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.
Presence Of A Brain
Parliament Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Have you ever felt the presence of a brain?
We have all seen them standing
Amidst the surprise
Sometimes a man smiles
At what, I often wonder
You can tell he's a thinker
By the far away look in his eyes
A penny for his thoughts can make you richer
His eyes can see what other eyes could not
What is the power of Napolean
But not mere power, but magnetism
And magnetism is more intelligent than force
Magnetism is more intelligent than force
A duba diba diba duba duba
Bump bump da day ooh ow
Have you ever felt the presence of a brain?
We have all seen them standing
Amidst the surprise
Sometimes a man smiles
At what, I often wonder
But you can tell he's a thinker
By the far away look in his eyes
The far away look in his eyes
When god's children start thinking together
Learning to live and love one another, hey, hey, hey
(x6)
The lyrics to Parliament's song Presence of a Brain speak to the idea of intelligence and the power of thought. The opening lines ask if the listener has ever felt the presence of a brain, giving the impression that this is something tangible and experienced rather than just a concept. The song goes on to discuss how people with a certain look in their eyes, a "far away look," are thinkers and possess a certain level of intelligence that others may not see. The lyrics also touch on the power of magnetism, suggesting that it is a more intelligent force than brute physical strength.
The song seems to be urging listeners to value intelligence and critical thinking over more physical forms of power. The lines "A penny for his thoughts can make you richer/His eyes can see what other eyes could not" suggest that understanding a thinker's ideas and perspective can bring great value. The song also has a more hopeful message towards the end as the lyrics discuss the power of people coming together to think and learn, suggesting that this kind of collaboration can lead to positive change.
Overall, Presence of a Brain is a thought-provoking song that encourages listeners to think about the power of thought and the value of intelligence. It sends a message of hope that by coming together to think and learn, people can make positive changes in the world.
Line by Line Meaning
Mmmm, mmm-hmmm
Introspective hum to open the song
Have you ever felt the presence of a brain?
Have you ever encountered someone who thinks deeply and intelligently?
We have all seen them standing
We've all seen these thinkers standing out from the crowd
Amidst the surprise
Their intelligence often surprises us
Sometimes a man smiles
These thinkers often smile but we don't know why
At what, I often wonder
We often wonder what these thinkers are smiling about
You can tell he's a thinker
You can tell he's a thinker by the far-away look in his eyes
By the far away look in his eyes
Their distant eyes indicate that they are constantly thinking about something
A penny for his thoughts can make you richer
Asking the thinker about their thoughts can be super-helpful
His eyes can see what other eyes could not
The thinker's eyes are trained to see things that most people might miss
What is the power of Napolean
This line might be rhetorical, but it reminds us that true power comes from intelligence
But not mere power, but magnetism
True power comes from having the ability to attract and influence others
And magnetism is more intelligent than force
Magnetism (i.e. the ability to attract others) is smarter than brute force
Magnetism is more intelligent than force
Magnetism (i.e. the ability to attract others) is smarter than brute force
A duba diba diba duba duba
Silly background vocalization
Bump bump da day ooh ow
Another silly background vocalization
When god's children start thinking together
When people start thinking collaboratively and cohesively
Learning to live and love one another, hey, hey, hey
When people start thinking collaboratively, they can learn to live in harmony with others and love one another
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Garry Marshall Shider, George Jr. Clinton, Simon Calvin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Alexssandra Lieberman
This was such a killer song....another underrated, relatively unknown gem. Love Gary and Calvins vocals on this one and of course Bernie does his thing with a really haunting solo
Marion Slaton
Definitely Gary Shider on lead vocals. I've seen them perform this song live. Rest In Phunk, Gary, Woof!
Starchildjr
Trust me bro!! Eddie sings lead on Let me Be and Open our Eyes... You will hear the difference! Plus Garry is my dad. I'd know!lol
Burrell Marshall
Has been my theme song since I heard it over 30yrs ago
Zimbalist First flight DX4
Burrell Marshall I'm 57, u may return MY theme song now! Had this cassette stuck in the deck.. wouldn't eject wouldn't flip..so POAB here we go
Robert Lewis
Garrett Shider does a good version of this song as well...Funk on young Soldier😎
Starchildjr
Garry Shider singing lead vocals, Calvin Simon, George, and overdubs of Garry Shider singing backgrounds vocals.
Mauricio Hideo Okumura
um bom exemplo de black music
Myron Butler
That is Eddie Hazel and Garry together lead vocals
chris edwards
Myron Butler no it's Garry with George and Calvin