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Wednesday, January 10, 2007
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So after last week's celebratory music I decided to continue with a happy celebratory tunes of the funk genre. Well, when it comes down to it, most funky tunes are pretty joyous. Anyways, as Wikipedia puts it : "One of the most distinctive features of funk music is the role played by bass guitar." I like me some bass guitar so put on your dancing shoes and be prepared to get some funk out with the Meters...
With George Porter Jr. on bass, the Meters are widely credited as one of the forefathers of funk (not to limit James Brown's influence) but these guys are good as well. One big difference between the two stems from the Meters' more prominent use of the guitar as a solo instrument instead of the traditional "chicken pickin'" going on in most funky stuff. Anyways, check out George Porter's website here for some more info while you listen to the beginning of the second set of their show dated April 12, 2000 at the Cat's Cradle in Carrboro, N.C. We open the set with Just Kissed My Baby followed by a brief drum interlude that sets us up for the classic Cissy Strut. Perhaps one of the most "identifiable" funk riffs out there, don't forget it because you will hear it again today...To hear an interview with the Meters, check out this NPR link. This is an interview with the "Original Meters". There are also the "Funky Meters" and simply the "Meters" but I'll let you sort all that out if you feel like it.
From the "Funky Meters" website, here is a Bio on George Porter and the following link will direct you to the most recent project of his that I know of : "Porter, Batiste and Stoltz" who coincidentally recently played with another fav of mine, Steve Kimock.
So this leads me to perhaps my favorite bassist out there, Bobby Vega. After recording with Sly and the Family Stone in the mid Seventies, Bobby's career just blossomed into a who's who of music. You may notice a slight connection between him and Kimock as well...Here is a brief bio of him that includes the mention of the development of the sountrack for Sonic the Hedgehog III. Hot stuff if you ask me.
The first bass high-lighting selection I chose is High & Lonesome from his K.V.H.W. days. I followed this up with another selection from the same show at the Phoenix Theater in Petaluma, CA (4.30.99). This selection includes the previously Meters played song "Cissy Strut". Difference here being that Vega adds his own tune "Poonk" in the middle of the song...check out around nine and a half minutes in...and the rest of the song of course.
All this funkin' around brought another band to my ear, "Garaj Mahal". Don't miss them if they pass your way. Cosmic Elevator is the track I chose as it highlights Kai Eckhart's bass skills. Simply, he rocks.
Where else do you end a discussion on funk bassists? If you answered Elvis then you win a prize. Contact me if you want to claim your prize...and listen to the last song to figure out what it all means...(features Bobby Vega on bass playing with "Big E").
So that ends this episode of the Songs of the Week, enjoyed it, hopefully you did as well...and if you are interested in being notified when the new weekly tracks are posted fire me an email to let me know...check out the "Song Archives" here. One other thing, "Chut up and Dance"?...Martin Fierro's quote.