Back Catalogue: Funkadelic

Posted Wednesday 07/09/2008 12:00 AM in Back Catalogue by Robert Christgau

Filed Under: Music, George clinton, P-funk, Funkadelic, Parliament Funkadelic, Eddie Hazel

Refusing all boundaries like they were hippies or something, Funkadelic threatened nightly to “pee in your Afro,” while sporting wizard gear, Klan outfits, bedsheets, butt-flapped long johns and diapers. Mad Jimi–Hendrix–guitar–yowled “rock.” Retarded, bass-heavy beats anchored a low-down, weirdly futuristic funk. Stoned proto-raps and acid-fried post-doo-wop located their voice deep inside ghetto culture. Spawned in sub-Newark Plainfield, New Jersey, come to life in sub–Motown Detroit, Funkadelic were the dark side of George Clinton’s ongoing Parliament-Funkadelic franchise. Their 12 studio albums constitute barely a third of P-Funk’s insanely varied output. Old-school hip-hoppers sampled them as much as they did James Brown. They are a direct source of Prince, Beastie Boys, Red Hot Chili Peppers and Dr. Dre’s G-funk.