the irresistible title track — a wah-wah drenched, groove-heavy instrumental that fused Native American musical motifs with the raw funk and soul energy that was electrifying dance floors coast to coast. The album padded that signature sound with a collection of covers drawn from the hottest songs of the moment, including Marvin Gaye's 'I Heard It Through The Grapevine,' Blood Sweat and Tears' 'Spinning Wheel,' and soul staples like 'Only The Strong Survive' and 'My Cherie Amour,' all reinterpreted through the band's funky, horn-laced instrumental lens. It was the kind of record a DJ could pull out at any moment and watch the room come alive.
Reception
- The title track 'Keem-O-Sabe' was a genuine commercial breakthrough, climbing into the Top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 in 1969 and giving the project a moment of real mainstream visibility.
- The single performed particularly well on pop and easy listening charts, finding an audience that stretched beyond the soul and funk faithful who first embraced it.
- Critical reception at the time was modest, as instrumental funk records rarely received the ink that vocal-driven soul albums did, but the title track's chart run spoke louder than any review.
Significance
- 'Keem-O-Sabe' stands as a fascinating artifact of late 1960s crossover culture, blending funk instrumentation with Native American-inspired melodic elements in a way that was genuinely novel for mainstream American pop at the time.
- The album reflects the golden age of the instrumental soul and funk single, a format that dominated jukeboxes and radio alike before the album-oriented rock era shifted the industry's focus away from standalone groove records.
- As a Philadelphia-connected production, 'Keem-O-Sabe' sits in the lineage of the Philly sound taking shape in real time — a city whose studios and sessionmen were quietly laying the groundwork for one of the most influential musical movements of the 1970s.
Samples
- Keem-O-Sabe — one of the most recognizable funky instrumental singles of 1969, the title track has been sampled across hip-hop and electronic music productions drawn to its wah-wah guitar groove and percussive energy.
Tracklist
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A1 Keem-O-Sabe 87
2:10
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A2 I Heard It Through The Grapevine —
3:10
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A3 Spinning Wheel —
3:05
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A4 Storm Warning —
2:18
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A5 Rain Dance —
2:10
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B1 Geronimo —
5:15
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B2 Only The Strong Survive —
2:27
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B3 My Cherie Amour 116
3:12
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B4 What Does It Take To Win Your Love —
3:07
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B5 1-2-3 —
2:20
Artist Details
The Electric Indian was a studio project assembled in Philadelphia in 1968, brought together by producer John Madara and arranger Jerry Ross, cooking up an instrumental blend of funky soul, psychedelic rock, and Native American-flavored themes that landed them a genuine hit with their infectious track "Keem-O-Sabe," which climbed all the way to number 16 on the Billboard Hot 100 that same year. Their sound was a groovy, strings-and-fuzz-guitar concoction that fit perfectly into the late-60s easy listening and pop landscape, earning them a spot in the hearts of record buyers who couldn't get enough of that swirling, hypnotic groove. Though they never sustained a long career, "Keem-O-Sabe" remains a beloved slice of late-60s pop history, a testament to the era's wild creativity and willingness to blend cultures and sounds into something that made people move.
