Redbone ~ Come And Get Your Love 1973 Disco Purrfection Version

The 70's are very special to me, every song from that time seems burnt into my saturday night fevered little brain, every song with a beat made me wanna move my feet. The pop charts and top 40 FM radio supplied me with tons of danceable and memorable music. This one is a true delight, a relentlessly upbeat, hook filled rock tune that put out the universal call to come and get it! Not too many people resisted, it still sounds super great today! Redbone first came to my attention with their "Witch Queen Of New Orleans" a 1972 swamp rock tune that peaked at #21. Inspired by friend Jimi Hendrix to put together a Native American rock band, brothers Lolly and Pat Vegas along with Tony Bellamy (born Anthony Avila) and Peter DePoe, secured a record contract with his help and their debut LP, "Redbone" was released in 1970 on Epic Records. Their first charting single, "Maggie", from their second LP, "Potlach" peaked at #80 for two weeks in December, 1970. The name Redbone was chosen since it meant a mixed race person in Cajun, which paid tribute to their Native American roots and the mixed races of the band members. The duo had already released an album, "Pat & Lolly Vegas at the Haunted House" in 1966, and also composed "Niki Hoeky" a #23 pop hit for PJ Proby in 1967. Their third LP, "Message From A Drum" contained "Witch Queen Of New Orleans" and paved the way for the runaway #5 pop success of "Come And Get Your Love" from their fourth LP, "Wovoka". It made me swell with pride at my own Native American ancestry, being born a full blooded Huron Indian and having them to look up to. At the time, the plight of the American Indians and the injustices they suffered throughout the development of the United States was making headlines. "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee", written by Dee Brown was about the massacre of the Lakota Indians in 1890 had became a flashpoint in 1970 and opened the eyes of many Americans to the price that was paid for the birth of the United States. To address this issue, Redbone released a song entitled "We Were All Wounded At Wounded Knee" as a non album single to commemorate the needless death of nearly 500 men, women and children of the Lakota. US radio totally ignored the politically charged song because they felt that the subject matter was distasteful and controversial, with several radio chains banning the song. Sadly, Redbone lost their radio magic and never charted again. "Come And Get Your Love" was given an updated arrangement by Real McCoy in 1995 and that version peaked at #19. They experienced another resurgence in 2014 when their signature hit was included in "The Guardians Of The Galaxy" movie and soundtrack. The song benefited from the expert hand of Gene Page who arranged the strings here, and on most of Barry White's productions. Genius indeed! Bellamy passed away on Christmas Day, 2009 succumbing to liver failure and Lolly Vegas died the following year due to lung cancer. Pat continues to perform with Redbone to this day.