''Inspiration Information'' is the third album by

Shuggie Otis Johnny Shuggie Otis (born Johnny Alexander Veliotes Jr.; November 30, 1953) is an American singer-songwriter, recording artist, and multi-instrumentalist. Otis's composition " Strawberry Letter 23" as recorded by The Brothers Johnson topped ...

, who produced it and performed most of its instrumental parts. Released in 1974 on

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), cong ...

, it reached number 181 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

s Top 200 Pop Albums list, and its title track also reached number 56 on the U.S. R&B singles chart. The album was reissued in 2001 on the label

Luaka Bop Luaka Bop is a New York–based record label founded by musician David Byrne, former lead singer and guitarist for the art rock– new wave band Talking Heads. What began with Byrne making cassettes of his favorite Tropicália tracks for his fr ...

, receiving widespread acclaim.

Recording

''Inspiration Information'' was Otis' debut project as both an adult and a producer, having been a teenager backed on his two previous solo efforts by his father, R&B pioneer

Johnny Otis Johnny Otis (born Ioannis Alexandres Veliotes (Greek language, Greek: Ιωάννης Αλέξανδρος Βελιώτης)); December 28, 1921 – January 17, 2012) was a Greek American singer, musician, composer, bandleader, record producer, ...

. His relationship with Epic came under heavy scrutiny as he would take three years to finish ''Inspiration'' and fulfill his three-album contract; this would be the final release of Otis on the Epic label. The utilization of analog

drum machine A drum machine is an electronic musical instrument that creates percussion sounds, drum beats, and patterns. Drum machines may imitate drum kits or other percussion instruments, or produce unique sounds, such as synthesized electronic tones. A d ...

s gave ''Inspiration'' a newer electric sound that at the time was being used by only a handful of Otis' contemporaries, notably by

Sly Stone Sylvester Stewart (March 15, 1943 – June 9, 2025), better known by his stage name Sly Stone, was an American musician, songwriter and record producer. He was the frontman of Sly and the Family Stone, playing a critical role in the development ...

. ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' called the album "an intoxicating blend of

psychedelic soul Psychedelic soul (originally called black rock or conflated with psychedelic funk) is a form of soul music which emerged in the United States in the late 1960s. The style saw African-American soul musicians embrace elements of psychedelic rock, ...

and folky introspection, marked by a prescient use of

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductors * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic c ...

s." ''Pitchfork'' describes the sound of the album as a combination of "smooth, organ-driven California

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 ...

, quasi-

new age New Age is a range of Spirituality, spiritual or Religion, religious practices and beliefs that rapidly grew in Western world, Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclecticism, eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise d ...

psychedelia Psychedelia usually refers to a Aesthetics, style or aesthetic that is resembled in the psychedelic subculture of the 1960s and the psychedelic experience produced by certain psychoactive substances. This includes psychedelic art, psychedelic ...

, loungey

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

instrumentals, ndstring interludes—all propelled by the same kind of analog

that had piqued Ralf & Florian's interest at the same time.".

Release

The album commercially underperformed Epic's expectations and Otis was dropped from the label following its release. However, it garnered Otis comparisons to

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

and

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

, and reportedly impressed

. ''Inspiration'' was re-issued on CD by independent label

Records. This version, released on April 3, 2001, included the original album in its entirety as well as four songs taken from Otis' 1971 album '' Freedom Flight'', including "

Strawberry Letter 23 "Strawberry Letter 23" is a song written and composed by Shuggie Otis from his 1971 album '' Freedom Flight''. It is also widely known by the 1977 cover version recorded by the Brothers Johnson and produced by Quincy Jones. Lyrics The song's ...

". The album was re-released again in 2013 with four previously unreleased tracks from 1971: "Miss Pretty", "Magic", "Things We Like To Do" and "Castle Top Jam". The re-release also features a second CD entitled ''Wings Of Love'' featuring 14 previously unreleased live and studio tracks recorded by Shuggie between 1975 and 2000. Pitchfork rated the title track as its 149th best song of the 1970s.

Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings were an American funk and soul music, soul band signed to Daptone Records. They were part of a Retro-soul, revival movement of mid-1960s to mid-1970s style funk and soul music. They released their debut album Dap D ...

covered "Inspiration Information" on the 2009

Red Hot Organization ''Red Hot Organization'' (RHO) is a non-profit, 501(c) 3, international organization with goals to promote diversity through equal access to healthcare through pop culture. Since its inception in 1989, over 400 artists, producers and directors ...

compilation, ''

Dark Was The Night Dark Was the Night may refer to: *Dark Was the Night (album), ''Dark Was the Night'' (album), a 2009 compilation album *Dark Was the Night (2014 film), ''Dark Was the Night'' (2014 film), an American thriller film *Dark Was the Night (2018 film), ' ...

''.

Tracklist

Personnel

- Lead & Backing Vocals, Guitar, Bass, Drums, Organ, Piano, Electric Piano, Vibraphone, Percussion, Analog Drum Machines *Jack Kelso - Saxophones, Flute *Jeff Martinez - French Horn *Carol Robbins - Harp *Doug Wintz, Jim Prindle - Trombone *Curt Sletten, Ron Robbins - Trumpet *Barbara Porter, Brian Asher, D. Jones, J. Parker, Louis Rosen, Marcia Zeavin, N. Roth, Steve Boone, T. Ziegler - Strings

Charts

Singles

References

{{Authority control 1974 albums Psychedelic soul albums Shuggie Otis albums Epic Records albums Progressive soul albums Psychedelic funk albums