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Nearly twenty-three years after she first landed, the Mothership is hovering once again, preparing to dock on Planet Earth this summer. And George Clinton has his telescope aimed at the skies, his bags waiting by the door and his flight crew reunited for the trip. |
Today, the forefather of funk is standing on the verge of getting
it on. He's been waiting for this moment since 1981, when the
illustrious Funkadelic disbanded and dissipated
into the cosmic afterglow. Now, the venerable cavalcade-sized
Funkadelic army is falling into formation for its millennial
effort, due out later this year with a companion tour.
"Working with Funkadelic is my favorite because I get a chance to
make some real loud noise," says Clinton, who also fronted the
Seventies powerhouse group Parliament before
launching a solo career in 1981. "You turn the guitars all the way
up when it's a Funkadelic record."
At the height of its world domination, Funkadelic claimed more than
two dozen rotating musicians. The group's swan song, 1981's The
Electric Spanking of War Babies, employed nearly seventy
contributing singers, percussionists and hangers-on. Though the
Mammoth Records legal department is still ironing out contracts for
the countless reunited Funkadelics slated to appear on the album
(set for release some time this year), Clinton did confirm that
bassist extraordinaire Bootsy Collins will be on
board.
Also joining Clinton's commando force will be new schoolers
Busta Rhymes, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Q-Tip, Professor
X of the X-Clan and
Outkast, who recruited Clinton for background
vocals on their 1998 album, Aquemini. Clinton says all the
rappers -- whom he has "just bumped into" over the years -- will
appear on separate tracks, except ODB and Busta, who will perform
together on one Funkadelic tune.
The forthcoming album has no title yet, but Clinton says he's named
at least two songs in typical Funkadelic fashion: "Yank My Doodle
(It's a Dandy)" and "Rhythm and Rhyme," which was completed with
Professor X in San Francisco's Off Planet studio last week.
"Off and on I've been working on this album for years," Clinton
says. "I always cut tunes and put them off to the side, but I've
been concentrating on it for a year. I have to really tiptoe with
this one because it's going to be on Mammoth Records, which is a
Disney label. We'll be funkin' with Mickey Mouse and stuff."
In true Disney style, Funkadelic will host its own "Flight of the
Navigator" this summer in the famed extraterrestrial magnetic field
of Roswell, New Mexico. "We're going to be celebrating Independence
Day in Roswell this year waiting for the alien Mothership," he
says. "This year they seem to be admitting that the aliens are
here, so maybe they'll tell us what happened this year."
ANNI LAYNE
(February 1, 1999)