He was born in Kannapolis, North Carolina, grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey, and currently resides in Tallahassee, Florida. In Plainfield, he ran a barber salon, where he straightened hair, and soon formed a doo wop group, inspired by Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, called The Parliaments. Despite initial commercial failures, The Parliaments eventually found success under the names Parliament and Funkadelic in the seventies (see also P-Funk). This article focuses on Clinton's solo efforts after 1981.
Beginning in the early 1980's, Clinton recorded several nominal "solo" albums, although all of these records featured contributions from P-Funk's core musicians. The primary reason for recording under his own name was legal difficulties, due to the complex copyright and trademark issues surrounding the name "Parliament" (primarily) and Polygram's purchase of his former label (as part of Parliament), Casablanca Records. In 1982, Clinton signed to Capitol Records as a solo artist and as the P-Funk All-Stars, releasing Computer Games that same year. "Loopzilla" hit the Top 20 R&B charts, followed by "Atomic Dog," which reached #1 R&B, but peaked at #101 on the pop chart. In the next four years, Clinton released three more studio albums (You Shouldn't-Nuf Bit Fish, Some of My Best Jokes Are Friends and R&B Skeletons in the Closet) as well as a live album, Mothership Connection (Live from the Summit, Houston, Texas) and charting three singles in the R&B Top 30, "Nubian Nut," "Last Dance," and "Do Fries Go with that Shake." This period of Clinton's career was marred by multiple legal problems (resulting in financial difficulties) due to complex royalty and copyright issues. In 1985 he was recruited by the Red Hot Chili Peppers to produce their album Freaky Styley, because the bandmembers were huge fans of George Clinton and Funk in general. Though Clinton's popularity had waned by the mid 1980s, he experienced something of a resurgence in the early 1990s, as many rappers cited him as an influence and began sampling his songs. Alongside James Brown, George Clinton is considered to be one of the most sampled musicians ever.
In 1989, Clinton released The Cinderella Theory on Paisley Park, Prince's record label. This was followed by Hey Man... Smell my Finger. Clinton then signed with Sony 550 and released T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M. (The Awesome Power Of A Fully Operational Mothership) in 1996, having reunited with several old members of Parliament and Funkadelic.
In the 1990s, Clinton appeared in films such as Graffiti Bridge (1990), Good Burger (1997) and PCU (1994). Most recently he appeared as the voice of The Funktipus, the DJ of the Bounce FM station in the 2004 video game, Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. Rapper Dr. Dre sampled most of his beats to create his G-Funk music era.
"You're Thinking Right" - the theme song for The Tracey Ullman Show, was written by Clinton.
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This is not the soundtrack composer George S. Clinton who did Mortal Kombat etc.
Ain
George Clinton Lyrics
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Ain't that peculiar baby?
Ain't that peculiar?
You, you, you, you, you
You do me wrong but I'm still crazy 'bout you
Stay away too long and I can't do without you
Every chance you get you seem to hurt me more and more
I know flowers grow from rain
But how can love grow from pain baby?
Now ain't that peculiar? Peculiar as can be
(Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Ain't that peculiar baby? Peculiarity
(Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
You tell me lies that should be obvious to me
But I'm so much in love with you baby that I don't wanna see
That the things you do and say are designed to make me blue
Doggone shame my love for you makes all your lies seem true
If truth makes love last longer
Why do lies make mine stronger, oh baby?
Ain't that peculiar? Peculiarity
(Ain't that peculiar, peculiar?)
Ain't that peculiar? Peculiar as can be
(Ain't that peculiar?)
Ain't it peculiar baby? Peculiar as can be
(Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Ain't that peculiar?
Ain't that peculiar? Peculiarity
I know love can last through years
But how can my love laugh through tears?
I know love can last through years
But how can love laugh through tears?
Ain't it peculiar baby?
(Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?
Ain't that peculiar? That's all I can do baby
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?
Ain't that peculiar?
The lyrics to George Clinton's "Ain't That Peculiar" is a song that speaks to the deep contradictions and mixed feelings in a troubled relationship. The opening lines repeatedly ask the question "Ain't That Peculiar," suggesting that there may be something off or strange about the nature of the love and relationship being described. The songwriter laments the fact that despite being hurt by their lover repeatedly, they cannot help but still be in love with them. The singer acknowledges the pain they feel and the hurtful actions of their lover, but still, their love grows stronger for them every time they are hurt.
The second verse of the song speaks to the theme of lies and deceit in the relationship. The singer acknowledges that their lover repeatedly lies to them and does things to purposely hurt them, but the love they have is so strong that they cannot bring themselves to see the truth of the situation. The bridge of the song further explores the theme of love and pain, questioning how love can grow from pain and tears.
Overall, "Ain't That Peculiar" is a powerful and emotional song that speaks to the complicated and often confusing nature of love and relationships. It explores themes of pain, love, and deceit, and ultimately questions whether these conflicting emotions are "peculiar" or just a natural part of the human experience.
Line by Line Meaning
Ain't that peculiar baby?
Isn't it strange, my love, how you treat me and I keep coming back for more?
You, you, you, you, you
You, the one who constantly hurts me and yet I still love you.
You do me wrong but I'm still crazy 'bout you
You mistreat me, but my love for you is still strong.
Stay away too long and I can't do without you
When you're gone, I can't help but miss you terribly.
Every chance you get you seem to hurt me more and more
You keep on hurting me, no matter how hard I try.
But each hurt makes my love grow stronger than before
But even though you hurt me, my love for you keeps getting stronger.
I know flowers grow from rain
I know that beautiful things can come from difficult experiences.
But how can love grow from pain baby?
But how can my love for you keep growing even though you hurt me?
Now ain't that peculiar? Peculiar as can be (Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Isn't that just the oddest thing? It's truly remarkable.
You tell me lies that should be obvious to me
You lie to me, even though I should be able to see through them.
But I'm so much in love with you baby that I don't wanna see
But my love for you is so strong that I choose not to acknowledge your lies.
That the things you do and say are designed to make me blue
I realize that you do things and say things to intentionally hurt me.
Doggone shame my love for you makes all your lies seem true
It's a pity that my love for you is so strong that I am blinded even by your lies.
If truth makes love last longer
If honesty is what makes love survive,
Why do lies make mine stronger, oh baby?
Then why does your dishonesty make my love for you even stronger?
Ain't that peculiar? Peculiarity (Ain't that peculiar, peculiar?)
Isn't it the oddest thing? It's truly remarkable.
Ain't it peculiar baby? Peculiar as can be (Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Isn't our situation just the oddest thing? Truly miraculous.
I know love can last through years
I'm aware that love can endure the test of time.
But how can my love laugh through tears?
But how can my love for you remain strong even when I'm crying because of you?
Ain't it peculiar baby? (Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?)
Isn't it odd how these conflicting emotions coexist? Truly amazing.
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar? That's all I can do baby
Isn't it just extraordinary? It's all that I can think or say, my love.
Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar? Ain't that peculiar?
Isn't it just the oddest thing? I'm completely awed by our extraordinary love.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: WARREN MOORE, SMOKEY ROBINSON, WILLIAM ROBINSON JR., ROBERT ROGERS, MARVIN TARPLIN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind