Hey All. This thread is dedicated to providing you with rare, obscure and out of print P-Funk related releases. I got into P-Funk right around the same time as I got into Psychedelic Breakfast. I definetly had a craving that couldn\'t be filled with the occasional sloppy 2.5 hour George Clinton show. Thank God for small favors! What drew me into PB was their ability to tackle funk without sounding A.white B.trite C.unique, yet serving as an extension of the P-Funk sound. My tastes and desire for funk have always been satiated by 4 white guys from East Haven. Go figure. As tribute to their relentless ability to bring the funk, I bring you these albums. Many of them are ripped from vinyl.
Enjoy,
Joe
PS
Dave, if you aren\'t cool with this, please accept my apologies and feel free to delete this thread. As always I encourage you to support the artists and purchase the albums, that is if you\'re lucky enough to find them....
Bootsy Collins- "The One Giveth, the Count Taketh Away"
With the release of the semi-autobiographically titled The One Giveth, The Count Taketh Away (1982), William "Bootsy" Collins (bass/vocals) concluded his eight-year relationship as a Warner Brothers\' artist. Once again, Collins came armed with a caché of longtime associates, namely sibling Phelps "Catfish" Collins (guitar), Bernie Worrell (keyboards), Robert "P-Nut" Johnson (vocals), and Frankie "Kash" Waddy (drums). Plus, of course, the Horny Horn section with Collins\' fellow James Brown and P-Funk alums Maceo Parker (sax) and Fred Wesley (trombone). An added surprise to the assembled ensemble are synth-funksters Midnight Star, who are credited on the rear LP jacket under the heading "Vocalists who helped me make it" — though not mentioned individually. Other than co-writing the sassy opener "Shine-O-Myte (Rag Popping)," George Clinton is conspicuously absent, with Bootsy listed as producer. Worrell\'s keyboards bop and groove over Bootsy and chorus — the latter of which sound like they are chanting in the linguistically tricky syllabic word game commonly referred to as "Pig Latin." Collins\' lead vocal proves he has lost none of the sly charm and trademark lyrical wit. His delivery of "Shine-O-Myte" is a callback to the catch-phrase of Jimmie Walker\'s character J.J. Evans on the hit sitcom Good Times. Bootsy must have been spending too much time in front of the television, as "Landshark (Just When You Thought It Was Safe)" is an unmistakable homage to Chevy Chase\'s parody during the first few seasons of Saturday Night Live. After quoting a few bars from John Williams\' "Main Theme" for the film Jaws (1975), a full blown funk-a-thon breaks out with a noticeable sonic nod to the P-Funk songbook staple "Do That Stuff" from the Horny Horns. The age old concept of "The One" [read: placing the emphasis on the first or downbeat] dates back to a technique that Bootsy first observed and then perfected during his tenure with James Brown. Here he revisits it on the tongue-in-cheek cinematic spoof "Countracula (This One\'s for You)." Other selections worthy of multiple spins are the askew ballad "Ex-Con of Love," and the slow churning "So Nice You Name Him Twice." Saving what is undeniably the strongest material for the closer, "Take a Lickin\' And Keep on Kickin\'" — sporting a title derived from yet another television slogan — is a return to the full-blown party atmosphere that permeated Collins\' earlier Rubber Band endeavors. Finally, the frisky and instrumental-centric "Funky Funktioneer" could easily be mistaken for a Prince performance circa Controversy (1981), especially given Worrell\'s penchant for piercing synth keyboard stabs coupled with Bootsy\'s swooping and swirling basslines.
--AllMusic.com
http://www.mediafire.com/?34uqy0tbqwaBootsy Collins- "This Boot Is Made For Fonk-N"
Following three straight masterworks that balanced hard funk workouts with laid-back bedroom jams, This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N ditched the balancing act, offering up straight, relentless hard funk. This is great for those who just want the sweaty workouts Bootsy Collins had proven himself well capable of delivering on his own as well as with Parliament-Funkadelic. In fact, if that\'s what you\'re looking for — hard-hitting, unrelenting funk — look no further, for This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N is absolutely teeming with it. However, the lack of slower, softer material can quickly lead to weariness if you\'re not ready for a nonstop dance party. Endurance is required here, make no mistake. "Under the Influence of a Groove," "Bootsy Get Live," and "Jam Fan (Hot)" are all standouts, reflecting the kookiness of "Bootzilla" from the year before. But without slower songs à la "I\'d Rather Be with You," This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N is just too much for anyone who\'s not a hardcore funkateer. Consequently, the album isn\'t as easily recommended as Bootsy\'s past few, and really is of primary interest to P-Funk aficionados. With so many excellent P-Funk albums released throughout the 1970s, it\'s easy to pass over this one, as it certainly features some first-rate hard funk but is relatively short on ideas, with an absence of new ones altogether. This shortage of new ideas would lead to the varied degrees of experimentation that would characterize Bootsy\'s subsequent albums, Ultra Wave (1980) and, especially, The One Giveth, the Count Taketh Away (1982). Granted, those albums weren\'t as successful as This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N — just as it wasn\'t as successful as its predecessors — but they\'re more interesting for their experimentation and their eccentricities. In comparison to their flights of fancy, as well as the balance songwriting of Bootsy\'s first three albums, This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N seems unmemorable in retrospect. It\'s a wild, heart-racing listen while it\'s playing, yet afterward leaves little impression otherwise.
http://www.mediafire.com/?9ljyxda1n12Bootsy Collins- "Ultra Wave"
While certainly not among his greatest efforts, Bootsy Collins\' Ultra Wave (1980) is still infinitely better than most of the disco dregs being squeezed from the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire or Kool & the Gang. Although Collins (bass/vocals) had not formally split up the Rubber Band — as the lineup was a continual fluctuation of talent from the seemingly bottomless reservoir of P-Funk alumni — he takes sole (and quite possibly soul) credit on his fifth long-player in under four years. The title is an homage to the Detroit-based studios where Bootsy collaborated with core Rubber Band contributors Phelps "Catfish" Collins (guitar), Robert "P-Nut" Johnson (vocals), and the superbad dynamic horny horns of Fred Wesley (trombone) and Maceo Parker (sax). Not missing from these — or any other Bootsy affairs for that matter — is the unapologetic party atmosphere Collins\' infuses within every pulsation of his full-bodied and self-proclaimed "Space Bass". The catchy and sexually tweaked opener "Mug Push" quickly became a dancefloor favorite and garnered a short but significant run on the R&B charts. The overuse of synthesizers becomes increasingly evident, particularly when they practically bury "F-Encounter"\'s otherwise stylish groove. The end result sounds like a cross between the Parliament hit "Flashlight" and George Clinton\'s "Atomic Dog." The shuffling "Is That My Song?" is an arguably lightweight entry. But to its credit, Collins, influenced by Sly & the Family Stone and especially funk-bass originator Larry Graham, gives it a respectable degree of listenability. "It\'s a Musical" drives hard with brassy and sassy horn arrangements that have the feel of something Quincy Jones might have charted for Michael Jackson circa Off the Wall (1979). The slinky and rubbery backbeat on "Fat Cat" hearkens to the loose booty of former Bootsy\'s Rubber Band tracks with Johnson\'s falsetto likened to the shrill warbling often utilized on Prince\'s seminal sides. The obligatory ballad "Sacred Flowers" also bears trademarks of the Bootsy of old. While that in and of itself is great, it is likewise symptomatic of Ultra Wave\'s inherent deficiencies. The pseudo-novelty closer "Sound Crack" would probably have more going for it had Collins ditched the dated opening dialogue. Once it gets up to full steam, it roars with an intensity fuelled by the same bounce behind such P-Funk staples as "Up for the Downstroke." The 2007 CD reissue by Collectors\' Choice Music has significantly improved sound compared to expensive import editions that can run upwards of a dollar per minute.
http://www.mediafire.com/?ecucxwajvd1Eddie Hazel- "Game, Dames, and Guitar Thangs"/"Jams From the Heart EP"
A hidden gem among the many Parliament/Funkadelic-affiliated albums released during the mid- to late \'70s, Eddie Hazel\'s only official solo album may not sport any perennial classics and may be a bit short on content, yet it became incredibly revered in subsequent years following its quiet release. Part of this album\'s magnetic allure to P-Funk fans no doubt arises from its rare status as a considerable collector\'s item capable of fetching substantial prices. There\'s more to the album than rarity, though. Hazel never really garnered the acclaim he deserved as a pioneering funk-metal guitarist during his time, and this album showcases just how stunning his guitar abilities really were. Each of the six full-length songs on the brief album feature Hazel laying down fiery guitar solos over loose song structures while the rest of his bandmates hold the song together and the Brides of Funkenstein handle a majority of the vocals. The two epic covers of "California Dreamin\'" and "I Want You (She\'s So Heavy)" — clocking in at six-and-a-half and nine-and-a-half minutes, respectively — demonstrate this perhaps better than anything else on the album, as the band spends more time jamming than concerning itself with staying true to the originals. The other songs here are rather traditional late-\'70s Parliament/Funkadelic songs written by George Clinton and Bootsy Collins that emphasize yet more of Hazel\'s manic lead guitar. Though this album doesn\'t exactly boast great songwriting or stand as a landmark album in the sense of Mothership Connection, it does feature some amazing guitar work on Hazel\'s part, clearly a vehicle for his soloing. And that in itself makes it great and worth hearing, particularly since the pioneering guitarist seemed to disappear into near oblivion after the Maggot Brain album, leaving fans with little recorded output to appreciate after his untimely demise.
Joe Note: This is the crown jewel of P-Funk related side projects!!
http://www.sendspace.com/file/70ockrEddie Hazel- "Rest In P"
Like Jams From the Heart, Rest in P isn\'t a full-length LP but rather a compilation of vault recordings dug up to satisfy P-Funk fans\' insatiable hunger for Eddie Hazel material. A Japanese import, Rest in P actually manages to eclipse the brief four-song Jams of the Heart by featuring that material under different song titles as well as additional material. Standout moments include the three epic jams: "Juicy Fingers" (14 minutes), "We Three" (12 minutes), and "No, It\'s Not!" (nine-and-a-half minutes). These songs showcase exactly why Hazel became so revered among later generations of P-Funk aficionados — his \'70s studio work, with the exception of "Maggot Brain" and "Free Your Mind...And Your Ass Will Follow," only hints at his Hendrix-like soloing ability. Note that this collection is primarily instrumental studio brainstorming and was never intended for release. Hazel\'s 1977 solo album, Games, Dames & Guitar Things, is recommended first, since it features a more polished sound actually intended for mass release, along with songs to actually accompany the jamming; unfortunately, that album is near impossible to find. Either way, this is still a fine collection of Hazel\'s unreleased studio work from the late \'70s that will provide ample insight to this man\'s ongoing legacy as an under appreciated funk-metal guitarist.
http://www.sendspace.com/file/674f72
