Withthe 1980s came the stripped-down Funk era popularised by Rick James, Prince, Cameo, The Gap Band, Dazz Band, One Way, and a whole host of other bands with the same central rhythmic driving pattern incorporated with West African genetic origins. Particular mention must be made of Larry Graham, bass guitarist for Sly and the Family Stone, who revolutionised the slap-bass style which became a staple of Funk and R&B.įunk evolved progressively over the years: the 1970s was the P-Funk era, revolutionised by George Clinton with his bands Parliament and Funkadelic, followed by Bootsy Collins (who incidentally was James Brown’s bassist). Another pioneer of Funk was the phenomenal Sly and the Family Stone, whose hits “Sing a Simple Song”, “Thank You (For Letting Me Be Myself)” and “It’s a Family Affair”, became quintessential poster tunes of Funk music. His first hits employing the 1-2-3-4 downbeat pattern were “Out of Sight” (1964) and “Papa’s got a Brand New Bag” (1965), followed by “Get Up (Sex Machine)”. James Brown was instrumental in popularising Funk music as a genre, actively pushing Funk into the global consciousness. Upon Little Richard’s sabbatical from secular music into the gospel form, there was a mass migration of a large number of his sidemen, including the aforementioned Earl Palmer, into the stable of an emerging superstar of R&B-James Brown. Funk is however an amalgam of all these forms, with the underlying West African rhythmic base. Ironically to musicologists, the syncopated and danceable rhythmic pattern which Funk embodied had its origins in West African traditional music, which in itself found its way into expression in African-American Spiritual/Gospel forms and work chants, eventually evolving into more contemporary Soul, Jazz and R&B forms. The word in this context is reputed to have first been used by Earl Palmer, the New Orleans drummer, who was part of Little Richard’s Band in the 1950s. Colloquially, the word has its origins in its use by African-American musicians to describe a more syncopated or rhythmic beat pattern. “Funk” is defined in the dictionary as “a strong odour”. While African rhythms and melodies probably don’t require any explanation, Funk, on the other hand, has a more complex profile. To properly understand the term Afro-Funk one must look at its component parts.
Afro-Funk has over the years had various definitions however, I will attempt a simple definition: Afro-Funk is a fusion of Funk music infused with African rhythms and melodies. The term Afro-Funk was popularised (and arguably invented) by the enigmatic Tony Allen, Fela’s drummer and creative partner, to symbolise the style he practiced in the mid to late 90s.
0 kommentar(er)
