In Mourning on a Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Week

With apologies to author Judith Viorst for stealing her phrase, it has been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad stretch of days in an what has been an unrelentingly godawful year thus far. Just when a momentary respite from the unending horrid, vile, appalling, sickening, disgusting, horrifying current events is desperately needed, there's the news that Sly Stone and Brian Wilson, two GIANTS, innovative composer/arranger/performer/bandeaders gifted in leading one's heart, soul and consciousness to a better place, passed within the same 48 hours. . . WHAT? THAT CAN'T BE!





At least Sly lived long enough to finish his memoirs and receive rousing recognition from music fans and prominent musicians in the last decade of his life.



Sly Stone, a brilliant musician and arranger who's on the funk Mount Rushmore with James Brown, Curtis Mayfield, George Clinton and Prince (wonder if Prince met Sly), sure made the rounds in his heydey. His importance cannot be overstated. Must buy this release of a set Sly and his first version of The Family Stone performed in my old stomping grounds, Redwood City, CA. Sly was already a bonafide Bay Area celebrity from his successful stints as a deejay on KSOL and KDIA.



Sly & The Family Stone, featuring Larry Graham (electric bass), Cynthia Robinson (trumpet), Rose Stone (keyboards, vocals), Freddie Stone (electric guitar), Greg Arrico (drums) and Jerry Martini (saxophones), were a devastating powerhouse band from the git-go.



Here's Sly with Dick Cavett.



And David Letterman. . .



Sly & The Family Stone were inducted into The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame in 1993 at long last - and that was overdue. Sly makes an appearance at the end of the clip, following his bandmates, including the outstanding vocalist-bandleader-songwriter-bassist Larry Graham.



Can't wait until Questlove's documentary Sly Lives! aka The Burden Of Black Genius is available on Blu-ray.



As all who have seen the fantastic Summer Of Soul can attest, Questlove is a superlative documentary filmmaker.



This music aficionado's favorite Sly record? The 1973 album FRESH, which presents a stripped-down yet ingenious version of the essential sound, minimalistic and beautiful.





Another composer/pianist/arranger/bandleader of astounding abilities was Brian Wilson, the master of symphonic pop.

While I knew he was seriously ill and that Brian's wife Melinda passed last year, this still came as a shock.



Indeed, when heard on headphones, the "pocket symphonies" on the original SMILE sessions can be quite astonishing.



After The Beach Boys hit a lengthy stretch of creative stagnation following the departure of Carl Wilson and the untimely, tragic passing of Dennis Wilson, Brian quite fortunately got to enjoy an extended comeback in the 1990's and oughts, backed by The Wondermints (Darian Sahanaja, Mike D'Amico, Probyn Gregory and the late Nick Walusko), percussionist Nelson Bragg, multi-instrumentalist Paul von Mertens and the late, great Beach Boys tours veteran Geoffrey Foskett.



In this clip, Brian's pal Sir Paul McCartney inducted him into the Songwriter's Hall of Fame.



Brian worked with his fellow composer Burt Bacharach.



Much enjoy this tune Brian and Burt wrote together.



Here's a documentary, Pet Stories, about the making of Pet Sounds, which, along with the 1966-1967 Smile sessions, remains this music fan's favorite Brian Wilson/Beach Boys album.



Pet Stories could only be equalled by Brian Wilson & The Story Of Smile, David Leaf's documentary.



AND, of course, Smile itself, as performed by Brian and The Wondermints. Saw this group three times!



ALL collaborations between Brian and songwriter/arranger Van Dyke Parks, The Smile Sessions, Brian Wilson Presents Smile and Brian's appearances on Van Dyke's albums such as Orange Crate Art are must-listening!

Much enjoy the interviews in which Brian talks music!



In closing, this blogger got a chance to meet Brian and his bandmate and the aforementioned "CEO of falsetto" Geoff Foskett at a record signing in San Francisco, made sure to tell him that his music got me through tough times. Brian's response: a smile and "thanks, man!"

Unfortunately, I never got to see Sly Stone in concert - he retired right before I started seeing tons of live music performances - or meet him. Sly did occasionally do interviews, but one would imagine that due to the many bad things that happened to him and individuals who did him wrong over the decades, perhaps he'd be a tad reticent. Thankfully, Sly's three children did a great deal to assist him.

All the thanks in the universe to all the master musicians noted in this post!

The Greatest Show On Earth: P-Funk, 1976

Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog has found itself seriously funked-up over the few days. And why not? We feel the same way about the mighty musical juggernaut known as Parliament/Funkadelic, led by George Clinton, as this bandleader from Minneapolis.



So, without further adieu, here's Parliament/Funkadelic, live at the Houston Summit on Halloween night, 1976. Now let's make way for The Mothership to land - enjoy!



This Mothership Connection band may be the best of all the P-Funk lineups, and includes, among others, saxophonist Maceo Parker and trombonist Fred Wesley from James Brown's JBS.



Mothership Connection 1976 is also among the very few P-Funk videos featuring the gifted guitarist and vocalist Glen Goins, who passed away at 24 of Hodgkin's Lymphoma in 1978.



Although Bootsy Collins had left the band to form Bootsy's Rubber Band, his successor in Parliament/Funkadelic, the wonderful Cordell Boogie Masson, is more than up to the task of driving the P-Funk rhythm section with power and precision.



To close out today's posting: P-Funk founder George Clinton.

We Support Bootsy's "I Give A Funk" Fundraiser!

"The ride gets smoother once u excel above the Turbulence. Take the seat belts off yr Mind." Bootsy Collins




Shifting from animation to music at Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog - we like both equally - we spotlight the great bandleader/electric bass virtuoso and heart of the Parliament/Funkadelic organization, Cincinnati's own Bootsy Collins.




As big fans of electric bass groovemasters Bootsy, Stanley Clarke, Jaco Pastorius, Alfonso Johnson and others, we're happy to support Mr. Collins 2013-2014 tour via this Indie A Go Go fundraiser, which runs through November 16.



Here's Bootsy's Rubber Band, tearing the roof off the sucka at the October 30, 1976 Funkjam.



And here's Bootzilla, conjuring otherworldly sounds from his signature "Space Bass" in Germany in 1998. No doubt Jimi Hendrix and Eddie Hazel would approve.



Having started his musical career as the 18 year old wunderkind in James Brown's JBs, Mr. Collins is not only responsible for outstanding music, but also for the good works of the Bootsy Collins Foundation.



Now, Mr Blogmeister shall step aside - for more info on the fundraiser, Mr. Collins will take it from here. On the one!

We are launching a Creative Arts movement called #iGIVEafunk to inspire everyone to STOP and take a moment to LISTEN to the world around them and STAND UP for what they believe in.

For example:

• "iGIVEafunk about. . . breast cancer awareness, and I'm taking part in a walk to raise funds and bring awareness to the cure!"
• "iGIVEafunk about musical education, so I'm donating my time to teach the youth in my neighborhood."
• "iGIVEafunk about the cure for Diabetes, so I'm starting with my family and teaching them the importance of balanced and healthy eating."

"To do our part, we are going on tour, using the power of music to bring awareness to the needs of different community focused organizations in the cities we stop in. We will turn this experience into a Documentary and as part of it record a brand new live DVD and Album! After the tour is over, we will continue to spread our beliefs that the world is only lacking all of us Give'n A Funk about and taking action for what we hold as important in our individual lives. #iGIVEafunk is our chance to come together with a unified voice!"



It's official - Way Too Damn Lazy To Write A Blog GIVESafunk.

And The JBs Begat Bootsy Who Begat. . . The Funk!

Today the blog gets seriously funked up, paying tribute to Bootsy Collins, the mighty juggernaut known as Parliament-Funkadelic and its mastermind George Clinton.



Having started his musical career as the 18 year old electric bass wunderkind in James Brown's band, Cincinnati's own Mr. William Collins is not only responsible for more than outstanding music, but also for the good works of the Bootsy Collins Foundation.

Bootsy and George - we extend you a funk-drenched freestyle salute and thank you for five decades of tremendous entertainment.

The Principle Of "The One", Explained By Bootsy Collins

And Bootsy is followed briefly by the great drummer Jabo Starks. HIT ME!