(Editor’s Intro: DJ Monk One, Wax Poetics’ writer, mixtape specialist, collector, and all around nice dude, hit us with Milt Matthews’ ‘It Ain’t Your Fault’, comparing it to Thai food for its tempered approach. Read more on Monk to see how consistent and tasteful his output is. Thanks Mr. Mason!– DM)
Milt Matthews Inc. – ‘It Ain’t Your Fault’ (Commonwealth United, 1970)
The curious genre of Folk Funk is sort of like Thai food. If the delicate balance of disparate flavors isn’t correct, you’re left with an unpalatable mess. ‘It Ain’t Your Fault’ gets the ingredients just right, combining strummy guitar, honky-tonk piano and organ that could’ve come straight off a Band-era Dylan record with a hard hitting rhythm and a Otis Redding worthy vocal. A little sweet, a little sour, and addictively tasty.
Milt Matthews Inc. was a DC-area band who put out two LPs in 1970 and ’71. Though psych and rock collectors pay big money for their second record, I find the concoction a little heavy on the fuzz guitar and prefer the understated flavor of their first, from which this song is taken. – Andrew Mason
