Lyrics
[Intro]
[Verse]
Funk is a music genre
that originated in
African-American communities
in the mid-1960s
when musicians created
a rhythmic, danceable
new form of music
through a mixture of various
music genres that were
popular among
African-Americans
in the mid-20th century.
[Chorus]
(Funk!)
It deemphasizes melody
and chord progressions
-
(Funk!)
and focuses on a strong rhythmic
groove of a bassline
-
(Funk!)
played by an electric bassist
and a drum part played by
a percussionist, often at slower tempos
than other popular music.
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[Instrumental]
[Verse]
Funk typically consists of a complex percussive groove with rhythm
instruments playing interlocking
grooves that create a "hypnotic"
and "danceable" feel.
It uses the same richly colored
extended chords found in bebop jazz,
such as minor chords with added
sevenths and elevenths,
and dominant seventh chords
with altered ninths and thirteenths.
[Chorus]
(Funk!)
It deemphasizes melody
and chord progressions
-
(Funk!)
and focuses on a strong rhythmic
groove of a bassline
-
(Funk!)
played by an electric bassist
and a drum part played by
a percussionist, often at slower tempos
than other popular music.
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[Instrumental]
[Verse]
Funk originated in the mid-1960s,
with James Brown's development
of a signature groove that emphasized
the downbeat—with a heavy emphasis
on the first beat of every measure
("The One"), and the application of
swung 16th notes and syncopation
on all basslines, drum patterns, and guitar riffs.
Rock- and psychedelia-influenced
musicians Sly and the Family Stone
and Parliament-Funkadelic fostered
more eclectic examples of the genre
beginning in the late 1960s.
[Chorus]
(Funk!)
It deemphasizes melody
and chord progressions
-
(Funk!)
and focuses on a strong rhythmic
groove of a bassline
-
(Funk!)
played by an electric bassist
and a drum part played by
a percussionist, often at slower tempos
than other popular music.
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[Instrumental]
[Bridge]
Other musical groups
developed Brown's
innovations during the 1970s
and the 1980s,
including Kool and the Gang,
Ohio Players, Fatback Band,
Jimmy Castor Bunch,
Earth, Wind & Fire,
B.T. Express, Shalamar,
One Way, Lakeside, Dazz Band,
The Gap Band, Slave, Aurra,
Roger Troutman & Zapp,
Con Funk Shun, Cameo,
Bar-Kays and Chic.
[Chorus]
(Funk!)
It deemphasizes melody
and chord progressions
-
(Funk!)
and focuses on a strong rhythmic
groove of a bassline
-
(Funk!)
played by an electric bassist
and a drum part played by
a percussionist, often at slower tempos
than other popular music.
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[Outro]
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[End]
[Bass Solo]
[Chorus]
(Funk!)
It deemphasizes melody
and chord progressions
-
(Funk!)
and focuses on a strong rhythmic
groove of a bassline
-
(Funk!)
played by an electric bassist
and a drum part played by
a percussionist, often at slower tempos
than other popular music.
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[Outro]
(Funk, Funk, Funk!)
[End]
