''Nasty Gal'' is the third

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...

musician Betty Davis. It was released in 1975 on

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

and was Davis' first album on a major label. It failed commercially upon release, and after the failure of this album Island Records shelved her planned follow-up, ''Is It Love or Desire?'', until 2009. Under pressure by the record company, Davis abandoned her music career altogether shortly after this album's release. It was reissued on Light in the Attic Records in 2009 on CD, and again in 2018 on colored vinyl in conjunction with

record club Record Club is a musical project initiated by Beck Hansen in June 2009. The purpose of the project is to cover an entire album by another artist in one day, using an informal and fluid collective of musicians. Albums covered as of July 2010 are T ...

Vinyl Me, Please, which has rekindled interest in the album by music critics and fans, generating favorable retrospective reviews.

Background

After the underground success of her previous two records, Davis toured extensively with a backup band called "Funk House" that included Nicky Neal, Larry Johnson, Fred Mills, and Carlos Morales. Her tours were marked by her exuding sexuality. When ABC acquired her previous label Just Sunshine and its parent distributor

Blue Thumb Records Blue Thumb Records was an American record label founded in 1968 by Bob Krasnow and former A&M Records executives Tommy LiPuma and Don Graham. Blue Thumb's last record was released in 1978. In 1995, the label was revived and remained active un ...

, Island Records approached Davis with a buyout offer. After accepting, Davis started working on new material for an album. On Davis' previous two albums, she relied on a multitude of

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

s, but felt a close connection with Funk House, so she chose to record the album with them instead.

Critical reception

Initial reviews for the album were unfavorable. Critics believed Davis' image eclipsed her actual talent. Davis had plans to release a fourth album, ''Is It Love or Desire?'', and even recorded a few tracks before being ultimately shelved by Island. These sessions, which had featured

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz pianist, keyboardist, bandleader, and composer. Hancock started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. He shortly thereafter joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he help ...

Chuck Rainey Charles Walter Rainey III (born June 17, 1940) is an American bass guitarist who has performed and recorded with many well-known acts, including Aretha Franklin, Steely Dan, and Quincy Jones. Rainey is credited for playing bass on more than 1,00 ...

, Alphonse Mouzon, among others, were released in 2009 by

Light in the Attic ''A Light in the Attic'' is a book of poems by American poet, writer, and musician Shel Silverstein. The book consists of 135 poems accompanied by illustrations also created by Silverstein. It was first published by Harper & Row Junior Books in 1 ...

. After becoming disillusioned with the music industry, Davis retired. After Light in the Attic reissued Davis' discography, contemporary reviews cropped up and have been much more positive, often noting that the album displays potential wasted by Island Records' dismissal of Davis' music and style.

Track listing

Charts

Personnel

Adapted from LP liner notes. *Betty Davis – vocals, producer, arrangement *Larry Johnson – bass guitar *Nicky Neal – drums, backing vocals *Fred Mills – keyboards, vocals on "Nasty Gal", backing vocals *Carlos Morales – lead guitar, lead vocals on "Gettin Kicked Off, Havin Fun", backing vocals *Errol Bennett – congas *James Allen Smith – synthesizer * Buddy Williams – bass drum * Gil Evans – conductor and arrangement on "You and I" *

Bob Clearmountain Bob Clearmountain (born January 15, 1953) is an American recording engineer, mixer and record producer. He has worked with many major acts, including Bruce Springsteen, the Rolling Stones, Toto, Bon Jovi and Bryan Adams, with whom he has a very ...

–

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

*Josea Rodriguez – mastering

References

{{Authority control 1975 albums Betty Davis albums