MOJO MUSIC GUIDE VOL. 2:  ROOTS OF HIP HOP   -   Various Artists

YEAR:  2003
LABEL:  Mojo
TRACK LISTING:  Adventures of Flash on the Wheels of Steel  -  Grandmaster Flash,  Get Out of My Life Woman  -  Lee Dorsey,  Tramp  -  Lowell Fulson,  Itch and Scratch (Part 1),  In the Whole  -  The Bar-Kays,  No Strings Attached  -  The Mad Lads,  Give It Up or Turnit A Loose  -  James Brown,  Lucretia Mac Evil  -  Blood Sweat & Tears,  The Grunt (Parts 1 & 2)  -  the JB's,  Get Up & Get Down  -  The Dramatics,  Here I Am (Come & Take Me)  -  Al Green,  Gotta Get Away  -  Flaming Ember,  It's Just Begun  -  The Jimmy Castor Bunch,  NT  -  Kool & the Gang,  Bra  -  Cymande,  Flash Light  -  Parliament,  King Tim III  -  The Fatback Band,  That's the Joint  -  Funky 4 + 1
IMPRESSIONS:  One of the better cover-mounted cds produced by MOJO magazine over the years, this one provides the funk, all right.  Funk funk funk and some soul and rap as well.  Particularly fun to listen to is the cd opener of Grandmaster Flash's remix 12" EP utilizing his various past productions combined into an autobiographical turntable classic.  There's the much-sampled drum beat from Lee Dorsey's "Get Out of My Life Woman" as well as James Brown's "Give It Up or Turnit A Loose".  The early days of rap can be glimpsed with fun tracks "King Tim III" and "That's the Joint" by the Fatback Band and Funky 4 + 1 respectively.  This is one of Mojo's most satisfying listens from start to finish as it keeps the groove on the move!
MY FAVOURITE TRACKS:  Adventures of Flash on the Wheels of Steel, Get Out of My Life Woman  -  Lee Dorsey,  Itch and Scratch (Part 1)  -  Rufus Thomas,  In the Whole  -  The Bar-Kays,  No Strings Attached  -  The Mad Lads,  Give It Up or Turnit A Loose  -  James Brown,  The Grunt (Parts 1 & 2)  -  The JB's,  Get Up & Get Down  -  The Dramatics,  Here I Am (Come & Take Me)  -  Al Green,  Gotta Get Away  -  The Flaming Ember,  It's Just Begun  -  The Jimmy Castor Bunch,  NT  -  Kool & the Gang,  Flash Light  -  Parliament,  King Tim III  -  The Fatback Band,  That's the Joint  -  Funky 4 + 1 
FACT SHEET:  MOJO MUSIC GUIDE VOL. 2:  ROOTS OF HIP HOP is a cd given away free with the September 2003 issue of Great Britain's music magazine MOJO.  It is the second in a series of 4 "music guide" volumes released at the time:  the others were Vol. 1: Instant Garage, Vol. 3: Raw Soul and Vol. 4: Blues Power. 

THE CLONES OF DR. FUNKENSTEIN - Parliament

YEAR: 1976

LABEL: Casablanca

TRACK LISTING: Prelude, Gamin' On Ya, Dr. Funkenstein, Children of Productions, Getten To Know You, Do That Stuff, Everything Is On the One, I've Been Watching You (Move Your Sexy Body), Funkin' For Fun

IMPRESSIONS: My first encounter with the mad mad world of George Clinton and his alien band brought from outer space to bestow P-Funk on the planet Earth. Many's the time I spun this platter on my little record player atop my azure dresser. A long string of Parliament albums would follow but this was the first. At the time of its release during the Bicentennial, my friends were listening to Van McCoy's "The Hustle" while I was listening to stuff like this. I was not generally understood by the kids in my neighbourhood.

MY FAVOURITE TRACKS: Prelude, Gamin' On Ya, Dr. Funkenstein, Getten' To Know You, Do That Stuff

FACT SHEET: CLONES is Parliament's fifth studio album. It is Parliament's second gold record and charted #20 on the Billboard pop chart. It is probably a good time to clear up a common misconception which refers to the group as Parliament-Funkadelic. This is just plain wrong. Parliament is one distinct group and Funkadelic is another; Parliament is pure funk based while Funkadelic (strangely enough) is more rock-oriented. Both groups are headed by maestro George Clinton but each is a separate entity.