SoulTrackin’ - 1 Year Without JB…

One year ago today we all awoke to the sad news that Soul Brother #1, the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, had passed away and gone to join many of his peers in soul heaven. I’m sure the heavenly choir has never be the same since {smile}. A few days after that I posted a piece called  “Without James Brown” which were just some thoughts and reflections on the man that had been bouncing around in my head at the time. Since I have a few more readers now than I had back then, I figured I would repost it today (who knows, maybe I’ll repost it every year on this day…)

WITHOUT JAMES BROWN…

…the Flames would never have been Famous

…we wouldn’t know the funky sound made by a Night Train

…I might still call myself a Negro, unwilling to Say It Loud, I’m Black and I’m Proud

…we would have never broken out in a Cold Sweat

…Mama might never have known that she could Feelgood

…Papa might never have gotten A Brand New Bag

…I might still be waiting for people to give me something, instead of opening up the door and getting it myself

…we might never have known what it felt like to be a Sex Machine

…we wouldn’t know how much fun it is to be Super Bad

…Santa Claus wouldn’t know to Go Straight To The Ghetto

…we might not know how to Make It Funky

…we wouldn’t know the importance of Soul Power

…we might not know what it was like to be Down And Out In New York City

…the President would never have been Funky

…we would never have gone to the bridge in the first place

…Rocky wouldn’t know how funky it could be Living In America

…we wouldn’t have given the drummer a goddamn thing

…there might never have been Parliament/Funkadelic

…Prince, Michael Jackson, Usher (and a host of others) would have had to pay for dance lessons

…there would be no Rap, Hip-Hip or Club; let me repeat that… there would be no Rap, Hip-Hip or Club

…the Blues Brothers would have never gotten “The Band” back together

…nobody would ever Pass The Peas or Give Up Food For Funk

Without James Brown… the world would have been a lot less funky, a lot less soulful, and a lot more boring. We’ll miss you, Godfather of Soul, but your music and musical influences will be with us forever. For that we can be thankful.

Also, in remembrance to JB, I had the good fortune to be asked create a couple of memorial mixes for my good friend EJFlavors and his OSW (Old School Wednesday) podcast that he produces. The links to those mixes are below:

1. OSW: Rest In Peace, James Brown
2. OSW: Rest In Peace, James Brown - Volume II

One last thing… if you use Last.FM let’s let the world know that we remember and miss the Godfather of Soul. Play some James Brown today and make sure you scrobble it to Last.FM. We want to make this a “James Brown Celebration” day today in addition to Christmas.

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