War at Blue Note Tokyo, February 7th 2025

 

 

Not so long ago there was a big TV campaign from one of the two huge beer brands in Japan, I forgot if it was Asahi or Kirin, that used the song Why Can’t We Be Friends? In Japan, especially in the mainstream, things are much more appreciated when they are labeled as ‘safe’, this assumption doubles or triples when they are of foreign origin. This concept of ‘safe’ is in reality a sort of twisted sense of ‘non-threatening’, that makes, for example, someone that looks like Elon Musk embraced and admired. Of course, this is only my perception and I could be completely wrong, as I’ll prove later regarding the song discussed above. But when that song was used in that commercial, at that time, it reinforced my eschewed idea that War was sort of a "safe" take on seventies funk.

I was embarrassingly wrong, but for years I held on to that idea until I caved in and listened to the album The World Is a Ghetto. It was a revelation and now I consider it one of the best funk albums of the seventies. From what I've read it was the top selling album in the US in 1973, the year that Dark Side of the Moon was released. It’s really hard to believe when considering that the album includes two over ten minutes jams with extended jazzy passages, a hard hitting eight minutes song with a hypnotic slow beat, Latin elements and lots of psychedelia. It definitely stands out as being a defining moment of the era that enjoyed immense commercial success.

That era for the band, between 1971 and 1975, that produced four incredible albums, All Day Music, The World Is a Ghetto, Deliver the Word and Why Can’t We Be Friends?, is without a doubt their peak and that run of four albums is, in my opinion, one of the best runs of the seventies. Fast forward seventy years later and while their contemporaries, like Earth Wind and Fire are headlining multiple sold out shows at massive arenas, War is playing at small clubs. Internal turmoil in the nineties that split the original band in two camps, both of them arguing they are the authentic one, are to be blamed for this set of circumstances

One version of the band, the one that’s allowed to use the original name lead by Lonnie Jordan, is the one that came to Tokyo and played at the truly amazing venue the Blue Note. Jordan is the only original member in that band and even though War was renowned for being a band with multiple lead vocalists, he was probably the main one. As in the original lineup, the band includes a percussionist, a harmonica player and a sax player.

Lonnie Jordan stood front and center behind the keyboards. After a brief instrumental introduction they pretty much proceeded to play their amazing Greatest Hits album from 1976. Starting with the hard hitting and incredibly funky Me and Baby Brother. The hits kept on coming after that. Slipping Into Darkness, The Cisco Kid, All Day Music and an amazing version of The World Is a Ghetto with its signature alto sax solo, were among the incredible tunes from their catalog put on display that evening.

Sal Rodriguez, the drummer and member with the longest tenure in the band besides Jordan, took lead vocals for So. This ballad was another highlight of the evening. The band sounded tighter than tight, their musical chops are unquestionable, but one thing that to me was the absolute highlight were the vocal harmonies. I didn’t expect War to sound like The Beach Boys. There were a cappella moments that were goosebumps inducing. In the last song of the set each of the members took turn on lead vocals for each of the verses.

That song brings me full circle to the beginning of the article. Why Can’t We Be Friends was the song. I mentioned my reservations with that song. The lyrics are still somewhat cheesy, but witnessing it live made me appreciate what an incredibly effective and moving pop tune is. Infectious and yes, funky.

Lonnie Jordan is an entertainer, the whole band are. There’s an allure of old-school casino circuit type of entertainment that was evident. There’s also the question of whether we’re seeing a tribute band. I’d say that when the quality of the catalog is that high and the sound so unique, all those notions take the backseat. It was a really fun show and it was at Blue Note, my first visit since 2018. It was great to be there for War. And they were nothing but "safe".
 
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