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The Funk Brothers
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
The Funk Brothers were Motown's regular studio musicians in Detroit. From 1959 to 1972 they played the accompaniment on most of the label's recordings. There is no fixed list of members, but the core included pianist and organist Earl Van Dyke, bandleader Joe Hunter, bassist James Jamerson, the drummers Benny Benjamin, Richard Allen and Uriel Jones, the guitarists Robert White, Eddie Willis and Joe Messina and percussionist Jack Ashford. Most were black musicians from Detroit, but white musicians played with them too. According to Hunter the name came from Benjamin, who shouted from the stairs of the studio after a session: you're all the Funk Brothers.
Music and breakthrough
In the small basement studio, the Snake Pit, they played on hits such as Heat Wave, Baby Love, My Girl, I Heard It Through the Grapevine, Ain't No Mountain High Enough and Papa Was a Rollin' Stone. Their sound formed the basis of the Motown sound: Jamerson's bouncy, melodic bass lines, a solid backbeat with tambourine, and guitars that played short and tight. They often played with jazz experience, which made the songs supple and lively. Even so, their names did not appear on the sleeves. Only on What's Going On by Marvin Gaye in 1971 were the musicians credited.
Influence
In 1972 Berry Gordy moved the label to Los Angeles. Some of the musicians only heard about it through a note on the studio door. Only with the documentary Standing in the Shadows of Motown from 2002 did they receive recognition. Jamerson and Benjamin were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the group received a Grammy for their entire body of work.
Listening
Discography
Studio albums
- 1965That Motown Sound
- 2002Standing in the Shadows of Motown (soundtrack)
In School of Rock
The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.
- Mixtape 6: Fear of a Black PlanetNL Reader
- Mixtape 12: The Hit FactoryNL Reader