Audio By Carbonatix
When it comes to George Clinton and Funkadelic, or Parliament or Parliament Funkadelic or the P-Funk All-Stars — or whatever his backing ensemble might be called — you’re either all in or you’re in for a long evening. Given Clinton’s propensity for playing three- to four-hour concerts, this brand of hard-hitting funk can be draining, taxing the mind as well as the body. But for fans of lowdown greasy funk filled with searing guitar riffs, over-the-top horn fills, and that continually popping bass, this is a good thing. And Clinton, 71, deserves credit for playing such a long show when most artists call it a night at the 90-minute mark. He just goes on and on. Now sporting multi-colored hair, Clinton worked in a salon straightening hair when he formed doo-wop group The Parliaments in the late 1950s. After a brief stint as a Motown songwriter, Clinton forged elements as diverse as James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, The Meters, and Frankie Lymon into a fiery amalgamation that pumps listeners with deep grooves and routinely leaves dance floors slippery with sweat. Bring a towel; you’ll need it. A 5-hour Energy couldn’t hurt, either — the Atomic Dog could play that long.
