Courtesy of Pitchfork

I‰’m going to be blunt and argue that if anyone ever started a conversation with you with the opening lines “If you will suck my soul, I will lick your funky emotions”, you probably wouldn‰’t continue the conversation. However, George Clinton, in his alluring charisma, somehow invites you to stay.  Possibly the dramatic stereo effect shifting to one ear to the other, signals to the listener that Clinton isn‰’t taking himself too seriously.  However, the funny and slippery lines of Clinton’s infinite funky wisdom are contrasted with the very clear technical and improvisational skills of the band.  The album, some may argue, is vaguely disjointed and often overwhelms the listener.  However, Funkadelic’s lyrical content is extremely consistent, and I would argue the genre bending songs do not sound disjointed, but Funkadelic says it best in “I got a thing, You got a thing, Everybody‰’s got a thing‰” when Clinton sings “You don’t drink what I drink /You don’t smoke what I smoke / You don’t think like I think /You don’t joke like I joke.‰Û

The album kicks off with the grimy dirty mouth noises of Clinton, and smooth organ, slowly lulling you into guitar ridden funk, and honestly to enjoy Funkadelic you have to appreciate longer than currently average guitar solos. At some point Clinton declare‰’s his name to be Funk, and it is hard to argue with a man with such a talented band that he can‰’t declare himself Funk. The first song “Mommy, What‰’s a Funkadelic?‰” contrasts deeply with the third track “Music for my Mother‰” which can be describes as contemporary blues. The song starts out with guitar plucking with a lot of delay, staying true to their psychedelic nature. Clinton adds a southern twang to his poetic lyricism and proclaims “this is what you call waaay back yonder funk, wooah hey, wooah hoah‰Û. His understanding of his historical position, particularly in regards to blues, and his lightheartedness in that positioning can make the listener feel left out, as if she doesn‰’t understand an inside joke, presumably between George Clinton and the gods of Blues. However, Clinton invites the listener by asking “Do yall feel what I mean.‰” The next track, “I got a thing, You got a thing, Everybody‰’s got a Thing‰” does not slowly explain a nuanced position, it starts with heavy wavy groove. And very quickly goes into the classic funk chorus of singers. The songs eventually to an intense guitar and organ solo somewhat battling, and almost telepathically does the funk break happen as Clinton declares that “You don‰’t drink what I drink‰Û.

I need to emphasize the psychedelic nature of the album itself cannot be understated. A lot of black bands get classified as funk or soul or r&b, and are not credited for the exploration in arbitrarily white genres, that more than likely originated from black dominated genres. It is important to pay attention to the ‰Funk‰’ and the ‰adelic‰’ aspects of funkadelic with equal revere. The dramatic drum breaks of “Good old Music‰” and the overuse of delay creates a distinctly psych feel. However, the syncopation (when different melodies and parts match up at different points), clean breaks, intricate building back up, and minimal yet purposeful use of effects pedals are qualities that set Funkadelic apart from other psych-rock bands of the era. Wikipedia lists 16 notable band members, and the group‰’s activity under many names and renditions spans over 60 decades, including the recent tour this past year.

The humor in Funkadelic should also not be missed. In the song “What is Soul?‰” the band answers the question begged by the title in a variety of ways from “Man, I don‰’t know‰Û, to “The ring around your bathtub‰Û, and “Soul is a joint rolled in toilet paper‰Û. The soulful harmonica in the song is juxtaposed by the funny lyrics and laughing band members but also the contemporary fuzzy delay. The unique feel of each song allows the listener so much freedom in listening, however she is undeniably pulled into the beautiful and bizarre world of Funkadelic in 1970.

PS: If you listen to this album and enjoyed it, please listen to Maggot Brain, also by Funkadelic.