FUNKENTELECHY VS. PLACEBO SYNDROME

Parliament: Glenn Goins, Garry Shider (vocals, guitar); Cordell Mosson (vocals, bass); George Clinton, Ray Davis, Debbie Wright, Jeanette Washington, Lynn Mabry, Dawn Silva (vocals); Michael Hampton (guitar); Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Rick Gardner, Richard Griffith, Clay Lawrey, Darryl Dixon, Valerie Drayton, Danny Cortez (horns); Bernie Worrell (keyboards, synthesizer); Jerome Brailey (drums, percussion). Recorded at United Sounds Studios, Detroit, Michigan and Hollywood Sound Recorders, Hollywood, California. Though the dark, psychedelic element that characterized the group's early '70s output has been replaced with an emphasis on rump-shakin' dance anthems, the superior musicianship, creativity, and unabashed weirdness of the Funk Mob's members is no less in evidence. The songwriting team of frontman George Clinton, bassist Bootsy Collins, and--perhaps most notably--keyboardist Bernie Worrell concocted the #1 smash "Flashlight." An ecstatic, amorphous journey through chugging, liquid basslines (the unbelievably fat, quadruple bass sound here was created on Worrell's synthesizer), chaotic guitar, percussive embellishments, and chant-like vocal phrases, "Flashlight" coalesces into one of the greatest dance songs of all time. Other highlights include the Glenn Goins showcase of "Bop Gun" and the loose and groovy "Funkentelechy." Often dismissed as a party band, Parliament's edgy experimentalism and loose, textured structures move the mind as well as the ass. Their albums clearly motivated the New York avant-garde dance movement of the early '80s, influencing such artists as Liquid Liquid, Bill Laswell, and Talking Heads. FUNKENTELECHY is a seminal and immensely enjoyable album.