Alex Henderson

Mtume
Juicy Fruit (Expanded Edition]

Philadelphia-born producer, songwriter, percussionist and keyboardist James Mtume has a long list of accomplishments, from his years with the legendary jazz trumpeter Miles Davis to the major hits he co-wrote for Stephanie Mills, the late Phyllis Hyman, Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway, and others. Mtume and guitarist Reggie Lucas were quite a team in the late 1970s and early 1980s: together, they wrote and produced gems that included “What Cha Gonna Do with My Lovin’” and “Never Knew Love Like This Before” for Mills and “You Know Love to Love Me” and “Under Your Spell” for Hyman. Together, Mtume and Lucas also wrote the Flack/Hathaway hit “Back Together Again,” although sadly, Hathaway wasn’t around to see the song climb the charts (the soul icon committed suicide in January 1979, and “Back Together Again” wasn’t a hit until after his death). 

But if R&B lovers are asked to pinpoint the song that James Mtume is best known for, many of them will instinctively respond “Juicy Fruit.” Written and produced by James Mtume for his band Mtume, that sexy, funky, medium-tempo groove soared to #1 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart in the United States in 1983 and helped the band’s fourth album (which came out on Epic Records and was also titled Juicy Fruit) reach #3 on Billboard’s R&B albums chart. That single was sampled by numerous rappers in the 1990s, ranging from the late Christopher Wallace, a.k.a. the Notorious B.I.G., on his 1994 hit “Juicy” to Warren G on “Do You See,” AMG on “Leather and Wood” and UTFO on “Lollipop.” And 32 years after its initial release, “Juicy Fruit” continues to be the single that Philadelphia native Tawatha Agee (who was featured on lead vocals) is best known for.

James Mtume, however, was making a name for himself long before 1983. Born James Forman in Philly on September 27, 1946, he is the son of tenor saxophonist Jimmy Heath and a nephew of drummer Albert “Tootie” Heath and acoustic bassist Percy Heath. Together, Jimmy Heath, Albert Heath and Percy Heath comprised the Heath Brothers, who established themselves as jazz royalty when James Mtume was growing up. Coming from such a musical family had a major impact on him: from 1971-1975, James Mtume played instrumental jazz-rock fusion with Miles Davis. And during that period, he appeared on well-known Davis albums that included On the Corner, Big Fun, Get Up with It, Agharta, Dark Magus, Pangaea and In Concert: Live at Philharmonic Hall. In fact, James Mtume and Reggie Lucas played together in Davis’ band before they wrote and produced any hits for Mills or Hyman.

By 1977, James Mtume was determined to record as a leader and formed a band of his own. The band Mtume took a jazz-oriented approach on its first album, Rebirth Cycle, in 1977 before shifting their focus to soul and funk. In 1978, the band’s second album, Kiss the World Goodbye, marked the arrival of Agee, who was also featured on 1980’s In Search of the Rainbow Seekers (the band’s third album). None of those albums contained any blockbusters, although 1980’s infectious “Give It On Up (If You Want To)” was a #26 R&B/#30 dance hit in Billboard in the United States. Then came the band’s fourth album, Juicy Fruit, which is widely regarded as not only their most commercially successful album, but also, their most essential.

Juicy Fruit’s title track was somewhat controversial in its day thanks to the lyrics, “I’ll be your lollipop, you can lick me everywhere.” Although those lyrics are tame compared to some of the raunchy, sexually explicit lyrics that Prince, the 2 Live Crew and Ice-T came out with in the 1980s, Mtume also recorded a milder version of their single and replaced “you can lick me everywhere” with “candy kisses everywhere.”

The infectious funk groove “Would You Like To (Fool Around)” became Juicy Fruit’s second best known single, reaching #11 R&B in Billboard in the U.S.—and funk is also on the menu when the band digs into “Hips,” “Ready for Your Love,” “Green Light,” “Your Love’s Too Good (To Spread Around)” and the George Clinton-influenced “Hip Dip Skippedabeat.” The p-funk influence on “Hip Dip Skippedabeat” is not surprising considering that one of the guests on Juicy Fruit is keyboardist Bernie Worrell, best known for his association with Parliament/Funkadelic founder George Clinton. Other guests include keyboardist David Frank and guitarist Mic Murphy—who, together, comprised the 1980s synth-funk duo The System—and saxophonist Gary Bartz, a fine jazz improviser who is also known for all the R&B session work he did in the 1970s and 1980s. 

Juicy Fruit came at a time when funk was becoming increasingly high-tech: horn-driven funk bands were going out of style, and funksters were incorporating more synthesizers, keyboards, sequencers and drum machines. This album reflects that evolution. Juicy Fruit isn’t totally electronic, but keyboards are prominent on all of the selections—and Bartz is the only horn player on board. 

In 1984, the band Mtume followed up Juicy Fruit with another major album: You, Me and He, which climbed to #5 on Billboard’s R&B albums chart in the United States. The title track became a #2 R&B hit, making it the band’s biggest hit next to “Juicy Fruit.” Then, in 1986, came the band’s final album, Theater of the Mind. After Mtume’s breakup, Agee pursued a solo career with her album, Welcome to My Dream (which was co-produced by James Mtume and released by Epic in 1987). FunkytownGrooves reissued Welcome to My Dream in 2010.

Agee didn’t record any more solo albums after Welcome to My Dream but has kept busy as a background vocalist. One of her most high-profile background gigs of the 1990s and 2000s was her work as part of the Lovely Ladies, the female vocal trio that has backed the Dave Matthews Band on tour.

James Mtume celebrated his 68^th birthday on September 27, 2014. The Philadelphian has much to be proud of, and that includes the Juicy Fruit album and its smash title track.

—Alex Henderson, March 2015

Alex Henderson’s work has appeared in Billboard, Spin, Salon.com, Creem, The L.A. Weekly, AlterNet, JazzTimes, Jazziz, Cash Box, HITS, CD Review, Skin Two, Black Beat, The Pasadena Weekly, Black Radio Exclusive (BRE), Music Connection, The New York City Jazz Record, Jazz Inside Magazine and many other well-known publications. Henderson (alexvhenderson.com) also contributed several thousand CD reviews to the popular Allmusic.com website and The All Music Guide’s series of music reference books.