P-Funk

P-Funk (also spelled P Funk or P. Funk) is a shorthand term for the repertoire and performers associated with George Clinton and the Parliament-Funkadelic collective and the distinctive style of funk music they performed. The P-Funk groups had their heyday in the 1970s and continue to attract new fans thanks both to the legacy of samples they bequeathed to hip hop and the live shows that the bands continue to perform.

Etymology

The etymology of the term P-Funk is subject to multiple interpretations. It has been identified alternately as an abbreviation of "Parliament-Funkadelic", "pure funk" or "Plainfield Funk", referring to Plainfield, New Jersey, the hometown of the band's original line-up. The liner notes of CD versions of the Motor Booty Affair album suggest that the "'P' stands for 'Pure.'" The breakout popularity of Parliament-Funkadelic elevated the status of P-Funk to describe what is now considered to be a genre of music in its own right.

Musical characteristics

Musical elements that characterize the P-Funk style include:

• spacey synthesizer melodies and washes provided by keyboardist Bernie Worrell and others
• classically-trained and blues/jazz piano style of Bernie Worrell
• prominent, squelching electric bass lines provided by Bootsy Collins or performed in his style
• jazzy, insouciant horn section arrangements performed by The Horny Horns
• raucous group vocals on songs' choruses alternating with sung or spoken vocals on the verses
• a mixture of funk and rock guitar styles, the latter being more prominent on Funkadelic's recordings
• steady, relatively unobtrusive drumming with few or no drum solos
• lyrics devoted to exposition of the P-Funk mythology, sex and drug-related humor, and sociopolitical satire, often in the context of a concept album
• sophisticated use of multitrack recording technology and studio effects by producer George Clinton
• a more "live band" sound, with little of the mechanistic precision of disco and post-disco dance forms^[1].

Key P-Funk bands and musicians

Key P-Funk bands and musicians include:

• Parliament
• Funkadelic
• Bootsy Collins / Bootsy's Rubber Band
• George Clinton
• Bernie Worrell
• Eddie Hazel
• Garry Shider
• Walter Morrison
• The Brides of Funkenstein
• Maceo Parker
• Parlet
• Fred Wesley
• Michael "Clip" Payne
• Zapp

Reference

See also

• List of P-Funk members
• List of P-Funk projects

Parliament-Funkadelic Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees Jerome "Bigfoot" Brailey • George Clinton • Bootsy Collins • Ray Davis • Ramon "Tiki" Fulwood • Glen Goins • Michael Hampton • Clarence "Fuzzy" Haskins • Eddie Hazel • Walter "Junie" Morrison • Cordell "Boogie" Mosson • "Billy Bass" Nelson • Garry Shider • Calvin Simon • Grady Thomas • Bernie Worrell Related articles Parliament • Funkadelic  • House Guests • Godmoma • Kiddo • Original P • The Pacemakers • The Parliaments • Zapp  • List of P-Funk members • Pedro Bell • Armen Boladian • Children of Production • Bill Laswell • Overton Loyd • P-Funk • P-Funk Earth Tour • P-Funk Mothership • P-Funk mythology • P-Funk projects • Uncle Jam Records Parliament discography Osmium • Up for the Down Stroke • Chocolate City • Mothership Connection • The Clones of Dr. Funkenstein • Funkentelechy Vs. the Placebo Syndrome • Live: P-Funk Earth Tour • Motor Booty Affair • Gloryhallastoopid • Trombipulation Funkadelic discography Funkadelic • Free Your Mind... and Your Ass Will Follow • Maggot Brain • America Eats Its Young • Cosmic Slop • Standing on the Verge of Getting It On • Let's Take It to the Stage • Tales of Kidd Funkadelic • Hardcore Jollies • One Nation Under a Groove • Uncle Jam Wants You • Connections & Disconnections • The Electric Spanking of War Babies • Live: Meadowbrook, Rochester, Michigan – 12th September 1971 • By Way of the Drum • Toys • U.S. Music With Funkadelic George Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic Computer Games • Urban Dancefloor Guerillas • You Shouldn't-Nuf Bit Fish • Some of My Best Jokes Are Friends • R&B Skeletons in the Closet • The Mothership Connection - Live from Houston • The Cinderella Theory • Live at the Beverly Theater • Hey Man, Smell My Finger • Dope Dogs • Mothership Connection Newberg Session • T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M. • Live 1976–1993 • How Late Do U Have 2BB4UR Absent? • George Clinton and His Gangsters of Love Bootsy Collins Stretchin' Out in Bootsy's Rubber Band • Ahh... The Name Is Bootsy, Baby! • Bootsy? Player of the Year • This Boot is Made for Fonk-N • Ultra Wave • The One Giveth, the Count Taketh Away • What's Bootsy Doin'? • Jungle Bass • Blasters of the Universe • Lord of the Harvest • Keepin' Dah Funk Alive 4-1995 • Fresh Outta 'P' University • Live in Louisville 1978 • Play With Bootsy • Live In Concert 1998 • Live in Oklahoma 1976 • Christmas Is 4 Ever Eddie Hazel Game, Dames and Guitar Thangs • Rest in P The Horny Horns A Blow for Me, a Toot for You • Say Blow by Blow Backwards • The Final Blow Bernie Worrell All the Woo in the World • Funk of Ages • Pieces Of Woo: The Other Side  • Blacktronic Science • Free Agent: A Spaced Odyssey The Brides of Funkenstein Funk or Walk • Never Buy Texas from a Cowboy • Live at the Howard Theatre Parlet Pleasure Principle • Invasion of the Booty Snatchers • Play Me or Trade Me Clarence "Fuzzy" Haskins A Whole Nother Thang (1976)  • Radio Active (1978)  • A Whole Nother Radio Active Thang (1994) Ruth Copeland Self Portrait (1970)  • I Am What I Am (1971) Mutiny Mutiny on the Mamaship (1979)  • Funk Plus the One (1980)  • A Night Out With the Boys (1983)  • Aftershock 2005 (1996) Other spinoffs Quazar (1978)  • Sweat Band (1980) • Federation of Tackheads (1985)  • Lifestyles of the Roach and Famous (1988) Out of the Dark (1993) • Heavy Metal Funkason (1998) Filmography The Night Before • PCU • Parliament-Funkadelic: One Nation Under a Groove • George Clinton: The Mothership Connection Category