Parliament was originally The Parliaments, a doo-wop group based out of George Clinton's Plainfield, New Jersey barber shop. The name was soon abandoned due to legal issues with Revilot and Atlantic Records, and most of the same people recorded under the name Funkadelic, which consisted of The Parliaments' backing musicians. Billy "Bass" Nelson is credited with creating the name Funkadelic. He also switched from 6-string guitar to bass, creating room for his childhood friend Eddie Hazel to join the group. Soon, Parliament was created in addition to Funkadelic and the two bands consisted of essentially the same people, though both released albums under their respective names.
The legal problems with the name "The Parliaments" were resolved in 1970, and Clinton signed all of Funkadelic to Invictus Records under the name Parliament, releasing Osmium ("The Breakdown" reached #30 on the R&B charts in 1971) but the name Parliament was then abandoned for some time, as Funkadelic was much more successful.
In the early 1970s, Bernie Worrell, Bootsy Collins and Catfish Collins joined Funkadelic, which released five albums by 1974. With only moderate success, Funkadelic signed with Casablanca Records as Parliament, releasing "Up for the Down Stroke" (off the album of the same name) which reached #10 on the R&B charts but peaked at #63 Pop. The song was the biggest hit of P Funk's career. 1975 saw the release of Chocolate City, which also enjoyed moderate success; the title track reached #24.
With the ensuing albums, Parliament became one of the most respected bands on the 1970s, and are now recognized as one of the forefathers of funk music. Of particular interest are the spacey themes of Starchild, Sir Nose and other recurring characters from multiple albums.
Of particular note is the landmark album Mothership Connection, an amalgam of many '70s themes and the tight "popular" funk sound which was both more commercially viable (particularly in the black community) and more readily emulated by the numerous artists capitalizing on the popularity of funk's mainstream cousin: disco. Artists such as the BeeGees, the Commodores and Kool and the Gang repackaged many of Parliament's innovations into radio-ready pop hits and upon the mass acceptance of disco culture as portrayed in Saturday Night Fever, millions of suburban Americans were able to boogie-oogie-oogie safely protected from exposure to the urban dance scene's multi-ethnic, sexually diverse and cocaine-fueled celebration.
In the early 1980s, with legal difficulties arising from the multiple names used by multiple groups, as well as a shakeup at Casablanca Records, George Clinton dissolved Parliament and Funkadelic as recording and touring entities. Parliament/Funkadelic morphed into P-Funk. New audiences were fueled in the '90s due to extensive sampling by hip hop DJs and producers, including beats used in The Chronic and Cypress Hill's debut album.
A variety of bands evolved in their own right out of the main two bands - they included Bootsy's Rubber Band, The Brides of Funkenstein, Parlet, Mutiny, The Horny Horns, and Quazar.
George Clinton subsequently worked with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Reformed in January 2018, the first new Parliament release in 38 years was "I'm Gon Make U Sick O'Me", which features the rapper Scarface. A new Parliament album, Medicaid Fraud Dogg, was released in May 2018.
Gamin' on Ya!
Parliament Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Funkenstein is a fag
Gamin' on me
He thinks he knows everythang
Gamin' on me
Funkenstein is a fool
Gamin' on me
Gamin' on me
Funkenstein is a fag
Gamin' on me
He thinks he knows everythang
Gamin' on me
Funkenstein is a fool
Gamin' on me
He thinks that he can break the rules
People keep waiting on a change
They ain't got sense enough
To come in out of the rain
People keep waiting on a change
They ain't got sense enough
To come in out of the rain
People keep waiting on a change
They ain't got sense enough
To come in out of the rain
People keep waiting on a change
They ain't got sense enough
To come in out of the rain
People keep waiting on a change
They ain't got sense enough
To come in out of the rain
The lyrics to Parliament's song "Gamin' on Ya!" are a commentary on the societal and political climate of the time, with a specific focus on issues of power, authority, and resistance. The repeated refrain of "Gamin' on me" suggests a sense of frustration and indignation at the way in which people in positions of power, such as the titular "Funkenstein," act as if they know everything and have the right to break the rules.
At the same time, the song also points out the ways in which ordinary people are complicit in their own oppression, waiting for change but not taking action to bring it about. The line "They ain't got sense enough to come in out of the rain" invokes a sense of foolishness or lack of awareness, suggesting that people are not fully aware of the forces that are working against them.
The song's funky, upbeat groove underlines its message of resistance and defiance, creating a sense of energy and empowerment that encourages the listener to take action against oppression and injustice.
Line by Line Meaning
Gamin' on me
Someone is trying to antagonize or make fun of the singer
Funkenstein is a fag
The person doing the gamin' is using homophobic slurs to insult the singer
He thinks he knows everythang
The person doing the gamin' is acting arrogant and thinks they know everything
Funkenstein is a fool
The person doing the gamin' is also acting foolish
He thinks that he can break the rules
The person doing the gamin' believes they are above the rules and can do whatever they want
People keep waiting on a change
There are people who are waiting for something different to happen
They ain't got sense enough
These people are not smart enough to do something about their situation
To come in out of the rain
They are so stuck in their current situation that they are not taking any steps to improve it
Lyrics ยฉ Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: George Clinton, William Collins, George Worrell
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ronaldbarnes6188
people keep waitin on a change. they ainโt got sense enough to come in from outta the rain.
Powerful message. You just canโt stand around idly and expect things to change. You have to take action. I prefer the ballot and a certain movement in this country is trying to make it much harder for disenfranchised people to cast their ballot.
I prefer the ballot. However if the ballot is taken away we have no choice but to resort to the bullet.
Letโs stop engaging in all of this counter productive activity and address the task at hand.
@desiraemiller8893
My brother played tenor sax in high school, this is what he practiced to....my fondest memory of him, R.I.P Derrick ๐งก
@steveola1
If you were playing this really loud when it was first released you were the coolest cat in your neighborhood
@edwardhill1279
Rest in Peace Bernie..you were the finest on them keys
@karl1970
This beat straight up goes hard, and that's the way we were talking in 76-77
@donharper9696
Taught myself to play trumpet with this song!
@chrisdennon3734
The most funkyist tune in the world . Heavy bass line !
@ericrobinson1789
This beat was funky from jump! George had the baddest musicians I tell ya.
@johnfrankdunlapjr3221
People keep waiting on a change but ain't got sense enough to come in out of the rain and that holds true today
@TKsh1
Probably the most serious Parliament has ever been with their music, especially the ending.
@johnlewis2247
2020 KEEP FUNK ALIVE!!!!!! COME IN OUTTA THE RAIN