In honor of Black History Month (I didn’t finish this in time), we’re taking a look at one of the many modern genres pioneered by black artists. In fact, three of America’s main contributions to the music world–jazz, blues, and funk–began as exclusively black genres. However, while jazz and blues have their roots in traditional African music or work songs, funk came along much later. Many of the most recognizable names in American music had their hand in funk music, including Jimi Hendrix, Miles Davis, Prince, and Michael Jackson.

Roots

The beginnings of funk came mostly from the work of one man: James Brown. Coming from an R&B background, Brown developed a signature sound by shifting the emphasis from the two and four beats the first beat of each measure while incorporating a syncopated guitar rhythm. This forms the basis for the funk sound, which by the late 60’s Brown had popularised virtually on his own.

Early Funk

By far the most successful funk band in the early days of the genre was Sly & the Family Stone, whose 1969 album Stand! was a left-field hit. Despite the most successful single from the album, “Everyday People,” being more of a pop song, the funky sound on the rest of the album proved to be successful as well. The b-side of the single, “Sing a Simple Song,” is an example of such a funk track, and as early as 1970 the influence could be heard. Jimi Hendrix, who had begun taking an interest in funk, played the main riff from the track before “We Gotta Live Together” during a recorded live performance for Band of Gypsys, and continues playing a funk-influenced style for the rest of the song. “Sing a Simple Song” was also later covered by notable groups such as The Jackson 5 and The Temptations.

Sly’s next album, There’s a Riot Goin’ On, saw the genre moving in a more artistic direction. Titled as a response to Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On, it was darker, more aggressive, and more political (Sly Stone, the bandleader, had just joined the Black Panthers). Utilizing early drum machines, heavier funk beats, and unorthodox mixing (particularly on the vocals), There’s a Riot Goin’ On heralded a new era of funk and is now seen as likely the most influential album of the genre.

Popular Height

The early 1970’s saw a new player rise and dominate the funk scene–George Clinton, the bandleader of Funkadelic, Parliament, and many more funk projects. Clinton called his signature style “P-Funk,” representing a step forward for the genre. The projects were slightly different, though; Funkadelic pursued a harder and more psychedelic sound while Parliament was aimed towards a commercially appealing sound. Funkadelic released their major album, Maggot Brain, in 1971. Although the epic title track is not funk at all, it showcases guitarist Eddie Hazel’s extraordinary skill, which carries over into the funkier tracks. Hazel was particularly inspired by Hendrix, and combined with Funkadelic’s success became a conduit for his influence on the genre. (We’ll come back to Parliament, as they didn’t hit the mainstream until 1975.)

Soul artists began to pick up on funk techniques as well. 1972 saw the release of Talking Book and the soundtrack to the movie “Super Fly,” breakout releases for Stevie Wonder and Curtis Mayfield respectively. While these artists didn’t push the boundaries of funk in the same way that someone like George Clinton did, their commercial success showed that the once-niche genre was growing into a powerful market force.

It wasn’t just soul that took cues from funk, however–legendary jazz musician Miles Davis incorporated funk in an attempt to appeal to younger audiences on his ’72 effort On the Corner. While the album failed critically at the time, it retrospectively is seen as far, far ahead of its time incorporating techniques that wouldn’t become widespread until years later in genres such as post-punk, hip-hop, and electronic music. (But, even for me, On the Corner is pretty out there). A more popular release was Herbie Hancock’s Head Hunters, on which the funk influence is immediately apparent and expertly blended with traditional jazz.

The mid-70’s to early 80’s saw many of funk’s most recognizable releases. In 1975, David Bowie, ever the changeling, transitioned from glam rock to soul-influenced music. The same year, George Clinton’s Parliament released Mothership Connection, one of the genre’s definitive albums which contains perhaps the most well-known funk song, “Give Up The Funk.”

Funk Derivatives

It wasn’t until the 80’s that Parliament was dethroned as the pinnacle of funk. However, by that point funk by itself was less of a genre and more of a tool. The unique groove and rhythmic bass line was adapted by artists such as Rick James and Prince and infused with electronic music to create synth-funk; on the other end of the spectrum, artists such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers developed a heavier style with funk metal. Additionally, pop music took cues from funk with artists such as Michael Jackson utilizing funk music.

By the end of the decade, pure funk had all but disappeared. However, funk beats found a new home in hip-hop music. G-funk, the west coast rap style pioneered by Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre, was heavy laden with funk influence and often sampled older funk songs to make beats. Funk and rap turned out to be an enduring pair, with major acts OutKast and Kendrick Lamar continuing the trend in later decades; Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly even featured George Clinton on the opening track.

Conclusion

Funk is an interesting genre in that it began as a niche spin-off of psychedelic rock and developed immense commercial impact. Despite having its heyday forty years ago, it remains an enduring element of many pop, rap, rock and electronic songs. In fact, funk may even be making a comeback–in recent years To Pimp a Butterfly proved that the genre can maintain critical relevance while Bruno Mars’ “Uptown Funk” showed just how popular well made funk can be.