An Introduction to America’s Music

478 PART 4 | SINCE WORLD WAR II

SOUL AND FUNK IN THE 1970S

James Brown sailed through the early 1970s

with a string of hits, including irresistible dance

tracks like “Super Bad” and “Get Up (I Feel Like

Being a) Sex Machine” (both 1970) that consoli-

dated his title as the Godfather of Soul. Brown

also continued to release politically engaged

records dealing with issues such as black pride

and drug abuse, with “King Heroin” (1972) and

“Funky President (People It’s Bad)” (1974) adding

to the legacy of 1968’s “Say It Loud, I’m Black and

Proud,” in which Brown’s vocal is half-sung, half-

spoken in a way that recalls Pentecostal preach-

ing and anticipates rap.

Brown’s electrifying stage act was a model for

rising soul and funk performers such as the Jack-

son Five and George Clinton. Clinton, a sav v y

showman and entrepreneur, divided his musical activities between two groups,

Parliament and Funkadelic; the former was thought to be the more commercial

band and the latter the more experimental, but in fact their stylistic overlap out-

weighs their differences. Building rich polyrhythmic textures over the supple

bass playing of Bootsy Collins, a former member of James Brown’s outfi t, Clinton’s

bands, like Sly and the Family Stone before them, brought psychedelic elements

from Jimi Hendrix and other rock performers into funk. Clinton’s elaborate stage

presentations, featuring outlandish costumes, lighting effects, and a glittering

spaceship, created a cartoonish science fi ction atmosphere that borrowed from

the theatrical stage shows of white rock bands like Pink Floyd and Alice Cooper.

Another idea that black artists borrowed from rock was the concept album.

Perhaps the fi rst signifi cant soul concept album was Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going

On (1971). Following up on its success was the work of Stevie Wonder, who had

begun his career at Motown as a thirteen-year-old wunderkind in 1963. As a

mature artist in the 1970s, Wonder released such concept albums as Ta l k i n g B o o k

(1972), Innervisions (1973), and Songs in the Key of Life (1976). George Clinton’s Parlia-

ment contributed science fi ction–themed concept albums such as The Clones of

Dr. Funkenstein (1976) and Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome (1977).

Finally, a signifi cant strain of 1970s popular music was Philadelphia soul,

linked to the Philadelphia International record label and its stable of songwrit-

ers, producers, studio musicians, and singers. Much like Motown in the 1960s,

Philadelphia soul emphasized smooth, polished performances and danceable

rhythms. A song such as the O’Jays’ “Love Train” (1973) exemplifi es the Philly

sound: soaring strings, churning horns, bright guitars, and voices that some-

times are merely one element in a complex texture, all carefully mixed as lay-

ers over a tight, energetic rhythm section. With its emphasis on hit records as a

producer’s art, Philadelphia soul is a signifi cant predecessor of late-1970s disco.

BLAXPLOITATION

A fi lm genre of the 1970s inspired the creation of notable funk-based cinematic

scores. That genre, dubbed “blaxploitation,” retailed images of urban ghetto life

K George Clinton onstage

in the 1970s.

George Clinton

Stevie Wonder

Philadelphia soul

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