George Clinton, alias Dr Funkenstein – pic from artist’s Facebook
With P. Funk preparing to take it to the stage at the O2 Academy, Getintothis’ Shaun Ponsonby can barely contain his excitement.
Liverpool is ready for The Funk, The Whole Funk and nothin’ but The Funk, with the cosmic slop of George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic finally making its way to the O2 Academy this summer, their first in the city since 1971.
Not content with merely being home to some of the country’s funkiest bands, being the birthplace of Craig Charles – arguably Britain’s most prominent waver of the funky flag – and hosting an arena show from Earth Wind & Fire mere weeks earlier, it appears the Mothership is landing in the city and Dr Funkenstein is gonna be standin’ on the verge of getting’ it on…
This writer has waffled endlessly about his love for P. Funk on numerous occasions. A collective headed by the incomparable George Clinton – inarguably one of the most important and influential men in the history of popular music – the impact of Parliament-Funkadelic goes beyond mere funk. As Funkadelic they turned the guitars up to 11 and reclaimed rock & roll for the black audiences. As a solo artist, George created Atomic Dog, one of the most sampled songs in history (the collective is, incidentally, also the most sampled group in history period). And thanks to the crossover pop success of Parliament, they filled stadiums across America with an elaborate and spiritually charged stage show – The P. Funk Earth Tour, which has rarely been matched since.
Will Clinton & Co play the songs in our P. Funk Top 10? We funkin’ hope so!
The Liverpool date comes during a period of rejuvenation for Clinton and co. Funkadelic released their first album in over three decades; First Ya Gotta Shake The Gate. They are also working on a new Parliament album named Medicine Broad Dog, Clinton appeared on Kendrick Lamar’s To Pimp a Butterfly and their live shows are currently their best in decades.
And it’s a Friday night, so you just know it’s gonna be EXTRA funky, because there’s at least one Parliament we can trust.
Free your mind…and your ass will follow…
- George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic play Liverpool’s O2 Academy on Friday, July 29. Tickets on sale this Friday (April 29) at 5pm from the Academy Box Office.
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