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Bootsy Collins Teaches Us “The Power Of The One”

bootsy the power of the one

“If you don’t know where THE ONE is at, then, you’re everywhere. It’s like speaking in tongues. Those who have ears, hear. Those who don’t, get Funked up!”

Going back to the 1997 release, Fresh Outta P University, Bootsy Collins has pursued collaborations with a bevy of artists old and new. It was something he wasn’t able to do during the heyday of Parliament-Funkadelic and his own Bootsy’s Rubber Band. Such is the case with his brand new release, The Power Of The One.

George Benson, Snoop Dogg, guitar prodigies Brandon Niederauer and Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, bassist Larry Graham, and philosopher Cornel West are some of the many luminaries that lend their talents towards Bootsy’s latest project. The Power Of The One is dedicated to longtime P-Funk studio engineer Jim Vitti, who passed away in April of 2020.

The Power Of The One

The album’s lead single and title cut presents a collaboration between Bootsy and former Warner Bros. label mate and jazz guitar legend George Benson, with generous support from multi-instrumentalist Brian Culbertson and Bootsy’s own offspring, Ouiwey Collins.

Creepin

Mississippi Blues guitarist Christone “Kingfish” Ingram takes center stage on a carefully medicated Funk stomper designed to address chemical imbalance. Funk comes out of the silly sheets feeling kinda freaky.

Related: “Bootsy Collins and ‘My Mind Set Me Free'”

Jam On

Guitar prodigy Brandon Niederauer, Snoop Dogg, and Belinda Lipscomb from Midnight Star come together to help Bootsy keep the Funk strong on a track reminiscent of early 1980’s Funkadelic.

WantMe2Stay

Funk bass pioneer Larry Graham (another former Warner Bros. label mate) and sax legend Branford Marsalis help Bootsy do a fresh update on the 1973 Sly and the Family Stone classic, along with Keith Cheatham from the Dayton, OH funk band Sun.

Stargate

Bela Fleck, bassist Victor Wooten, and political activist Cornel West (a Funkateer from way down yonder) accompany Bootsy on a journey into the realm of social awareness and its return trip back to the One.

The Power Of The One has defined the journey of William Bootsy Collins from the back alleys of Cincinnati, Ohio, to the Apollo Theater backing James Brown, to the cosmic P-Funk Mothership piloted by George “Dr. Funkenstein” Clinton, to his own Bootsy’s Rubber Band and beyond. “The One” has already taught us that the destination isn’t as rewarding as the journey itself!

-Tim Kinley

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2 comments on “Bootsy Collins Teaches Us “The Power Of The One”

  1. Man, this is good stuff! Bootsy just keeps funkin’ along. Just what my spiritually exhausted self needs right now.

  2. Floyd Holmes

    Bootsy can take good musical artists and make them great with his immense talent and creativity. The new collaborated music is awesome! I’m lucky to have gotten curious about finding his old songs this week. That’s how I stumbled upon these new great songs. I’m about ready to crown him “King of Funk” if all time…… no disrespect to George Clinton. I remember a a teenager in 1977 going to the Carolina Coliseum to see Parliament. That was the night I was a witness to the powerful and unique sound of Bootsy’s Rubber Band. It ended up being the longest and best concert I’ve ever been to. Bootsy’s base and distinct melodious voice separated him from them all.

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