at a glance...

Hometown: Detroit, MI
Formed: 1970

Members:
George Clinton -vocals, songwriting, production, conception
Bernie Worrell -keyboards, synthesizers
Michael Hampton -guitar
Glenn Goins -guitar, songwriting, vocals
Garry Shider -guitar, vocals
Cordell Mosson -bass, vocals
Jerome Brailey -drums, percussion
Ray Davis -vocals
Fred Wesley -trombone
Maceo Parker -saxophone
Bootsy Collins -clapping, vocals, songwriting

Bands in the family :
Funkadelic, P. Funk All-Stars, Brides of Funkenstein, Parlet, George Clinton, Fred Wesley and the Horny Horns, Bootsy's Rubber Band, James Brown and His Famous Flames, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Thomas Dolby, Prince

This is the great American concept album. What else can compete with it? Pet Sounds? Don't make me laugh. Here George Clinton's huge musical vision finally coalesced into a longform philosophical statement, an ode to the dualistic nature of man. We all contain within ourselves both Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk (the earthbound loser who refuses to dance), and the Starchild, the smooth-grooving alien "protector of the pleasure principle." Sound familiar, Radiohead?

Okay, maybe I'm going a little too far, but critics say this kind of crap about Bob Dylan albums all the time. Let's just speak plainly, then: this album is HUGE. It's predicated on heavyweight funk grooves that should be introduced to children in their cribs and repeated in lieu of school prayer and the National Anthem. Bernie Worrell's influential and distinctive bob-and-weave synthesizer style, multi-guitar attacks, the polyphony of twenty different singers, and the insanely funky horn breaks of Maceo Parker and Fred Wesley all combine to create an aural moonscape that can never be matched. The long jams are like techno or prog-rock suites, morphing into new styles at the drop of a hat. You already know how influential Clinton's surreal wordplay and pop-culture references were to rap, and lyrically George was never more kick-ass than he is here, from the non sequiturs of "Bop Gun (Endangered Species)" and "Funkentelechy" to the tender Sly Stone doo-wop of "Wizard of Finance." And the duet between Sir Nose and Starchild on the second track is just flat-out hilarious.

When was the last time anyone could dance to Bob Dylan? Brian Wilson? When you're talking about eccentric American musical geniuses, you'd better be talking about George Clinton, and you'd better be playing "Flash Light" when you do it, or you're just another Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk in a world full of milquetoasts.

If you like Parliament, check out:
Parliament Mothership Connection
Funkadelic America Eats Its Young
Prince 1999
Funkadelic Maggot Brain
The Meters Struttin'
Miles Davis Get Up With It
George Clinton Computer Games
Radiohead OK Computer
Sly and the Family Stone Anthology
Jungle Brothers Done by the Forces of Nature
James Brown Star Time

-- Matt Cibula