The Counts (1971) What's Up Front That-Counts +1 (Westbound Records 2023)

The Counts released their second album, What’s Up Front That Counts, in 1971 on Westbound Records.

The album shifts their focus toward longer, hard-driving funk workouts with a rough Detroit edge, balancing stretched-out jams with compact vocal numbers. It appeared as their first under the shortened name after initial releases as the Fabulous Counts.

Keyboardist Mose Davis wrote three songs (“Rhythm Changes,” “Thinking Single,” and “Bills”). Guitarist Leroy Emanuel contributed “Why Not Start All Over Again.” All five members co-wrote the title track, while saxophonist Demo Cates and vocalist Raoul Keith Mangrum share credits on that piece.

The opening cut, “What’s Up Front That Counts,” runs nearly eight minutes with organ-led riffs, wah-toned guitar, and alternating vocal chants. “Rhythm Changes” rides clipped piano phrases across a taut rhythmic base. Emanuel’s “Why Not Start All Over Again” extends into a six-minute vamp with sharp brass accents, while Davis alternates between brisk, riff-centered funk (“Bills”) and more fluid movements on “Thinking Single” and “Pack of Lies.”