The Funk Brothers
Encyclopedia
The Funk Brothers was the nickname of Detroit, Michigan
, session musician
s who performed the backing to most Motown Records
recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles
in 1972. The Funk Brothers played on Motown hits such as "My Girl", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine
", "Baby Love
", "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
", "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
", "The Tears of a Clown
", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough
", and "(Love is Like a) Heat Wave
".
The role of the Funk Brothers is described in Paul Justman's 2002 documentary film
Standing in the Shadows of Motown
, based on Allan Slutsky
's book of the same name. The opening titles claim that the Funk Brothers have "played on more number-one hits than The Beatles
, Elvis Presley
, The Rolling Stones
, and The Beach Boys
combined."
and Earl Van Dyke
(piano
); James Jamerson
(bass guitar
); Benny "Papa Zita" Benjamin
and Richard "Pistol" Allen (drums
); Paul Riser
(trombone
); Robert White
, Eddie Willis
, and Joe Messina
(guitar
); Jack Ashford
(tambourine
, percussion
, vibraphone
, marimba
); Jack Brokensha
(vibraphone
, marimba
); and Eddie "Bongo" Brown (percussion
). Hunter left in 1964, replaced on keyboards by Johnny Griffith and as bandleader by Van Dyke. Uriel Jones
joined the band as a third drummer. Late era bassist Bob Babbitt
and guitarist Dennis Coffey
both joined the ensemble in 1967. While most of Motown's backing musicians were African American, and many originally from Detroit, the Funk Brothers included white players as well, such as Messina (who was featured guitarist on Soupy Sales
's nighttime jazz TV show in the 1950s), Brokensha (originally from Australia), Coffey, and Pittsburgh-born Babbitt.
There have been many articles written which identify the actual members of the Funk Brothers, some of which claim that virtually every musician who ever played on a Motown track was a "Funk Brother". In actuality, there are 13 Funk Brothers as identified in the film Standing In The Shadows Of Motown, as well as 13 members identified by both NARAS for the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and recognized by the recent Star on the Hollywood Walk of fame. Despite that, many other musicians contributed to the Motown Sound, including many horn and string players, as well as background vocalists, not officially included in the Funk Brothers group.
Of the recognized members, Benjamin died in 1969, Jamerson in 1983, Brown in 1984, Van Dyke in 1992, White in 1994, Allen and Griffith in 2002, Hunter in 2007 and Jones in 2009.
Records backing-band contemporaries Booker T and the M.G.'s in Memphis, until the release of the Standing in the Shadows of Motown
documentary, the members of the Funk Brothers were not widely known. Studio musicians were not credited by Motown until Marvin Gaye
's What's Going On
in 1971, although Motown released a handful of singles and LPs by Earl Van Dyke. The Funk Brothers shared billing with Van Dyke on some recordings, although they were billed as "Earl Van Dyke & the Soul
Brothers", since Motown CEO Berry Gordy, Jr. disliked the word "funk
".
Alternatively, the name "Funk Brothers" could have been given to the band ex post facto; the term "funky" as an adjective came to be associated with uptempo and backbeat, southern-styled soul music in the second half of the 1960s; the term "funk" as a noun is typically associated with uptempo soul music from the 1970s onwards. In the "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" documentary, Joe Hunter states that the name "The Funk Brothers" came from Benny Benjamin. Hunter states that Benjamin was leaving the studio (known as the Snake Pit) after session work, paused on the stairs, turned and said to his fellow musicians, "You all are the Funk Brothers". The band was then informally named.
's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine
" used three drummers. A number of songs utilized instrumentation and percussion unusual in soul music. The Temptations
' "It's Growing
" features Earl Van Dyke playing a toy piano
for the song's introduction, snow chains are used as percussion on Martha & the Vandellas' "Nowhere to Run", and a custom oscillator was built to create the synthesizer sounds used to accent several Holland-Dozier-Holland
compositions and productions, such as Diana Ross & the Supremes' "The Happening" and "Reflections." A tire iron was used in the Martha & the Vandellas "Dancing in the Streets".
James Jamerson
, who began his career playing upright bass, adopted the Fender
Precision Bass electric instrument in 1962, and played both acoustic and electric bass on many Motown recordings. Jamerson would usually play the acoustic bass for the ensemble take and then dub the same part on electric bass afterward. He was praised for being so precise a player that listeners cannot tell right away that two basses are on the recording. And like such producers as Brian Wilson
, George Martin
, and Phil Spector
, it wasn't uncommon for Motown composers or the Funk Brothers musicians to seek unique instrument combinations for certain lines; doubling piano, bass, and vibraphone (such as on some of the Four Tops
's hits) was practically a Motown trademark, too.
The Funk Brothers often moonlighted for other labels, recording in Detroit and elsewhwere, in bids to augment their Motown salaries. It became a worst-kept secret that Jackie Wilson
's 1967 hit "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher & Higher" didn't have a Motown influence quite by accident---the Funk Brothers migrated to do the Wilson session, in an interesting reference to Motown's early history: Berry Gordy, Jr. got his first music break by getting Wilson to record some of his songs (most famously "Reet Petite") in the 1950s. Various Funk Brothers also appeared on such non-Motown hits as "Cool Jerk" (The Capitols
), "Agent Double-O Soul" (Edwin Starr
, before that singer joined Motown itself), "(I Just Wanna) Testify" by The Parliaments
, and blues giant John Lee Hooker
's "Boom Boom."
Motown historiographers have also noted that the Funk Brothers---some of whom had begun their careers as jazzmen and missed that kind of informality---itched to be able to record on their own, but Gordy limited them formally to cutting sides under the name Earl Van Dyke and the Soul Brothers . . . and mostly limited them to recording new versions (with the familiar arrangements, however) of the Motown repertoire, with Van Dyke the feature musician playing electric organ. Some of the Funk Brothers' recordings in that vein---"Soul Stomp," "Six By Six"---became eventual favourites among Northern soul and "beach music" fans.
and tributes of mainstream pop songs and showtunes. By 1970, an increasing number of Motown sessions were in Los Angeles instead of Detroit, notably all The Jackson 5
's hit recordings. Nevertheless, Motown producers such as Norman Whitfield
, Frank Wilson
, Marvin Gaye
, and Smokey Robinson
steadfastly continued to record in Detroit.
The Funk Brothers were dismissed in 1972, when Berry Gordy
moved the entire Motown label to Los Angeles—a development some of the musicians discovered only from a notice on the studio door. A few members, including Jamerson, followed to the West Coast, but found the environment uncomfortable. For many of the L.A. recordings, members of the Wrecking Crew
--the prominent group of session musicians including drummer Earl Palmer
, bassist Carol Kaye
, guitar virtuoso Tommy Tedesco
, and keyboard genius Larry Knechtel
--joined the team at Motown.
In March 2006, some remaining Funk Brothers were invited to perform on Philadelphia writer/producer/singer Phil Hurtt's unique and interesting recording session at Studio A/Dearborn Heights/Detroit where they contributed their performances to ‘The Soulful Tale of Two Cities’ project. The double album sleeve notes read ‘Motown's legendary Funk Brothers and members of Philadelphia's world renown MFSB
take you "back in the day" with an album filled with classic Philly and Motown hits’. Bob Babbitt
, Joe Hunter
, Uriel Jones, and Eddie Willis performed alongside other notable Detroit session musicians like Ray Monette, Robert Jones, Spider Webb, and Treaty Womack. The musicians played on the Philly hits giving their unique Detroit interpretations of the songs under the leadership of Phil Hurtt, Bobby Eli
, Clay McMurray and Lamont Dozier. Many other ex-Motown and Detroit artists performed vocals on the session including The Velvelettes, Carolyn Crawford, Lamont Dozier, Bobby Taylor, Kim Weston, Freda Payne, and George Clinton.
In 2008 Uriel Jones
, Ray Monette, Dennis Coffey
, Robert Jones and Bob Babbitt
accompanied other notable Detroit session musicians including Larry Fratangelo, Dennis Sheridan, Edward Gooch, John Trudell, George Benson, Mark Burger, David Jennings, Spider Webb, and Rob Pipho where they appeared on the Carl Dixon Bandtraxs project which featured a Dennis Coffey
/Carl Dixon production of 4 brand new songs. In addition vocal performances from Spyder Turner, Pree and Gayle Butts provided lead and backing for the session. The session was also arranged by ex-Motown arranger David J. Van De Pitte
. The session was also at Studio A, Dearborn Heights, Detroit and was the dream of a 19 year old Dixon, back in 1974, to pay homage to musicians, particularly The Funk Brothers, producers and those who influenced him with their music. It took Dixon almost 33 years to find the musicians and with luck, met some of them on the web site soulfuldetroit.com. It was via this web site that he and Dennis Coffey
hooked up and then eventually collaborated together to make the session work.
In 2010, surviving members of the Funk Brothers accompanied Phil Collins
on his Motown covers album Going Back.
Bassist James Jamerson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
in 2000, and drummer Benny Benjamin in 2003. In 2003, surviving members were invited to the White House
to meet President George W. Bush
, Secretary of State
Colin Powell
, and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice
, in an event tied to Black History Month
.http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Culdesac/Stars/fbpresidentbush.html
The following list covers the musicians most frequently used on Motown recordings from 1959 through 1972; it is not an exhaustive list of every musician ever used. The 13 Funk Brothers recognized as official band members by NARAS are marked with an asterisk.
Membership lists based upon research by Allan Slutsky, with some minor corrections.
's songs, and all the early hits of The Jackson 5
.
Many of the Los Angeles players were members of The Wrecking Crew
collective of studio musicians.
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
s who performed the backing to most Motown Records
Motown Records
Motown is a record label originally founded by Berry Gordy, Jr. and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation in Detroit, Michigan, United States, on April 14, 1960. The name, a portmanteau of motor and town, is also a nickname for Detroit...
recordings from 1959 until the company moved to Los Angeles
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
in 1972. The Funk Brothers played on Motown hits such as "My Girl", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine
I Heard It through the Grapevine
"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a landmark song in the history of Motown. Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1966, the single was first recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles...
", "Baby Love
Baby Love
"Baby Love" is a 1964 song recorded by The Supremes for the Motown label.Written and produced by Motown's main production team Holland–Dozier–Holland ,...
", "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours
"Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours" is a soul single by American musician Stevie Wonder, recorded for Motown's Tamla label. Released in June 1970, the song spent six weeks at number one on the U.S. R&B chart and peaked at number three on the U.S. Pop chart...
", "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
Papa Was a Rollin' Stone
"Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" is a soul song, written by Motown songwriters Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong as a single for Motown act The Undisputed Truth in 1971...
", "The Tears of a Clown
The Tears of a Clown
"The Tears of a Clown" is a song by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles for the Tamla label, originally released on the 1967 album Make It Happen. It was re-released in the United Kingdom as a single in September 1970, where it became a #1 hit on the UK singles chart...
", "Ain't No Mountain High Enough
Ain't No Mountain High Enough
"Ain't No Mountain High Enough" is an R&B/soul song written by Nickolas Ashford & Valerie Simpson in 1966 for the Tamla Motown label. The composition was first successful as a 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, becoming a hit again in 1970 when recorded by former Supremes...
", and "(Love is Like a) Heat Wave
(Love is Like a) Heat Wave
" Heat Wave" is a 1963 hit single penned by the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting team and made popular by Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. It was originally released in July 1963, on the Motown subsidiary label Gordy, peaking at #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard Hot...
".
The role of the Funk Brothers is described in Paul Justman's 2002 documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
Standing in the Shadows of Motown
Standing in the Shadows of Motown (film)
Standing in the Shadows of Motown is a 2002 documentary film directed by Paul Justman. It recounts the story of The Funk Brothers, the uncredited and largely unheralded studio musicians who performed on Motowns' recordings from 1959 to 1972....
, based on Allan Slutsky
Allan Slutsky
Allan Slutsky, also known by his pen name, Dr. Licks, is a Grammy Award winning American arranger, guitarist, music producer, and historian.- Biography :Slutsky studied music at Temple University...
's book of the same name. The opening titles claim that the Funk Brothers have "played on more number-one hits than The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, and The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys
The Beach Boys are an American rock band, formed in 1961 in Hawthorne, California. The group was initially composed of brothers Brian, Dennis and Carl Wilson, their cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine. Managed by the Wilsons' father Murry, The Beach Boys signed to Capitol Records in 1962...
combined."
Notable members
Early members included bandleader Joe HunterJoe Hunter (musician)
Joseph Edward Hunter Born in Jackson, Tennessee was an African-American musician, known for his recording session work as a pianist in Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers. One of the original Funk Brothers, Hunter served as band director for the band from 1959 until 1964, when...
and Earl Van Dyke
Earl Van Dyke
Earl Van Dyke was an African American musician, most notable as the main keyboardist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Van Dyke was preceded as keyboardist and bandleader of the Funk Brothers by Joe Hunter...
(piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
); James Jamerson
James Jamerson
James Lee Jamerson was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of Motown Records' hits in the 1960s and early 1970s , and he is now regarded as one of the most influential bass players in modern music history...
(bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
); Benny "Papa Zita" Benjamin
Benny Benjamin
William "Benny" Benjamin , nicknamed Papa Zita, was an American musician, most notable as the primary drummer for the Motown studio band known as The Funk Brothers. He was a native of Birmingham, Alabama....
and Richard "Pistol" Allen (drums
Drum kit
A 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 ....
); Paul Riser
Paul Riser
Paul Riser is an American trombonist and Motown musical arranger who was responsible for co-writing and arranging dozens of top ten hit records. His legacy as one of the "Funk Brothers" is similar to that of most of the other "Brothers", as his career has been overlooked and overshadowed by the...
(trombone
Trombone
The 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...
); Robert White
Robert White (guitarist)
Robert Willie White was an African-American musician. Of note for being one of the main guitarists for Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, White is best known for performing the familiar guitar riff on The Temptations' number-one hit single "My Girl", but played the guitar on...
, Eddie Willis
Eddie Willis
Eddie "Chank" Willis is an African-American musician. Willis played electric guitar and occasional electric sitar for Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s....
, and Joe Messina
Joe Messina
Joe Messina is an American guitarist. Dubbed the "white brother with soul", Messina was one of the most prolific guitarists in Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers....
(guitar
Guitar
The 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...
); Jack Ashford
Jack Ashford
Jack Ashford , known to his friends as Jashford, is an African-American musician, widely known as the percussionist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the 1960s and early 1970s. Ashford is most famous for playing the tambourine on hundreds of Motown recordings...
(tambourine
Tambourine
The tambourine or marine is a musical instrument of the percussion family consisting of a frame, often of wood or plastic, with pairs of small metal jingles, called "zils". Classically the term tambourine denotes an instrument with a drumhead, though some variants may not have a head at all....
, percussion
Percussion instrument
A 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...
, vibraphone
Vibraphone
The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
, marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
); Jack Brokensha
Jack Brokensha
John Joseph "Jack" Brokensha was an Australian-born American jazz vibraphonist.Brokensha was born in Nailsworth, Adelaide, South Australia. He studied percussion under his father, and played xylophone in vaudeville shows and on radio...
(vibraphone
Vibraphone
The vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
, marimba
Marimba
The marimba is a musical instrument in the percussion family. It consists of a set of wooden keys or bars with resonators. The bars are struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The keys are arranged as those of a piano, with the accidentals raised vertically and overlapping the natural keys ...
); and Eddie "Bongo" Brown (percussion
Percussion instrument
A 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...
). Hunter left in 1964, replaced on keyboards by Johnny Griffith and as bandleader by Van Dyke. Uriel Jones
Uriel Jones
Uriel Jones was an African-American musician. Jones was a recording session drummer for Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s....
joined the band as a third drummer. Late era bassist Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt is an American bassist, most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966–1972, as well as his tenure as part of MFSB for Philadelphia International Records afterwards. Also in 1968-1970, with Mike Campbell, Ray Monette and Andrew Smith...
and guitarist Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings.-Biography:Coffey learned to play guitar at the age of thirteen, in the Michigan Upper Peninsula town of Copper City...
both joined the ensemble in 1967. While most of Motown's backing musicians were African American, and many originally from Detroit, the Funk Brothers included white players as well, such as Messina (who was featured guitarist on Soupy Sales
Soupy Sales
Soupy Sales was an American comedian, actor, radio-TV personality and host, and jazz aficionado. He was best known for his local and network children's television show, Lunch with Soupy Sales; a series of comedy sketches frequently ending with Sales receiving a pie in the face, which became his...
's nighttime jazz TV show in the 1950s), Brokensha (originally from Australia), Coffey, and Pittsburgh-born Babbitt.
There have been many articles written which identify the actual members of the Funk Brothers, some of which claim that virtually every musician who ever played on a Motown track was a "Funk Brother". In actuality, there are 13 Funk Brothers as identified in the film Standing In The Shadows Of Motown, as well as 13 members identified by both NARAS for the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and recognized by the recent Star on the Hollywood Walk of fame. Despite that, many other musicians contributed to the Motown Sound, including many horn and string players, as well as background vocalists, not officially included in the Funk Brothers group.
Of the recognized members, Benjamin died in 1969, Jamerson in 1983, Brown in 1984, Van Dyke in 1992, White in 1994, Allen and Griffith in 2002, Hunter in 2007 and Jones in 2009.
Notoriety and Funk Brothers name
Unlike their StaxStax 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...
Records backing-band contemporaries Booker T and the M.G.'s in Memphis, until the release of the Standing in the Shadows of Motown
Standing in the Shadows of Motown (film)
Standing in the Shadows of Motown is a 2002 documentary film directed by Paul Justman. It recounts the story of The Funk Brothers, the uncredited and largely unheralded studio musicians who performed on Motowns' recordings from 1959 to 1972....
documentary, the members of the Funk Brothers were not widely known. Studio musicians were not credited by Motown until Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
's What's Going On
What's Going On
What's Going On is the eleventh studio album by soul musician Marvin Gaye, released May 21, 1971, on the Motown-subsidiary label Tamla Records...
in 1971, although Motown released a handful of singles and LPs by Earl Van Dyke. The Funk Brothers shared billing with Van Dyke on some recordings, although they were billed as "Earl Van Dyke & the Soul
Soul 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...
Brothers", since Motown CEO Berry Gordy, Jr. disliked the word "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...
".
Alternatively, the name "Funk Brothers" could have been given to the band ex post facto; the term "funky" as an adjective came to be associated with uptempo and backbeat, southern-styled soul music in the second half of the 1960s; the term "funk" as a noun is typically associated with uptempo soul music from the 1970s onwards. In the "Standing in the Shadows of Motown" documentary, Joe Hunter states that the name "The Funk Brothers" came from Benny Benjamin. Hunter states that Benjamin was leaving the studio (known as the Snake Pit) after session work, paused on the stairs, turned and said to his fellow musicians, "You all are the Funk Brothers". The band was then informally named.
Legacy and techniques
The band used innovative techniques. For example, most Motown records feature two drummers, playing together or overdubbing one another — Marvin GayeMarvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine
I Heard It through the Grapevine
"I Heard It Through the Grapevine" is a landmark song in the history of Motown. Written by Norman Whitfield and Barrett Strong in 1966, the single was first recorded by Smokey Robinson & the Miracles...
" used three drummers. A number of songs utilized instrumentation and percussion unusual in soul music. The Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
' "It's Growing
It's Growing
"It's Growing" is a 1965 hit single by The Temptations for the Gordy label. Written by Miracles members Smokey Robinson and Pete Moore and produced by Robinson, the song was a top 20 pop single on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, on which it peaked at number 18...
" features Earl Van Dyke playing a toy piano
Toy piano
The toy piano, also known as the kinderklavier , is a small piano-like musical instrument. The present form of the toy piano was invented in Philadelphia by a 17-year-old German immigrant named Albert Schoenhut. He worked as a repairman at Wanamaker's department store, repairing broken glass...
for the song's introduction, snow chains are used as percussion on Martha & the Vandellas' "Nowhere to Run", and a custom oscillator was built to create the synthesizer sounds used to accent several Holland-Dozier-Holland
Holland-Dozier-Holland
Holland–Dozier–Holland is a songwriting and production team made up of Lamont Dozier and brothers Brian Holland and Edward Holland, Jr. They are considered to be one of the greatest songwriting teams in popular music...
compositions and productions, such as Diana Ross & the Supremes' "The Happening" and "Reflections." A tire iron was used in the Martha & the Vandellas "Dancing in the Streets".
James Jamerson
James Jamerson
James Lee Jamerson was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of Motown Records' hits in the 1960s and early 1970s , and he is now regarded as one of the most influential bass players in modern music history...
, who began his career playing upright bass, adopted the Fender
Fender
Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, commonly referred to as simply Fender, of Scottsdale, Arizona is a manufacturer of stringed instruments and amplifiers, such as solid-body electric guitars, including the Stratocaster and the Telecaster...
Precision Bass electric instrument in 1962, and played both acoustic and electric bass on many Motown recordings. Jamerson would usually play the acoustic bass for the ensemble take and then dub the same part on electric bass afterward. He was praised for being so precise a player that listeners cannot tell right away that two basses are on the recording. And like such producers as Brian Wilson
Brian Wilson
Brian Douglas Wilson is an American musician, best known as the leader and chief songwriter of the group The Beach Boys. Within the band, Wilson played bass and keyboards, also providing part-time lead vocals and, more often, backing vocals, harmonizing in falsetto with the group...
, George Martin
George Martin
Sir George Henry Martin CBE is an English record producer, arranger, composer and musician. He is sometimes referred to as "the Fifth Beatle"— a title that he often describes as "nonsense," but the fact remains that he served as producer on all but one of The Beatles' original albums...
, and Phil Spector
Phil Spector
Phillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
, it wasn't uncommon for Motown composers or the Funk Brothers musicians to seek unique instrument combinations for certain lines; doubling piano, bass, and vibraphone (such as on some of the Four Tops
Four Tops
The Four Tops are an American vocal quartet, whose repertoire has included doo-wop, jazz, soul music, R&B, disco, adult contemporary, hard rock, and showtunes...
's hits) was practically a Motown trademark, too.
The Funk Brothers often moonlighted for other labels, recording in Detroit and elsewhwere, in bids to augment their Motown salaries. It became a worst-kept secret that Jackie Wilson
Jackie Wilson
Jack Leroy "Jackie" Wilson, Jr. was an American singer and performer. Known as "Mr. Excitement", Wilson was important in the transition of rhythm and blues into soul. He was known as a master showman, and as one of the most dynamic singers and performers in R&B and rock history...
's 1967 hit "(Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher & Higher" didn't have a Motown influence quite by accident---the Funk Brothers migrated to do the Wilson session, in an interesting reference to Motown's early history: Berry Gordy, Jr. got his first music break by getting Wilson to record some of his songs (most famously "Reet Petite") in the 1950s. Various Funk Brothers also appeared on such non-Motown hits as "Cool Jerk" (The Capitols
The Capitols
The Capitols were a Detroit, Michigan-based soul trio widely known in the late 1960s for their Billboard hit single "Cool Jerk".-Formation and Disbandment:...
), "Agent Double-O Soul" (Edwin Starr
Edwin Starr
Edwin Starr was an American soul music singer. Starr is most famous for his Norman Whitfield produced singles of the 1970s, most notably the number one hit "War".-Biography:...
, before that singer joined Motown itself), "(I Just Wanna) Testify" by The Parliaments
The Parliaments
The Parliaments were a doo-wop quintet from Plainfield, New Jersey, formed in the back room of a barbershop in the late 1950s and named after the cigarette brand. After some early personnel changes their lineup solidified with George Clinton, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas...
, and blues giant John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker
John Lee Hooker was an American blues singer-songwriter and guitarist.Hooker began his life as the son of a sharecropper, William Hooker, and rose to prominence performing his own unique style of what was originally closest to Delta blues. He developed a 'talking blues' style that was his trademark...
's "Boom Boom."
Motown historiographers have also noted that the Funk Brothers---some of whom had begun their careers as jazzmen and missed that kind of informality---itched to be able to record on their own, but Gordy limited them formally to cutting sides under the name Earl Van Dyke and the Soul Brothers . . . and mostly limited them to recording new versions (with the familiar arrangements, however) of the Motown repertoire, with Van Dyke the feature musician playing electric organ. Some of the Funk Brothers' recordings in that vein---"Soul Stomp," "Six By Six"---became eventual favourites among Northern soul and "beach music" fans.
Dissolution and later years
During the mid to late-1960s, one-fifth of Motown records began utilizing session musicians based in Los Angeles, usually coversCover version
In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
and tributes of mainstream pop songs and showtunes. By 1970, an increasing number of Motown sessions were in Los Angeles instead of Detroit, notably all The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 , later known as The Jacksons, were an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
's hit recordings. Nevertheless, Motown producers such as Norman Whitfield
Norman Whitfield
Norman Jesse Whitfield was an American songwriter and producer, best known for his work with Berry Gordy's Motown label during the 1960s...
, Frank Wilson
Frank Wilson (musician)
Frank Wilson is an African American former songwriter and record producer for Motown Records.-Biography:He was born to James Wilson and Samantha Gibbs...
, Marvin Gaye
Marvin Gaye
Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. , better known by his stage name Marvin Gaye, was an American singer-songwriter and musician with a three-octave vocal range....
, and Smokey Robinson
Smokey Robinson
William "Smokey" Robinson, Jr. is an American R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, and former record executive. Robinson is one of the primary figures associated with Motown, second only to the company's founder, Berry Gordy...
steadfastly continued to record in Detroit.
The Funk Brothers were dismissed in 1972, when Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy
Berry Gordy, Jr. is an American record producer, and the founder of the Motown record label, as well as its many subsidiaries.-Early years:...
moved the entire Motown label to Los Angeles—a development some of the musicians discovered only from a notice on the studio door. A few members, including Jamerson, followed to the West Coast, but found the environment uncomfortable. For many of the L.A. recordings, members of the Wrecking Crew
The Wrecking Crew (music)
The Wrecking Crew was a nickname coined by the drummer Hal Blaine after the fact for a group of session musicians in Los Angeles, California, who earned wide acclaim in the 1960s. They backed dozens of popular singers, and were one of the most successful "groups" of studio musicians in music history...
--the prominent group of session musicians including drummer Earl Palmer
Earl Palmer
Earl Cyril Palmer was an American rock & roll and rhythm and blues drummer, and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame....
, bassist Carol Kaye
Carol Kaye
Carol Kaye is an American musician, best known as one of the most prolific and widely heard bass guitarists in history, playing on an estimated 10,000 recording sessions in a 55 year career....
, guitar virtuoso Tommy Tedesco
Tommy Tedesco
Thomas J. Tedesco was an American master session musician and renowned jazz and bebop guitarist.Tedesco's credits include the iconic brand-burning accompaniment theme from television's Bonanza, The Twilight Zone, Vic Mizzy's iconic theme from Green Acres, M*A*S*H, Batman, and Elvis Presley's '68...
, and keyboard genius Larry Knechtel
Larry Knechtel
Lawrence William "Larry" Knechtel was an American keyboard player and bassist, best known for his work as a session musician with such artists as Simon & Garfunkel, Duane Eddy, The Beach Boys, The Mamas & the Papas, The Partridge Family, The Doors, and Elvis Presley, and as a member of the 1970s...
--joined the team at Motown.
In March 2006, some remaining Funk Brothers were invited to perform on Philadelphia writer/producer/singer Phil Hurtt's unique and interesting recording session at Studio A/Dearborn Heights/Detroit where they contributed their performances to ‘The Soulful Tale of Two Cities’ project. The double album sleeve notes read ‘Motown's legendary Funk Brothers and members of Philadelphia's world renown MFSB
MFSB
MFSB was a pool of more than thirty studio musicians based at Philadelphia’s famed Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom Bell, and backed up such groups as Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, the O’Jays, the Stylistics, the...
take you "back in the day" with an album filled with classic Philly and Motown hits’. Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt is an American bassist, most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966–1972, as well as his tenure as part of MFSB for Philadelphia International Records afterwards. Also in 1968-1970, with Mike Campbell, Ray Monette and Andrew Smith...
, Joe Hunter
Joe Hunter (musician)
Joseph Edward Hunter Born in Jackson, Tennessee was an African-American musician, known for his recording session work as a pianist in Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers. One of the original Funk Brothers, Hunter served as band director for the band from 1959 until 1964, when...
, Uriel Jones, and Eddie Willis performed alongside other notable Detroit session musicians like Ray Monette, Robert Jones, Spider Webb, and Treaty Womack. The musicians played on the Philly hits giving their unique Detroit interpretations of the songs under the leadership of Phil Hurtt, Bobby Eli
Bobby Eli
Bobby Eli is a Grammy Award winning musician, arranger, composer and record producer from Philadelphia, USA. He is a founding member and lead guitarist of Philadelphia studio group MFSB.-Biography:...
, Clay McMurray and Lamont Dozier. Many other ex-Motown and Detroit artists performed vocals on the session including The Velvelettes, Carolyn Crawford, Lamont Dozier, Bobby Taylor, Kim Weston, Freda Payne, and George Clinton.
In 2008 Uriel Jones
Uriel Jones
Uriel Jones was an African-American musician. Jones was a recording session drummer for Motown Records' in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s....
, Ray Monette, Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings.-Biography:Coffey learned to play guitar at the age of thirteen, in the Michigan Upper Peninsula town of Copper City...
, Robert Jones and Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt is an American bassist, most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966–1972, as well as his tenure as part of MFSB for Philadelphia International Records afterwards. Also in 1968-1970, with Mike Campbell, Ray Monette and Andrew Smith...
accompanied other notable Detroit session musicians including Larry Fratangelo, Dennis Sheridan, Edward Gooch, John Trudell, George Benson, Mark Burger, David Jennings, Spider Webb, and Rob Pipho where they appeared on the Carl Dixon Bandtraxs project which featured a Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings.-Biography:Coffey learned to play guitar at the age of thirteen, in the Michigan Upper Peninsula town of Copper City...
/Carl Dixon production of 4 brand new songs. In addition vocal performances from Spyder Turner, Pree and Gayle Butts provided lead and backing for the session. The session was also arranged by ex-Motown arranger David J. Van De Pitte
David Van De Pitte
David J. Van De Pitte was an American music arranger and bass player. He is best known for his work at Motown Records during the 1960s and early 1970s, when he was responsible for arranging many of the best known and most successful of the company's records, including those by Marvin Gaye, The...
. The session was also at Studio A, Dearborn Heights, Detroit and was the dream of a 19 year old Dixon, back in 1974, to pay homage to musicians, particularly The Funk Brothers, producers and those who influenced him with their music. It took Dixon almost 33 years to find the musicians and with luck, met some of them on the web site soulfuldetroit.com. It was via this web site that he and Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey
Dennis Coffey is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings.-Biography:Coffey learned to play guitar at the age of thirteen, in the Michigan Upper Peninsula town of Copper City...
hooked up and then eventually collaborated together to make the session work.
In 2010, surviving members of the Funk Brothers accompanied Phil Collins
Phil Collins
Philip David Charles "Phil" Collins, LVO is an English singer-songwriter, drummer, pianist and actor best known as a drummer and vocalist for British progressive rock group Genesis and as a solo artist....
on his Motown covers album Going Back.
Awards and recognition
The Funk Brothers have received three Grammy awards:- Lifetime Achievement AwardGrammy Lifetime Achievement AwardThe Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award is awarded by the Recording Academy to "performers who, during their lifetimes, have made creative contributions of outstanding artistic significance to the field of recording."...
in 2004 - Best Traditional R&B PerformanceGrammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Vocal PerformanceThe Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance is an accolade presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally named the Gramophone Awards, to performers of quality traditional R&B vocal performances. The award was first given in 1999; until 2003, only...
for "What's Going OnWhat's Going On (song)"What's Going On" is a song written by Renaldo "Obie" Benson, Al Cleveland, and Marvin Gaye. It was the title track of Gaye's groundbreaking 1971 Motown album What's Going On, and it became a crossover hit single that reached #2 on the pop charts and #1 on the R&B charts...
" with Chaka KhanChaka KhanChaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
, 2002 - Best Compilation Soundtrack Album For A Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media for Standing in the Shadows of Motown, 2002.
Bassist James Jamerson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is a museum located on the shore of Lake Erie in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is dedicated to archiving the history of some of the best-known and most influential artists, producers, engineers and others who have, in some major way,...
in 2000, and drummer Benny Benjamin in 2003. In 2003, surviving members were invited to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
to meet President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
, Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Colin Powell
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell is an American statesman and a retired four-star general in the United States Army. He was the 65th United States Secretary of State, serving under President George W. Bush from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African American to serve in that position. During his military...
, and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice is an American political scientist and diplomat. She served as the 66th United States Secretary of State, and was the second person to hold that office in the administration of President George W. Bush...
, in an event tied to Black History Month
Black History Month
Black History Month is an observance of the history of the African diaspora in a number of countries outside of Africa. Since 1976, it is observed annually in the United States and Canada in February, while in the United Kingdom it is observed in October...
.http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Culdesac/Stars/fbpresidentbush.html
Members
As discussed above, the name "The Funk Brothers" was a loosely-applied designation. Although the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences recognizes 13 musicians as official "Funk Brothers", the name is often casually used as a catch-all designation to cover any musician who played on a Motown record. In fact, the "Funk Brothers" name wasn't mentioned until sometime in the late 1960s when Mickey Stevenson gave them the nickname.The following list covers the musicians most frequently used on Motown recordings from 1959 through 1972; it is not an exhaustive list of every musician ever used. The 13 Funk Brothers recognized as official band members by NARAS are marked with an asterisk.
Membership lists based upon research by Allan Slutsky, with some minor corrections.
Detroit musicians
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Los Angeles musicians
Los Angeles was an alternate recording center for Motown artists beginning in the mid-1960s, utilizing a different set of musicians. Hit tracks recorded in LA include The Miracles' "More Love", many of Brenda HollowayBrenda Holloway
Brenda Holloway is an American singer and songwriter, a recording artist for the Motown label during the 1960s...
's songs, and all the early hits of The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5
The Jackson 5 , later known as The Jacksons, were an American popular music family group from Gary, Indiana...
.
Many of the Los Angeles players were members of The Wrecking Crew
The Wrecking Crew (music)
The Wrecking Crew was a nickname coined by the drummer Hal Blaine after the fact for a group of session musicians in Los Angeles, California, who earned wide acclaim in the 1960s. They backed dozens of popular singers, and were one of the most successful "groups" of studio musicians in music history...
collective of studio musicians.
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Arrangers and conductors
- Detroit: Paul RiserPaul RiserPaul Riser is an American trombonist and Motown musical arranger who was responsible for co-writing and arranging dozens of top ten hit records. His legacy as one of the "Funk Brothers" is similar to that of most of the other "Brothers", as his career has been overlooked and overshadowed by the...
, Willie Shorter, Dave Van DePitte, Wade Marcus, Johnny Allen, Gil Askey, Ernie Wilkins, Jerry Long, Henry "Hank" Cosby, Slide Hampton, and H. B. BarnumH. B. BarnumH. B. Barnum is an American pianist, arranger, record producer, songwriter, and former child actor.... - Los Angeles: Gene PageGene PageEugene Edgar "Gene" Page, Jr. was an influential conductor, composer, arranger and record producer most active from the mid-1960s through the mid-1980s....
, James Carmichael, and Arthur Wright
List of #1 Songs on which The Funk Brothers played
- "Please Mr Postman" The Marvelettes
- "Fingertips Pt. 2" Stevie Wonder
- "My Guy" Mary Wells
- "Where Did Our Love Go" The Supremes
- "Baby Love" The Supremes
- "Come See About Me" The Supremes
- "My Girl" The Temptations
- "Stop! In the Name of Love" The Supremes
- "Back in My Arms Again" The Supremes
- "I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" The Four Tops
- "I Hear a Symphony" The Supremes
- "You Can't Hurry Love" The Supremes
- "Reach Out I'll Be There" The Four Tops
- "You Keep Me Hangin' On" The Supremes
- "The Happening" The Supremes
- "Love Child" Diana Ross and the Supremes
- "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" Marvin Gaye
- "I Can't Get Next to You" The Temptations
- "Someday We'll Be Together" Diana Ross and the Supremes
- "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" Diana Ross
- "The Tears of a Clown" Smokey Robinson and the Miracles
- "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" The Temptations
- "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone" The Temptations
- "Touch Me in the Morning" Diana Ross
- "Let's Get It On" Marvin Gaye
- "Midnight Train to Georgia" Gladys Night and the Pips
- "Keep on Truckin' (Part 1)" Eddie Kendricks
- "Just a Little Misunderstanding" The Contours
- "Shop Around" The Miracles
- "Shotgun" Junior Walker & the All Stars
- "How Sweet it Is(To Be Loved by You)" Marvin Gaye
- "The One Who Really Loves You" Mary Wells
- "The Way you Do the Things you Do" The Temptations
- "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing" Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell
- "(I'm a) Road Runner" Junior Walker & the All Stars
- "Ain't too Proud to Beg" The Temptations
- "I Wish it would Rain" The Temptations
- "(Love Is Like a) Heat Wave" Martha & the Vandellas
- "Hitch Hike" Marvin Gaye
- "What's so Good about Goodbye" The Miracles
- "I Was Made to Love Her" Stevie Wonder
- "It's the Same Old Song" Four Tops
- "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" The Miracles
- "Standing in the Shadows of Love" Four Tops
- "If I Were your Woman" Gladys Knight and the Pips
- "Going to a Go-Go" The Miracles
- "Heaven Must Have Sent You" Bonnie Pointer
- "Dancing in the Street" Martha & The Vandellas
- "Mercy Mercy Me" Marvin Gaye
- "Cloud Nine" The Temptations
- "What's Goin' On" Marvin Gaye
- "Do You Love Me" The Contours
- "Get Ready" The Temptations
- "Function at the Junction" B.T. Express
- "My World Is Empty Without You" The Supremes
- "The Tracks of My Tears" The Miracles
- "Can I Get a Witness" Marvin Gaye
- "Nowhere To Run" Martha & the Vandellas
- "Here Comes The Judge" Dewey "Pigmeat" Markham
- "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours" Stevie Wonder
- "Beachwood 4-5789" The Marvelettes
- "Bernadette" The Four Tops
- "Two Lovers" Mary Wells
- "What Becomes of the Brokenhearted" Jimmy Ruffin
- "My Cherie Amour" Stevie Wonder
- "I Second That Emotion" Smokey Robinson & the Miracles
- "Losing You" Brenda Lee
- "First I Look at the Purse" The Contours
- "Ooo Baby Baby" The Miracles
- "I'll Be Doggone" Marvin Gaye
- "Pride and Joy" Stevie Ray Vaughan
- "Ball of Confusion(That's What the World is Today)" The Temptations
- "It Takes Two" Rob Base and DJ E-Z Rock
- "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)" The Isley Brothers
- "Uptight" Stevie Wonder
- "Devil With a Blue Dress On" Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels
- "Jimmy Mack" Martha & the Vandellas
- "Since I Lost My Baby" The Temptations
- "War" Edwin Starr
- "Stubborn Kind Of Fellow" Marvin Gaye
- "Don't Mess With Bill" The Marvelettes
- "You Beat Me to the Punch" Mary Wells
- "Shake Me, Wake Me" The Four Tops
- "Mickey's Monkey" The Miracles
- "Ain't That Peculiar" Marvin Gaye
- "Shoo-be-doo-be-doo-da-day" Stevie Wonder
See also
- Booker T and the M.G.'s
- The Wrecking Crew (music)The Wrecking Crew (music)The Wrecking Crew was a nickname coined by the drummer Hal Blaine after the fact for a group of session musicians in Los Angeles, California, who earned wide acclaim in the 1960s. They backed dozens of popular singers, and were one of the most successful "groups" of studio musicians in music history...
- Muscle Shoals Rhythm SectionMuscle Shoals Rhythm SectionThe Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, also known as The Swampers, are a group of American soul, R&B, and country studio musicians based in the town of Muscle Shoals, Alabama...
- MFSBMFSBMFSB was a pool of more than thirty studio musicians based at Philadelphia’s famed Sigma Sound Studios. They worked closely with the production team of Gamble and Huff and producer/arranger Thom Bell, and backed up such groups as Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, the O’Jays, the Stylistics, the...
- The J.B.'sThe J.B.'sThe J.B.'s were James Brown's band during the first half of the 1970s. On record the J.B.'s were sometimes billed under various alternate names such as The James Brown Soul Train, Maceo and the Macks, A.A.B.B., The First Family and The Last Word...
- Abnuceals Emuukha Electric Symphony OrchestraAbnuceals Emuukha Electric Symphony OrchestraThe Abnuceals Emuukha Electric Symphony Orchestra was a group of Hollywood session musicians organized by Frank Zappa in 1967 to record music for his first solo album Lumpy Gravy. Some of these musicians are thought to have worked together in various combinations under the leadership of Ken...