The obvious problem in compiling a greatest hits record is determining which hits of the band in question are their greatest. In the case of Chocolate Milk, the New Orleans funk band who came on the scene in 1975 with the strong single “Action Speaks Louder Than Words” (the song peaked at #15 on the R&B charts, according to the liner notes), the daunting task of compiling a greatest hits record is exacerbated by the band’s somewhat uneven output.

Ice Cold Funk certainly has a selection of deep funk, including “Comin’,” and the smooth “Girl Callin’,” penned by Allen Toussaint and infused with rock-solid groove, a funky horn riff and slick syncopation that punctuates so much New Orleans funk. The song reached #14 on the R&B charts, but Chocolate Milk soon slipped into a more pop-oriented R&B sound, perhaps hoping to garner a larger national following by losing the more gritty and unique New Orleans influence. “Groove City” is more sappy than smooth, and almost all of the band’s later output is so laden with disco claps and generic beats it’s all too easy to write off Chocolate Milk as a period-piece that can’t exist outside the disco realm.

Although Ice Cold Funk emphasizes the earlier singles of Chocolate Milk’s ten-year career, the (necessary) inclusion of songs from the ’80s denies new listeners a more complete sampling of the band’s early raw funk sound. Unfortunately, since Chocolate Milk’s original RCA releases are all but impossible to find, except for serious vinyl collectors, Ice Cold Funk is all the Chocolate Milk most listeners can taste unless there’s a re-release of Actions Speak Louder Than Words.