Where'd you get your Funk from?

[JimmyM]

All that 70's funk was my benchmark.

 

[nolaguy]

I discovered the funk as a kid when I heard my first Beastie Boys. That opened me up to some great 80's Hip Hop where I got most my funk from. Ala Tribe Called Quest. I then got more into rock and the 80's metal. Freshman Year of College I discovered Mike Gordon and Phish (not to mention some other things that will be left out). Phish and the jamband scene led to me expanding my mind into so many different genre's that I normally would have dismissed. These days for me it's mostly about old school funk, 60's and 70's. Lately I have been gettin into David Hood. Dude is the White Jamerson if ya ask me. Here's a nice example:

White Jamerson- Bob Babbitt owns that title.

 

[nolaguy]

Dead at 26 of a heart attack, probably connected to his heroin addiction. I'd nearly forgotten about him, thanks so much for posting.

Not a bassist- I believe Lucky Scott and Phil Upchurch handle bass on this. Baby Huey also weighed 400 pounds, which also may have contributed to his early demise.

 

[consectaneus]

They called themselves the Funk Brothers, the bass the Funk Machine, and Jamerson carved the word into the neck heel of his Precision. "Formally" speaking, what I know comes from my study of the Standing In The Shadows book and listening to a lot of Duck Dunn, Jemmott, and others of that ilk. I personally think of that more as R&B or Soul music, and "Funk" as something more....well, "funky".

As a child of the '70s, I was exposed to many of the classic bands already mentioned. The Ohio Players and Rufus stand out.

Again, I don't know if it qualifies, but I have learned most of the lines off the Super Fly soundtrack with (I believe) the above mentioned Lucky Scott. A favorite album.

 

[Radio]

My first concert was Dr Hook and the Medicine Show at the Oakdale Theatre in Wallingford CT many moons ago.
These guys were the opener..


By the 80s i was lovin P funk, Slave, Gap band, Brass Construction, TOP, Con funk shun, t connection, isleys, EWF and this guy..

Tha must have been when the Oakdale was a "theater in the round," the band spinning around one way, then the other. Rufus with C. khan is awesome.

 

[jerry]

I'm still looking, I know it's around here somewhere.

 

[Radio]

I got it from where everyone else got it, but also looked for others influenced by Nawlins funk, like Little Feat


Here's one with a 3-2 clave, and Kenny Gradney killing it on bass


When I was coming up, before "funk" there was music we called funky, like Wilson Pickett's Funky Broadway and Mustang Sally, but we knew, WE KNEW that James Brown had the sound.
Here's FB, which JB also covered:


OK, back to the regularly scheduled programming on our origins of funk.

 

[ritz]

The Bar-Kays

 

[Tom Bomb]

 

[Tjazz5]

Make my Funk the P-Funk.

This a classic! We were true funkateers back in the day!

 

[Tjazz5]

The Bar-Kays

Loved this album growning up, some of the earliest bass lines I learned were on this record.

 

[5StringBlues]

My sisters were bringing home the James Brown records around the same time my folks were bringing me home.

 

[LadyLoveStingRay5]

From my momma!! I was born with it.

Exactly!! You're either born with it or you're not.

 

[ritz]

 

[Tjazz5]

Used to bump this on the regular!

 

[OnTheOneBaby]

Gotta present couple of acts which have given me tons of funk.
Normally synthbass doesn't much tickle my funk sensors (except, of course, Bernie), but Johnny Guitar Watson oozes so much funk, that whatta hell.



Funk Inc. has somewhat jazzier attitude with a message. Nice guitars & horns. Love the drummer.

 

[ajkula66]

Anything and everything that has Larry Graham's name attached to it.

Jerry "Wyzard" Seay

George Anderson

Derek Forbes

 

[DavidG]

Ready Freddie Washington! What an awesome cat! I caught him w Steely Dan a few years back and waited ALL NIGHT to see that Smith BT-5 relieve his P-Bass... it never did!

Saw Steely Dan in NYC two nights ago and had exactly the same experience!
Ran into Freddie after the show. I said "Freddie, great show, bit I waited two hours for you to reach for the Ken Smith!"
He shrugged and smiled and said something to the effect that they didn't call the tune(s) that he uses that on.
Freddie was great, as was the whole band, especially Keith Carlock on drums. They played "Aja" in it's entirety and he really nailed those signature Steve Gadd parts.

 

[Brother Goose]

Saw Steely Dan in NYC two nights ago and had exactly the same experience!
Ran into Freddie after the show. I said "Freddie, great show, bit I waited two hours for you to reach for the Ken Smith!"
He shrugged and smiled and said something to the effect that they didn't call the tune(s) that he uses that on.
Freddie was great, as was the whole band, especially Keith Carlock on drums. They played "Aja" in it's entirety and he really nailed those signature Steve Gadd parts.

I can't imagine what those tickets were... they played 'Cuse on earlier this month and seats STARTED @ $100

Freddie W is a total kung-fun badA** and I would have been totally cheesed to have heard him stretch a bit... but what can ya do?

Speaking of the classic Smith sound- here is a clip of Gouche played a BT-5 w Gladys Knight and destroying words. IWHO that the sound is fatter than his MTD (or Tobias at the time) sound but I know many players who have gone from Smith to MTD and haven't looked back.



Shoot- I'll aspire to own BOTH someday

 

[DavidG]

I can't imagine what those tickets were... they played 'Cuse on earlier this month and seats STARTED @ $100

Didn't pay a penny! A friend called me the night before and said he had two free tix. Apparently he knows Walter Becker or something. We were in the 6th row. Totally out of the blue.
Steely Dan was never one of my bands but of course I knew all the tunes and was glad I went. Always good to see great players live.