Notes & Personnel Info |  | Parliament: Glenn Goins, Garry Shider (vocals, guitar); Cordell Mosson (vocals, bass); George Clinton, Ray Davis, Debbie Wright, Jeanette Washington, Lynn Mabry, Dawn Silva (vocals); Michael Hampton (guitar); Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Rick Gardner, Richard Griffith, Clay Lawrey, Darryl Dixon, Valerie Drayton, Danny Cortez (horns); Bernie Worrell (keyboards, synthesizer); Jerome Brailey (drums, percussion). | | Recorded at United Sounds Studios, Detroit, Michigan and Hollywood Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California. | | Though the dark, psychedelic element that characterized the group's early '70s output has been replaced with an emphasis on rump-shakin' dance anthems, the superior musicianship, creativity, and unabashed weirdness of the Funk Mob's members is no less in evidence. The songwriting team of frontman George Clinton, bassist Bootsy Collins, and--perhaps most notably--keyboardist Bernie Worrell concocted the #1 smash "Flashlight." An ecstatic, amorphous journey through chugging, liquid basslines (the unbelievably fat, quadruple bass sound here was created on Worrell's synthesizer), chaotic guitar, percussive embellishments, and chant-like vocal phrases, "Flashlight" coalesces into one of the greatest dance songs of all time. | | Other highlights include the Glenn Goins showcase of "Bop Gun" and the loose and groovy "Funkentelechy." Often dismissed as a party band, Parliament's edgy experimentalism and loose, textured structures move the mind as well as the ass. Their albums clearly motivated the New York avant-garde dance movement of the early '80s, influencing such artists as Liquid Liquid, Bill Laswell, and Talking Heads. FUNKENTELECHY is a seminal and immensely enjoyable album. |
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