Full Description
P-Funk keyboardist Daniel Bedrosian brings to life the recording and musical activity of Parliament-Funkadelic in 1975, an epoch-making year marked by the release of three seminal albums: Chocolate City, Let's Take It to the Stage, and Mothership Connection. By the end of it, George Clinton and P-Funk were catapulted into superstardom, becoming a massive platinum success with multiple hit singles.
Incorporating exclusive insights and memories from significant P-Funk members including Clinton himself, the book investigates how P-Funk evolved throughout the year and eventually crystallized a unique sound most associated with the group. Bedrosian pulls back the curtain on these three albums, revealing important details of production styles, artistic processes, musical influences, themes, historical importance, and so much more. He also dives into major P-Funk lore and political and social influences during this time, including Clinton's Afrofuturism.
At the beginning of 1975, Chocolate City - as a "tribute to Washington D.C." - saw George Clinton putting Black people in the White House. By the end of the year, Mothership Connection - much more a movement than an album - saw him launching Black people into space, solidifying the band's music as its own subgenre and laying down the foundation for many different types of popular music, including hip-hop.
Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Chapter One - Overview of 1975
Chapter Two - The Prior 20 Years of P-Funk History
Chapter Three - Chocolate City by Parliament
Chapter Four - Let's Take It to the Stage by Funkadelic
Chapter Five - Mothership Connection by Parliament
Chapter Six - P-Funk's Development and Influence from 1975 Onward
Epilogue
Appendix A: The Players
Appendix B: Select Samples and Interpolations List
Select Sources
Index
