“Good evening

Do not attempt to adjust your radio, there is nothing wrong

We have taken control as to bring you this special show

We will return it to you as soon as you are grooving

Welcome to station W-E-F-U-N-K, better known as We-Funk

Or deeper still, the Mothership Connection

Home of the extraterrestrial brothers

Dealers of funky music

P.Funk, uncut funk, the bomb

Coming to you directly from the Mothership

Top of the Chocolate Milky Way, 500,000 kilowatts of P. Funk-power

So kick back, dig, while we do it to you in your eardrums

And me? I'm known as Lollipop Man, alias the Long-Haired Sucker

My motto is….”

As you comb through a hip relatives record collection, local record store, or your preferred streaming service, you may come across an epic album adorned with an out of this world extraterrestrial cruising through the cosmos on his metallic saucer. This space adventurer jams with his chrome platform boots spread wide and hangin out of his craft surrounded by stardust. In cursive lettering above his head, “Mothership Connection”. For any space and or alien aficionado this 12” galactic cover will be intriguing enough, however, like the rest of the discography of this group and its sibling group, the artwork is a tractor beam invitation to the funkiest ride one could ever know.

You pop the needle on the record. After a brief pause a voice comes through the speakers,

Queue forty minutes of the silkiest and far out funky tunes that will ever grace your earholes, and it’s just the tip of the iceberg!

The story begins in 1956 with a barbershop doo-woop group. Fresh hair, fresh suits, and fresh harmonies were what The Parliaments were all about. That is until the 1960’s. Civil Rights, Vietnam, summer of love, psychoactive drugs like LSD and cannabis, Jimi Hendrix, and a necessity to break from the Motown mold took George Clintion (co-founder) and his musical compadres to a new frontier and would birth a new flavor of music the likes the world had never seen.

Fully engrossed into the world of amplified psychedelia, George Clinton and the Parliaments collected some totally nasty musicians and set a course for a raucous and trippy take on the rock/soul genre. Shortly after, the group would be hit with a contractual dispute and temporarily lose the rights to the name “Parliaments” which would force the collective to adopt a perfect title, Funkadelic.

P. Funk reigned supreme until drugs and mismanagement from its conceptual leader and co-founder George Clinton split apart the collective in the late 70s and early 80s, but from Funkadelic’s self titled debut till Funkadelic’s One Nation Under a Groove the musical collective would create some of the most unique and instantly recognizable music ever recorded. Not only did the two groups release almost 20 albums in that time, there were also multiple solo and side groups formed like The Brides of Frankenstein, Bootsy’s Rubber Band, Fred Wesely and The Horny Horns, and Parlet, all of which fit perfectly amongst each other in the P. Funk canon. This paved the way for multi layered artistic empires like The Wu Tang Clan to emerge years later. Also, they are one of the most sampled groups in hip hop history!

Funkadelic is crude, nasty, amplified, socially conscious, trippy, and just flat out fun! Funkadelic is loud and proud of its supreme blackness, its uber sensuality, its participation in the fight for human rights here on earth and in the minds of everyone of its inhabitants. FREE YOUR MIND AND YOUR ASS WILL FOLLOW… THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS WITHIN!

Funkadelic would not be joined by the jelly to its peanut butter until 1974 when now "Parliament" would be unleashed back into the world. Containing the same stable of musical adventurers, more or less, Parliament would become the more smooth, intergalactic groove complement to the electric guitar forward, political leaning, ear orgy that is Funkadelic. Both with a common goal to funk your god damn face off! But don’t be fooled. Funk is not just a hip and exciting genre of music. For these cats it is a whole way to carry yourself through this life and interact with the ones you share it with.

The musicianship and the breadth of work is undeniable. The music will speak for itself and for all of time, but what comes out of the amplifiers and speakers is not the extent of what you can love and appreciate about P. Funk.

P. Funk and its members were encouraged by George Clinton to be as wholly unique and out there as possible. Clinton was the tip of the spear creating characters and alter egos for himself and other members. During live performances members would be dressed in the most outlandish clothing and makeup (or if you’re Garry Shider, just a diaper) that they could think of. Not to shock people, well, maybe a little, but to have fun and most importantly be themselves.

This free flowing creativity spurred on by incredibly imaginative people, all high on cannabis and psychedelics, birthed not just a conceptual identity for P. Funk, but an entire mythology. Once P. Funk collaborator Pedro Bell signed on to illustrate and write liner notes for the Funkadelic albums (first appearing on Cosmic Slop in ‘73) the greater funk footprint stretched now across the universe.

Parliament Funkadelic were not just mere musicians. They were intergalactic purveyors of filthy grooves and good vibes to save the infinite cosmos. These gatefold album sleeves read like scrolls from ancient scripture. From the beginning of time these afronaughts attempt to funkatize galaxies and lead into a future for all people, in particular black folks, to ascend to a higher state of being. And shake their rumps till they can’t shake no more! 

P. Funk affirmed a far out history and future for black people in this country and beyond. All positions of government, in particular the white house (35 years before the first black US president), mad science labs, or soaring through the stars in their sun roof topped flying saucers. There are no places that seep into one’s imagination that is devoid of loose booties and the all mighty power of “THE ONE”.

As an artist and story teller it is imperative and just down right awesome to create unique worlds and universes that only elevate our understanding and appreciation for the work (or “THING”) itself. Not only can you jam to P. Funk, but you can learn about the mythology, you can read the comic strips inside the gatefolds, learn about the many musicians in the troop, gaze eyes wide and mouth agape at the incredible visual art. All these things that may seem extra are all goodies purposefully presented to us to heighten our understand of the Funk and what these artists are all about.

I believe that art should be full of depth and opportunity for constant and newfound enjoyment. Everytime you dig in you get something new. Things like an evolving mythology, incredible illustrations, comics, logos, stickers, graphic designs, themed glassware, I see as all part of the “THING”. It’s the big picture! The larger presentation. The whole enchilada, and to me, there aren’t many artistic entities that give you the big picture and then some quite like Parliament Funkadelic! - Kam

The amount of essential musicians that make up P. Funk is almost too large to list without leaving out members who deserve their due credit. Members like George Clinton, Bernie Worrell, Eddie Hazel, and Bootsy Collins have served as the faces of P. Funk for decades, however people like Fred Wesely, Gary Shider, all the lovely female vocalists, Fuzzy Haskins, Tiki Fulwood, Glenn Goins, and so many more have an incalculable effect on that P. Funk Thang.

I say listen to every single album of the P. Funk collective in chronological order, but I am a sicko like that, so I’ll give my favorites for those just starting out and wanna get funked!

Parliament : Mothership Connection (1975), Funkentelechy Vs. The Placebo Syndrome (1977), Clones of Dr. Funkenstein (1976)

Funkadelic: Free Your Mind…And Your Ass Will Follow (1970), Standing On The Verge of Getting It On (1974), Cosmic Slop (1973)

Side Projects: A Blow For Me, A Toot For You - The Horny Horns (1977), Stretchin Out In - Bootsy Rubber Band (1976), Funk or Walk - The Brides of Funkenstein (1978)