Con Funk Shun
Encyclopedia
Con Funk Shun is an American
R&B
and funk
band
popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Influences include James Brown and Sly & the Family Stone
.
students in Vallejo
, California
, drummer Louis A. McCall Sr.
and singer/guitarist Michael Cooper. The two got their start as a backup group for the Soul Children under the name Project Soul. They began working with Stax Records
staff songwriter
s, and while recording
at Audio Dimensions, a Memphis
, Tennessee
sound studio
, producer
Ted Sturges both named the group (after an instrumental
recording by The Nite-Liters) and produced their first album
, Organized Con Funk Shun.
In 1976, Con Funk Shun signed to Mercury Records
, releasing eleven albums over a span of ten years. The group's 1977 LP, Secrets, was certified gold in the US, as were 1978's Loveshine, 1979's Candy, and 1980's Spirit of Love. They scored a string of top ten hits
on the US
Billboard
black singles
chart
, including 1977's "Ffun
" (#1), 1978's "Shake and Dance with Me" (#5), 1979's "Chase Me" (#4), 1980s "Got to Be Enough" (#8), and "Too Tight" (#8). Tensions from within the group built over the 1980s, and the group's last album, Burning Love, was recorded without songwriter and vocalist Felton Pilate
. After leaving Mercury, the band broke up in 1986, but some members of the group reunited alongside touring musicians for concerts in the 1990s.
was murdered in a robbery
at his Stone Mountain, Georgia
Village Square Apartments home on June 25, 1997. It would be a full ten years before a suspect Marques Clair, would finally be indicted in 2007 in connection with the murder.
Though Marques Clair was finally indicted in 2007, on July 23, 2008, just two days after the start of the murder trial of the killing of McCall, Superior Court Judge Gregory Adams stopped the trial, "based on an omission" in information, said Jada Hudspeth, a spokeswoman for the DeKalb County Georgia district attorney's office. Hudspeth said District Attorney Gwen Keyes Fleming and her staff will evaluate the evidence in the case before deciding whether to retry Clair. Marques Clair, now 29, was arrested as a suspect in McCall's slaying in 1999, but prosecutors dropped the charge due to the District Attorneys refusal to bring the case before a jury without sufficient evidence.
On August 7, 2008, after the trial ended in a mistrial, the charges against Clair were formally dismissed with prejudice.
radio stations that play music of the 1970s and 1980s. Additionally, their back-beats have been repeatedly sampled
by later artists in Hip Hop
, R&B
, and rap. Most recently, "Honey Wild", (written by Louis McCall; his wife, Linda Lou McCall; and Danny Thomas), from their 1980 Spirit of Love album was sampled by Lil Wayne
for his CD Tha Carter III
- Deluxe Edition. In 1996, Dru Hill
covered the song on their self-titled début album
which was produced by Keith Sweat
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
band
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
popular in the 1970s and 1980s. Influences include James Brown and Sly & the Family Stone
Sly & the Family Stone
Sly and the Family Stone were an American rock, funk, and soul band from San Francisco, California. Active from 1966 to 1983, the band was pivotal in the development of soul, funk, and psychedelic music...
.
History
The band was formed by a pair of high schoolHigh school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
students in Vallejo
Vallejo, California
Vallejo is the largest city in Solano County, California, United States. The population was 115,942 at the 2010 census. It is located in the San Francisco Bay Area on the northeastern shore of San Pablo Bay...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, drummer Louis A. McCall Sr.
Louis A. McCall Sr.
Louis A. McCall Sr. was an American singer, songwriter, drummer, and event planner. He is best known as the co-founder and drummer of the 1970s and 1980s funk/R&B band Con Funk Shun. Louis was murdered in a home invasion robbery in 1997.-History:Louis A. McCall Sr...
and singer/guitarist Michael Cooper. The two got their start as a backup group for the Soul Children under the name Project Soul. They began working with Stax Records
Stax Records
Stax Records is an American record label, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee.Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the name Stax Records was adopted in 1961. The label was a major factor in the creation of the Southern soul and Memphis soul music styles, also releasing gospel, funk, jazz, and...
staff songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
s, and while recording
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
at Audio Dimensions, a Memphis
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
sound studio
Recording studio
A recording studio is a facility for sound recording and mixing. Ideally both the recording and monitoring spaces are specially designed by an acoustician to achieve optimum acoustic properties...
, producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
Ted Sturges both named the group (after an instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
recording by The Nite-Liters) and produced their first album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
, Organized Con Funk Shun.
In 1976, Con Funk Shun signed to Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
, releasing eleven albums over a span of ten years. The group's 1977 LP, Secrets, was certified gold in the US, as were 1978's Loveshine, 1979's Candy, and 1980's Spirit of Love. They scored a string of top ten hits
Hit single
A hit single is a recorded song or instrumental released as a single that has become very popular. Although it is sometimes used to describe any widely-played or big-selling song, the term "hit" is usually reserved for a single that has appeared in an official music chart through repeated radio...
on the US
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
black singles
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
, including 1977's "Ffun
Ffun
"Ffun" was a hit song by R&B/funk band Con Funk Shun. Released from their Secrets album, it spent 2 weeks at number one on the R&B singles chart in January, 1978. It also crossed over to the pop charts, peaking at number twenty-three on the Billboard Hot 100...
" (#1), 1978's "Shake and Dance with Me" (#5), 1979's "Chase Me" (#4), 1980s "Got to Be Enough" (#8), and "Too Tight" (#8). Tensions from within the group built over the 1980s, and the group's last album, Burning Love, was recorded without songwriter and vocalist Felton Pilate
Felton Pilate
Felton C. Pilate II is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer known as a member of the 1970s and 1980s funk/R&B band Con Funk Shun, and as a collaborator with rapper MC Hammer...
. After leaving Mercury, the band broke up in 1986, but some members of the group reunited alongside touring musicians for concerts in the 1990s.
Death of Louis A. McCall Sr.
Original drummer Louis A. McCall Sr.Louis A. McCall Sr.
Louis A. McCall Sr. was an American singer, songwriter, drummer, and event planner. He is best known as the co-founder and drummer of the 1970s and 1980s funk/R&B band Con Funk Shun. Louis was murdered in a home invasion robbery in 1997.-History:Louis A. McCall Sr...
was murdered in a robbery
Robbery
Robbery is the crime of taking or attempting to take something of value by force or threat of force or by putting the victim in fear. At common law, robbery is defined as taking the property of another, with the intent to permanently deprive the person of that property, by means of force or fear....
at his Stone Mountain, Georgia
Stone Mountain, Georgia
Stone Mountain is a city in eastern DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 5,802 at the 2010 census. It is an outer suburb of the Atlanta Metropolitan Area.-Geography:...
Village Square Apartments home on June 25, 1997. It would be a full ten years before a suspect Marques Clair, would finally be indicted in 2007 in connection with the murder.
Though Marques Clair was finally indicted in 2007, on July 23, 2008, just two days after the start of the murder trial of the killing of McCall, Superior Court Judge Gregory Adams stopped the trial, "based on an omission" in information, said Jada Hudspeth, a spokeswoman for the DeKalb County Georgia district attorney's office. Hudspeth said District Attorney Gwen Keyes Fleming and her staff will evaluate the evidence in the case before deciding whether to retry Clair. Marques Clair, now 29, was arrested as a suspect in McCall's slaying in 1999, but prosecutors dropped the charge due to the District Attorneys refusal to bring the case before a jury without sufficient evidence.
On August 7, 2008, after the trial ended in a mistrial, the charges against Clair were formally dismissed with prejudice.
Legacy
Con Funk Shun continues to receive airplay on US soulSoul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
radio stations that play music of the 1970s and 1980s. Additionally, their back-beats have been repeatedly sampled
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
by later artists in Hip Hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
, R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
, and rap. Most recently, "Honey Wild", (written by Louis McCall; his wife, Linda Lou McCall; and Danny Thomas), from their 1980 Spirit of Love album was sampled by Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
for his CD Tha Carter III
Tha Carter III
Tha Carter III is the sixth studio album by American rapper Lil Wayne, released June 10, 2008 on Cash Money Records. It follows a long string of mixtape releases and guest appearances on other hip hop and R&B artists records, helping to increase his exposure in the mainstream...
- Deluxe Edition. In 1996, Dru Hill
Dru Hill
Dru Hill is an American singing group, most popular during the late 1990s, whose repertoire included R&B, soul, and gospel music. Founded in Baltimore, Maryland, and active since 1992, Dru Hill recorded seven Top 40 hits, and is best known for the R&B #1 hits "In My Bed", "Never Make a Promise", ...
covered the song on their self-titled début album
Dru Hill (album)
-Album:-Singles:"—" denotes releases that did not chart.-Personnel:Information taken from Allmusic.*assistant engineering – Jim Carliana, Chris Habeck, Kevin Lively, Steven Rhodes, Brian Thomas, Bernasky Wall, Won B., Luke Yeager...
which was produced by Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat
Keith Sweat is an American R&B/soul, singer-songwriter, record producer, radio personality and a major contributor to the new jack swing era.-Music career:...
.
Members
- Michael Cooper - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, lead vocals - Karl Fuller - trumpetTrumpetThe trumpet is the musical instrument with the highest register in the brass family. Trumpets are among the oldest musical instruments, dating back to at least 1500 BCE. They are played by blowing air through closed lips, producing a "buzzing" sound which starts a standing wave vibration in the air...
, vocals - Paul "Maceo" Harrell - saxophoneSaxophoneThe saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...
, fluteFluteThe flute is a musical instrument of the woodwind family. Unlike woodwind instruments with reeds, a flute is an aerophone or reedless wind instrument that produces its sound from the flow of air across an opening...
, vocals - Cedric Martin - bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, vocals - Louis A. McCall Sr.Louis A. McCall Sr.Louis A. McCall Sr. was an American singer, songwriter, drummer, and event planner. He is best known as the co-founder and drummer of the 1970s and 1980s funk/R&B band Con Funk Shun. Louis was murdered in a home invasion robbery in 1997.-History:Louis A. McCall Sr...
- drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration...
, vocals - Felton PilateFelton PilateFelton C. Pilate II is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer known as a member of the 1970s and 1980s funk/R&B band Con Funk Shun, and as a collaborator with rapper MC Hammer...
- tromboneTromboneThe trombone is a musical instrument in the brass family. Like all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player’s vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
, lead vocals - Danny "Sweet Man" Thomas - keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, vocals
Albums
- Organized Con Funk Shun (1973), Fretone
- The Memphis Sessions (1973), Fretone
- Con-Funk-Shun (1976), MercuryMercury RecordsMercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
- Secrets (1977), Mercury
- Loveshine (1978), Mercury
- CandyCandy (Con Funk Shun album)Candy is the fifth album by the Vallejo, California musical group Con Funk Shun. It was released in 1979 on the Mercury Records label.-Track listing:# Fire When Ready 1:43 #Chase Me 5:39 #Not Ready 5:16 #Da Lady 3:51 #Candy 5:13...
(1979), Mercury - Spirit of LoveSpirit of LoveSpirit Of Love is the sixth album by the musical group Con Funk Shun. It was released in 1980 on the Mercury Records label.-Track listing:#"Got To Be Enough" #"By Your Side"...
(1980), Mercury - TouchTouch (Con Funk Shun album)Touch is the seventh album by the Vallejo, California musical group Con Funk Shun. It was released in late 1980 on the Mercury Records label.-Track listing:#Too Tight - 6:17 #Lady's Wild - 4:53...
(1980), Mercury - Con Funk Shun 7Con Funk Shun 7Con Funk Shun 7 is the eighth album by the Vallejo, California musical group Con Funk Shun. It was released in 1981 on the Mercury Records label.-Track listing:#Bad Lady 4:09 #I'll Get You Back 5:12 #Body Lovers 4:40...
(1981), Mercury - To the MaxTo the Max-Reception:-Tracklisting:# Ms. Got The Body # Let's Ride And Slide # Everlove # Hide And Freak # You Are The One # Take It To The Max # Love's Train # Ain't Nobody Baby # T.H.E...
(1982), Mercury - Fever (1983), Mercury
- Electric Lady (1985), Mercury
- Burnin' Love (1986), Mercury
- Live for Ya Ass (1996), Intersound
- Sound Of Grown Men (2011)
Singles
- "Sho Feels Good To Me" (1977) - #66 R&BHot R&B/Hip-Hop SongsHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
singles - "Confunkshunizeya" (1978) - #31 R&B
- "Ffun" (1978) - #1 R&B, #23 PopBillboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
singles - "Shake And Dance With Me" (1978) - #5 R&B, #60 Pop
- "So Easy" (1978) - #28 R&B
- "(Let Me Put) Love on Your Mind" (1979) - #24 R&B
- "Chase Me" (1979) - #4 R&B
- "Da Lady" (1980) - #60 R&B
- "By Your Side" (1980) - #27 R&B
- "Got To Be Enough" (1980) - #8 R&B, #20 Club Play
- "Happy Face" (1980) - #87 R&B
- "Bad Lady" (1981) - #19 R&B
- "Lady's Wild" (1981) - #42 R&B
- "Too Tight" (1981) - #8 R&B, #40 Pop, #25 Club Play
- "Ain't Nobody, Baby" (1982) - #31 R&B
- "Straight From The Heart" (1982) - #79 R&B
- "Baby I'm Hooked (Right into Your Love)" (1983) - #5 R&B, #76 Pop
- "Ms. Got-The-Body (1983) - #15 R&B
- "Love's Train/You Are The One" (1983) - #47 R&B
- "Don't Let Your Love Grow Cold" (1984)- #33 R&B
- "Electric Lady" (1985) - #4 R&B, #32 Dance Sales
- "I'm Leaving Baby" (1985) - #12 R&B
- "Tell Me What You're Gonna Do" (1985) - #47 R&B
- "Burnin' Love" (1986) - #8 R&B; UKUK Singles ChartThe UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
#68 - "She's a Star" (1986) - #80 R&B
- "Throw It Up, Throw It Up" (1996) - #84 R&B