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.
Getten' to Know You
Parliament Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Was one of the things that I chose to do
Baby I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Now that I know you
As one of the things that makes life real
Baby, I love you
Gettin' to know you
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this
I never knew I could feel
To think that I love you
After all of the things that I put you through
Baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Getting to feel you
Is one of the things I've grown to feel
And baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
I said getting to show you
Some of the things you make me see
Baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Well, getting to know you, hey baby
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this
I never knew I could feel
To think that I love you
After all of the things I've put you through
Baby, hey, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby, I love you)
(Baby, baby, I love you)
And the world that surrounds you
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby, I love you)
(Baby, baby, I love you)
And the world that surrounds you
Baby
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Uh, baby
Hey baby
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Hey, baby, uh, baby
Wow, getting to know you
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this I never knew I could feel
Ooh, baby, I love you
After all of the things that I put you through
Baby, I love you
And the whole wide world that surrounds you
Turn around, back up and hit me with it
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Hey baby, I love you
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
The song "Gettin' to Know You" by Parliament is a love ballad about getting to know someone and falling in love. The main theme of the song is the value of meaningful relationships and the importance of getting to know someone on a deeper level. The lyrics suggest that the process of getting to know someone is a precious and rewarding experience that enriches one's life. The singer expresses that he loves the person he has come to know and the world that surrounds them.
The first verse emphasizes the singer's choice to get to know the person he loves, and the second verse emphasizes the deepening of his love as he gets to know them better. The chorus expresses the singer's deep love for the person he has come to know, and the bridge expresses his gratitude for the experience of getting to know them. The final verses reiterate the singer's love for the person and the world that surrounds them.
Overall, "Gettin' to Know You" is a heartfelt tribute to the importance of getting to know someone on a deeper level and the love and appreciation that can come from that process.
Line by Line Meaning
Getting to know you
Exploring and discovering more about you
Was one of the things that I chose to do
I decided to make an effort to learn about you
Baby I love you
I have deep affection for you
And the world that surrounds you
I appreciate everything around you
Now that I know you
After learning about you
As one of the things that makes life real
I realize that getting to know you is meaningful in our existence
Gettin' to know you
Exploring more about you
Is one of the things I hold so dear
I deeply cherish getting to know you
A love like this
My feelings towards you
I never knew I could feel
I never expected to be able to feel this way about someone
To think that I love you
It's surprising that I can develop such deep affection for you
After all of the things that I put you through
Despite any difficulties that may have arisen in our relationship
Getting to feel you
Experiencing your presence and essence
Is one of the things I've grown to feel
I've developed a strong desire for feeling more of you
I said getting to show you
Sharing my experiences with you
Some of the things you make me see
The way you inspire me to view the world around me
Well, getting to know you, hey baby
Reiterating my excitement at exploring you further
Baby, hey, I love you
Expressing my deep affection for you again
And the world that surrounds you
Everything that relates to you is appreciated by me
Baby
Affectionate term for the person being addressed
Uh, baby
Intensification of my affection
Wow, getting to know you
Reaffirmation of my interest in learning more about you
Ooh, baby, I love you
Repetition of my strong affection for you
After all of the things that I put you through
Despite any past difficulties
And the whole wide world that surrounds you
Appreciation for everything around you
Turn around, back up and hit me with it
Request to receive more from the person being addressed
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Federico Romano
Getting to know you
Was one of the things that I chose to do
Baby I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Now that I know you
As one of the things that makes life real
Baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Gettin' to know you
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this
I never knew I could feel
To think that I love you
After all of the things that I put you through
Baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Getting to feel you
Is one of the things I've grown to feel
And baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
I said getting to show you
Some of the things you make me see
Baby, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Well, getting to know you, hey baby
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this
I never knew I could feel
To think that I love you
After all of the things I've put you through
Baby, hey, I love you
And the world that surrounds you
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby, I love you)
(Baby, baby, I love you)
And the world that surrounds you
Baby, I love you
(Baby, baby, I love you)
(Baby, baby, I love you)
And the world that surrounds you
Baby
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Uh, baby
Hey baby
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Hey, baby, uh, baby
Wow, getting to know you
Is one of the things I hold so dear
A love like this I never knew I could feel
Ooh, baby, I love you
After all of the things that I put you through
Baby, I love you
And the whole wide world that surrounds you
Turn around, back up and hit me with it
(Baby, baby I love you)
(Baby, baby I love you)
Hey baby, I love you
Baby, I love you
Baby, I love you
Melvin Jackson
One of my favorites...only hardcore funkadelic fans can understand
Derek Townsend
One of my favorite Parliament songs. Turn around back up and hit me with it. Damn
Wesley Shaw
One of their most underrated songs!
Troy Davis
it's that UFO effect! Them extraterrestrials know their shit!
Derek Townsend
You are absolutely correct sir @Wesley Shaw
loose screws2
@Troy Davis LOL but true!!
Melvin Jackson
Their best album to me....clowns of Dr.Funkenstein
Unique Organics Haircare
He sang the hell out of this song 😍
HE'S THE MYSTRO!!!
Hatshepsut Kemet. didn't he?! I can't wait to find that someone I can sing this to. smh
Derek Townsend
Good ole Garry Shider.