Music Discovery
Parliament-Funkadelic is the most sampled extended family in hip hop history. George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Bernie Worrell, and the P-Funk universe produced an interlocking catalog of bass-heavy, groove-locked recordings that Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, and a generation of West Coast producers built careers on. The Mothership bass lines, horn punches, and chant vocals are foundational to G-funk and remain in constant rotation.
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Discover P-FunkP-Funk's recordings have three qualities that make them ideal sample sources: extremely heavy bass (Bootsy Collins and Larry Graham developed the slap bass technique that defines the genre); a large ensemble with distinct, isolated parts that can be looped; and a sense of rhythmic lockdown that few other funk recordings match. Dr. Dre's use of P-Funk on The Chronic essentially created the G-funk aesthetic and introduced a new generation to the catalog.
Parliament and Funkadelic are two bands that share most of the same members under George Clinton's direction. Parliament (on Casablanca) was more commercially produced — brass arrangements, polished vocals, concept albums. Funkadelic (on Westbound) was more experimental — psychedelic guitar, rawer recording, more rock-influenced. Both are heavily sampled; Parliament for horn punches and bass lines, Funkadelic for guitar textures and raw drum breaks.
Parliament's "Flash Light" and "Aqua Boogie" are among the most sampled — the bass synth line from Flash Light appears in hundreds of hip hop tracks. Funkadelic's "(Not Just) Knee Deep" is the most sampled single Funkadelic track. Bootsy Collins' solo recordings and Bernie Worrell's keyboard sessions are also widely referenced. The entire Casablanca and Westbound back catalog is available on Discogs.