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.
Prélude
Parliament Lyrics
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In the days of the Funkapus
The concept of specially-designed Afronauts
Capable of funkatizing galaxies
Was first laid on man-child
But was later repossessed
And placed among the secrets of the pyramids
Until a more positive attitude
Clone Funk
Could be acquired
(We want the funk, give up the funk)
There in these terrestrial projects
It would wait, along with its coinhabitants of kings and pharoahs
Like sleeping beauties with a kiss
That would release them to multiply
In the image of the chosen one
Dr Funkenstein
And funk is its own reward
May I frighten you?
The lyrics to Parliament's song Prelude speak to the idea of funk music being a universal force, capable of transcending even the boundaries of space and time. The song opens with the line "Funk upon a time," evoking a sense of nostalgia for a bygone era when funk music was at its peak. The reference to the "Funkapus" and "specially-designed Afronauts" suggests that funk music was once seen as a kind of cosmic force, with the power to "funkatize" not just Earth but entire galaxies.
The lyrics go on to suggest that this knowledge was once known by "man-child," but was later lost or hidden away in the pyramids as a secret. It is implied that the attitude towards funk needed to be more positive before it could be fully embraced and celebrated. The song closes with the line "May I frighten you?" which could be seen as a challenge to the listener to embrace this sacred phenomenon of funk and allow it to unleash its full power.
Line by Line Meaning
Funk upon a time
Once upon a time, in the world of funk music
In the days of the Funkapus
In the era where the Funkapus lived
The concept of specially-designed Afronauts
The idea of creating specially-designed Afronauts who could funkify galaxies
Capable of funkatizing galaxies
Able to inject funk into entire galaxies
Was first laid on man-child
The idea was first presented to humanity
But was later repossessed
However, it was taken back
And placed among the secrets of the pyramids
And hidden among the mysteries of the pyramids
Until a more positive attitude
Until a time when people had a more positive outlook
Towards this most sacred phenomenon
Toward this sacred occurrence
Clone Funk
The art of replicating funk
Could be acquired
Could be obtained
(We want the funk, give up the funk)
Chorus: We want funk and we want you to give it to us
There in these terrestrial projects
Then, in these earthly fields of experimentation
It would wait, along with its coinhabitants of kings and pharoahs
It would lie dormant, alongside the monarchs and pharaohs who shared its realm
Like sleeping beauties with a kiss
Like fairy tale princesses who awaken with a kiss
That would release them to multiply
And the kiss, in this case, would unleash a proliferation
In the image of the chosen one
In the likeness of the supreme being
Dr Funkenstein
The great Funk magician
And funk is its own reward
And the delight of funk is its own compensation
May I frighten you?
May I cause you to feel nervous or alarmed?
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind