Eddie Hazel – Game, Dames and Guitar Thangs (Coloured Vinyl)

If there are guitarists in your circle of friends, take this little test. Ask them if they're familiar with Eddie Hazel's "Game, Dames and Guitar Thangs." The chances that their eyes will widen, followed by an exclamation like "I thought I was the only one who knew that record!" are pretty high.

Indeed, knowledge of this relatively obscure album is something of a secret handshake among experts, as the guitar work on this opus is simply incredible. But you had to be a badass to play in a band with George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell and the rest of the Parliament / Funkadelic mothership - and that's exactly where 17-year-old Eddie Hazel found himself in 1967, as the new guitarist for the Parliaments.

AllMusic rating: