The Archetype Architects

In explaining the history of Funk music, stories shift dimensions each time that they are told.  The people who played a part in creating Funk music remain constant factors in  its development. We know who the architects are, and we know  that they forged a genre of music that is now called Funk. The contributors of the music can be traced linearly,  as long as we follow the path   of the music.  Whether we say we are connecting the dots, bridging gaps, or unifying energy, the bottom line is that Funk music is an eternal sound.  We have seen Funk go deep under water.  We have seen Funk music exist right where we stand.  

The book, The Physics of Reality: Space, Time, Matter, Cosmos, by Richard L. Amoroso, Louis H. Kauffman, and Peter Rowlands answers a lot of important science questions.  A selection within the book titled, The Tie That Binds: A Fundamental Unit of ‘Change’ in Space and Time, by James E. Beichler explains how, “Quantum theory is ideally point-geometric and relativity is physically an extension-based geometry. Both the quantum and relativity depend on the concept of a field (or fields), but the nature of the field differs from one model to the other. However, the single field that Einstein sought to discover is his theoretical research to develop a unified field theory was and still remains the best hope for the unification of the quantum and relativity.” The ways that we talk about Funk are fun, while  the scientific explanations we mention provide context that shows how complex reality can actually be.  We can joke about the terms and theories that we don’t know, and others will definitely know the specifics much better us. The question is, can we agree that Funk is based on the same science that the rest of the universe is? 

The architects are many. James Brown, Sly Stone, The Ohio Players, Bernie Worrell, Bootsy Collins, George Clinton, and a long list of others that we didn’t intend to miss mentioning. Talking about what Funk is, George Clinton defined Funk in the book, Funk: The Music, The People, and The Rhythm of the One, saying, “Funk is whatever it needs to be, at the time that it is.”  The architects knew to keep the rhythms right, yet leave room to go grow.  By the way, the biggest Funk bombs in history was dropped by Parliament-Funkadelic, so include in that mix, Maceo Parker and Fred Wesley. The Brides of Funkenstein, and the other musicians that knew how to both fit in, and stand out.   

Through all of the music industry politics, legal battles, and smoke screens that hindered everyone’s vision, Funk music stands the test of time.  Parliament was in full control once they released the Chocolate City album in 1975. What does that mean?  This album was called one of the best early concept albums ever made.  Despite all of the negatives, Funk music is a testament of what can be achieved in the universe.

In the book, Brothas Be, Yo Like George, Ain’t That Funkin’ Kinda Hard on You?, by George Clinton and Ben Greenman,  George Clinton states how, “Even without the music, I loved living in Newark, in part because I was royalty…One of the main drags in Newark was called Clinton Avenue, and there was whole area called Clinton Hills. They were all named after the early American politician George Clinton, who had been the governor of New York and the vice president under Thomas Jefferson and James Madison.”  Considering those fun facts, Chocolate City and the musical politics surrounding that era didn’t seem so far-fetched after all. For better or worse, a specific group of artists are the major architects of P-Funk.