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.
Together
Parliament Lyrics
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We belong together
Let's do it together
We belong together
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah,yeah,yeah
Let's keep it together
(x2)
Together, forever, together
Dedicate my life you see (yeah)
This is what you mean to me, eeeeh
Together, forever, together
Just as close two is to three (yeah)
I want you that close to me
I wanted to know
But I didn't know who
That you knew that he told me so-ho-o
You and me just got to be
Together, forever
There is nowhere to go-oooh
But I now know
That that ain't so-o-o
Let's get it together
We belong together
Let's stay it together
We belong together
Together, forever, together
Dedicate my life you see (yeah)
This is what you mean to me, eeeeh
Together, forever, together
Just as close two is to three (yeah)
I want you that close to me, eeeh
I wanted to know
But I didn't know who
That you knew that told me so-ho-o
Well is me, well is you
Together, will see you through-hooh-hooh
There is nowhere to go-oooh
But I now know
That that ain't so-o-o
Let's keep it together
We belong together
Let's stay together
We belong together
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah,yeah,yeah
Let's keep it together
(x2)
Together, forever, together
Dedicate my life you see (yeah)
This is what you mean to me, eeeeh
Together, forever, together
Just as close two is to three (yeah)
I want you that close to me
Ahh, ohh
Let's keep it together
We belong together (we belong together)
Let's stay together (let's do it together)
We belong together
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah,yeah,yeah
The song "Together" by Parliament speaks about the idea of unity and the power of togetherness. The repeated phrases of "Let's keep it together" and "We belong together" emphasize a desire to maintain a sense of unity and avoid division. The lyrics highlight the importance of being dedicated to each other and sticking together in the face of challenges. The phrase "Just as close two is to three" suggests that the strength of a group is greater than the sum of its individual parts.
The lyrics also touch on the idea of trust and communication, with the lines "I wanted to know, but I didn't know who, that you knew that he told me so-ho-o" and "Well is me, well is you, together we'll see you through-hooh-hooh". These lines suggest that in order to maintain unity, people must be transparent with one another and work together to overcome any obstacles.
Overall, "Together" promotes the idea of unity and highlights the power of coming together as a group to support one another.
Line by Line Meaning
Let's keep it together
Let's maintain unity and remain together
We belong together
We are meant to be united
Let's do it together
Let's solve problems or achieve goals in a collaborative manner
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah,yeah,yeah
An expression of excitement and enthusiasm
Together, forever, together
Emphasis on the importance of being united for a long time
Dedicate my life you see (yeah)
Commitment to being united with someone for a long time
This is what you mean to me, eeeeh
You are very important to me and our unity is paramount
Just as close two is to three (yeah)
Being united is as important as the relationship between two and three
I want you that close to me
I desire to be united with you
I wanted to know
But I didn't know who
That you knew that he told me so-ho-o
An expression of confusion and uncertainty about someone's statement or situation
You and me just got to be
Together, forever
There is nowhere to go-oooh
Being united is the only option and destination for us
But I now know
That that ain't so-o-o
Realization that the previously held belief or information is incorrect
Let's get it together
Let's come together and work harmoniously
Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah,yeah,yeah
An expression of excitement and enthusiasm
We belong together
We are meant to be united
Let's stay it together
Let's maintain our unity
Together, forever, together
Emphasis on the importance of being united for a long time
Just as close two is to three (yeah)
Being united is as important as the relationship between two and three
I want you that close to me, eeeh
I desire to be united with you
Ahh, ohh
A vocalization indicating happiness and satisfaction
We belong together (we belong together)
Reiteration of the importance of being united
Let's stay together (let's do it together)
Let's maintain our unity and work collaboratively
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: BERNARD WORRELL, GEORGE CLINTON, WILLIAM BOOTSY COLLINS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind