We had dinner a couple of weeks ago with some friends who came back to visit Providence after moving to the godforsaken midwest last year. Anyway, John G. (who some of you will know as the original Commish of the Sat. Statehouse Football League) has a totally respectable knowledge of music and after delving into the typical Parliament/Funkadelic fare, is looking to broaden his funk horizons a bit.
I asked our office’s resident funk expert, Tony, for some suggestions (below). If anyone wants to add to this list, drop a comment. Thanks!
- Incorporated Thang Band
- Digital Underground made serious use of P-Funk samples.
- De La Soul (See above)
- The Brothers Johnson


Add Jim to your del.icio.us network
Here is a good place to start… http://tinyurl.com/eemkq
Also check “The Meters”- http://tinyurl.com/epkne
Some obvious but foolproof choices:
In Yo Face: The Roots of Funk (Rhino)
The Best of Kool & The Gang (1969-1976)
James Brown - Funk Power 1970: A Brand New Thang
The J.B.’s - Funky Good Time (Anthology)
Ramsey Lewis - Sun Goddess
On The Jazz tip:
Various: The Lost Grooves - Blue Note
Blue Funk: Heroes of The Hammond Organ - Blue Note
John Scofield - A Go Go
Medeski, Martin, & Wood - It’s A Jungle In Here
Africa:
Nigeria 70 - Strut (UK)
The Best of Fela Kuti
Oumou Sangare - Ooumou *****
King Sunny Ade - Juju Music
The Meters!!! You can’t go wrong with a drummer named “Zigaboo Modeliste”. Most of their stuff is available on Rounder Records.
ky