Jonzun Crew
Encyclopedia
Jonzun Crew was an electro
Electro (music)
Electro is a genre of electronic dance music directly influenced by the use of TR-808 drum machines, Moog keytar synthesizers and funk sampling...

 and early 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...

/hip hop
Hip hop
Hip hop is a form of musical expression and artistic culture that originated in African-American and Latino communities during the 1970s in New York City, specifically the Bronx. DJ Afrika Bambaataa outlined the four pillars of hip hop culture: MCing, DJing, breaking and graffiti writing...

 group that was active in the 1980s. The group was led by Michael Jonzun
Michael Jonzun
Michael Jonzun, a musician and producer of electro, and especially electro funk, was born in Florida, and formed the Jonzun Crew in Boston with Steve Thorpe and Gordy Worthy. In the early 1980s, the group recorded electro dance tracks including "Pack Jam " and "Space Cowboy"...

, his brothers Maurice Starr
Maurice Starr
Maurice Starr is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer.-Biography:Starr, originally from Florida, moved to Boston with his brother Michael in the early 1970s. After moving to Boston he recorded two unsuccessful R&B albums, Flaming Starr and Spacey Lady...

 and Soni Jonzun, and Carl (Captain Fingers).

The group's most famous tracks, “Pack Jam (Look out for the OVC),” "Space Is The Place," and “Space Cowboy,” were featured on the group's debut album, Lost in Space (1983). Other notable tracks include “We Are the Jonzun Crew” and “Ground Control.” The Jonzun Crew sound was particularly unique because all the synthesizer parts were played live as opposed to sequenced, and despite using drum-machine hits in their tracks, most of their songs used a live drummer as the main drum track, giving their songs a unique groove and swing compared to most electro music of the era.

Jonzun Crew was an electro group that carried its spin on Parliament
Parliament (band)
Parliament was a funk band most prominent during the 1970s. It and its sister act Funkadelic, both led by George Clinton, began the funk music culture of that decade.-History:...

-Funkadelic
Funkadelic
Funkadelic was an American band most prominent during the 1970s. The band and its sister act Parliament, both led by George Clinton, began the funk music culture of that decade.-History:...

's loopy sci-fi themes throughout the 1980s and early 1990s for a handful of albums, which included singles like "Pack Jam (Look Out for the OVC)," "Space Is the Place," "Space Cowboy," and "We Are the Jonzun Crew." Florida-born brothers Michael, Soni, and Larry Johnson (better known as Maurice Starr) formed Jonzun Crew in Boston in 1981, with Gordy Worthy and Steve Thorpe filling out the lineup for different stretches of the group's existence. Starr and Michael would gain further notoriety for helping to bring New Edition and New Kids on the Block to the world; Michael (who continued using Jonzun as his last name) also went solo for a brief period on A&M, in addition to working on several other artists' releases.

In 1986, Michael Jonzun left the group. “Pack Jam (Look out for the OVC
Sun Ra
Sun Ra was a prolific jazz composer, bandleader, piano and synthesizer player, poet and philosopher known for his "cosmic philosophy," musical compositions and performances. He was born in Birmingham, Alabama...

)” was often played in the background while the rundown of top hits in Germany were counted on the German language Top Hits show Formel Eins during the 1980s.

Singles

  • Pack Jam (1982)
  • Space Cowboy (1983)
  • Space Is the Place (1983)
  • We Are the Jonzun Crew (1983)
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