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The Funk Brothers' Bio
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Earl Van Dyke
Earl Van Dyke - A veteran of the late '50s and early '60s Chitlin' Circuit, Earl migrated to Motown in late 1962 after having toured with Aretha Franklin and Lloyd ("Mr. Personality") Price. Within no time, the musical sophistication and aggressive keyboard style he brought with him made Earl an integral part of "The Motown Sound." Hitsville's Steinway often had to be reconditioned after Earl played on a session because of the passion and force with which he attacked the keys. Arrangers and producers looked upon him as a hub through which they could convey their ideas to Hitsville's studio musicians. Motown's management viewed him as the unofficial bandleader because - apart from his talent as a keyboardist - he always knew where to find the Funk Brothers and get them into the studio. This was no small feat when trying to control James Jamerson, Benny Benjamin and some of the Funk Brothers' other more "colorful" personalities. When Motown's "Golden Era" ended in Detroit, Earl hooked up with Freda ("Band Of Gold") Payne and toured the world with her throughout the remaining years of the 1970s before returning home to teach music in the Detroit public school system. Born: Detroit, MI in the early 1930s (died 1992) Nicknames: Chunk Of Funk, Ookie, Big Funk Musical Influences: Tommy Flanagan, Hank Jones, Barry Harris Instruments Played: : Steinway grand piano, Hammond B-3 organ, Wurlitzer electric piano, Fender Rhodes, toy piano Greatest Performances: "Ain't Too Proud To Beg," "My Guy," "For Once In My Life" Johnny Griffith
Johnny Griffith - One of the few classically trained musicians in the Funk Brothers ranks, Johnny was Hitsville's "hired gun," having never signed the exclusive recording contract under which most of Motown's rhythm section musicians worked. Originally lured into the company in 1961 hoping to record jazz, Johnny often moonlighted on hits for other R&B record labels around Detroit and in Chicago.
While he did get the opportunity to record two albums on Motown's "Workshop Jazz" label, his true value down in "Studio "A" was in the delicate touch with which he played that so perfectly complimented Earl Van Dyke's "gorilla piano" style. This two keyboard approach had Earl and Johnny spending the next decade trading off on acoustic piano, Hammond organ, and Wurlitzer electric piano. To this day, in spite of all the R&B hits Johnny played on, he still considers himself, first and foremost, a jazz musician. Born: Detroit, MI (died 2002 in Detroit) Nicknames: None Musical Influences: Bud Powell, Glenn Gould, Oscar Peterson Instruments Played: : Steinway grand piano, Hammond B-3 organ, Wurlitzer electric piano, celeste, harpsichord, Fender Rhodes Greatest Performances: "Wonderful One," "Stop In The Name Of Love," "I Heard It Through The Grapevine" (Marvin Gaye Version) The 3 Guitarists
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The 2 Bassists James Jamerson
James Jamerson - Motown's tormented genius, James Jamerson is unanimously acclaimed as the first virtuoso of the electric bass. Plagued by alcoholism and emotional problems throughout his career, James has influenced (whether they know it or not) every electric bassist to ever pick up the instrument. Arriving at Motown in 1959, James' bass playing evolved over the next decade from a traditional root-fifth cocktail style of bass playing into an astonishing new style built upon a flurry of sixteenth-note runs and syncopations, "pushing the envelope" dissonances, and fearless and constant exploration.
A converted upright bass player with bear claw hands, James plucked the strings with only the index finger of his right hand (which he dubbed "The Hook), and effortlessly and routinely pulled off head-turning, technical feats on the '62 P-Bass he nicknamed "The Funk Machine." His explosive, earthquake-heavy bass lines have had the entire world dancing and grooving to Motown records for over four decades. But he labored in total obscurity - a condition that ate at him throughout the last years of his life. Recognition finally came on March 6, 2000 when James Jamerson was inducted posthumously into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Recognition finally came on March 6, 2000 when James Jamerson was inducted posthumously into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
Born: Edisto Island, South Carolina in 1936 (died in Los Angeles 1983) Nicknames: Igor, Funk, Diego Diegerson Musical Influences: Ray Brown, Paul Chambers Instruments Played: 1957 Fender Precision, 1962 Fender Precision (The Funk Machine), German Upright bass, Fender 5 string, Hagstrom 8 string Greatest Performances: "Bernadette," "I Was Made To Love Her," "Home Cookin'" |
Bob Babbitt
Bob Babbitt - Stepping into the shoes of a legend is an impossible burden to handle but Bob Babbitt was tough enough to be able to work in James Jamerson's shadow and still assert his own identity on some of Motown's biggest hits. After freelancing around Detroit in the mid-'60s, Bob joined Stevie Wonder's band in 1966 and eventually was brought into the studio in 1967. The overwhelming workload in the wake of Motown's phenomenal success combined with James Jamerson's increasing health problems necessitated bringing in a second bassist.
Instantly accepted into the Funk Brothers' family atmosphere, Bob had a very busy six year run at Hitsville particularly with Motown producer Norman Whitfield. The shining moment in Bob's career came in 1970 when he worked with Marvin Gaye on some of the tracks from his epic "What's Going On" album. After Motown's exodus from Detroit in 1972, Bob's busy studio career continued in New York, Philadelphia, and in Nashville where he currently resides.
Born: Pittsburgh, PA
Nickname: Babbitt (birth name - Robert Kreinar)
Instrument Played: Post-CBS, mid-'60s Fender Precision Bass
Musical Influences: Charles Mingus, Ray Brown, James Jamerson
Greatest Performances: "Mercy Mercy Me," "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," "War"
Instantly accepted into the Funk Brothers' family atmosphere, Bob had a very busy six year run at Hitsville particularly with Motown producer Norman Whitfield. The shining moment in Bob's career came in 1970 when he worked with Marvin Gaye on some of the tracks from his epic "What's Going On" album. After Motown's exodus from Detroit in 1972, Bob's busy studio career continued in New York, Philadelphia, and in Nashville where he currently resides.
Born: Pittsburgh, PA
Nickname: Babbitt (birth name - Robert Kreinar)
Instrument Played: Post-CBS, mid-'60s Fender Precision Bass
Musical Influences: Charles Mingus, Ray Brown, James Jamerson
Greatest Performances: "Mercy Mercy Me," "Signed, Sealed, Delivered," "War"
The 3 Drummers
William "Benny" Benjamin
William "Benny" Benjamin - The creator of the Motown drumbeat and the most beloved musician at Hitsville, Benny was Motown's first drummer, working with Berry Gordy in 1958. Known for his deft brushwork, latin-influenced grooves, and his explosive drum fills and pickups, Benny's signature drum style defined the Motown groove. Coming out of a big band-jazz background, Benny's beats swung much harder than any of the other R&B and Blues drummers residing in Detroit at the time, and his time was impeccable.
But the same couldn't be said for his promptness. Benny's excuses for often being late to Hitsville's recording sessions are legendary - including one where he claimed to have been sitting on his mother's step with his ex-old lady's boyfriend when someone pulled up in a car and shot him. He further endeared himself to his fellow Motown musicians when - right in front some European distributors Berry Gordy was trying to impress with his new operation - he asked the boss if he could "bum a fin." "The Fuehrer," as Benny referred to him, was not pleased. A lifelong heroin user and alcoholic, Benny's demons eventually caught up with him in 1968 when the ravages of his addictions stilled his drumsticks.
But the same couldn't be said for his promptness. Benny's excuses for often being late to Hitsville's recording sessions are legendary - including one where he claimed to have been sitting on his mother's step with his ex-old lady's boyfriend when someone pulled up in a car and shot him. He further endeared himself to his fellow Motown musicians when - right in front some European distributors Berry Gordy was trying to impress with his new operation - he asked the boss if he could "bum a fin." "The Fuehrer," as Benny referred to him, was not pleased. A lifelong heroin user and alcoholic, Benny's demons eventually caught up with him in 1968 when the ravages of his addictions stilled his drumsticks.
Richard "Pistol" Allen
Noted Detroit bassist Ralphe Armstrong once related how he was playing a gig at a local jazz club when Pistol Allen (wearing only pajamas, a robe, and slippers) busted through the doors of the establishment, threw the drummer off his set, and counted off "Cherokee" at a breakneck tempo: "Man, we were all huffin' and puffin' trying to keep up with him for about ten choruses of the tune and then he just cuts the band, jumps off the stage and runs home," recalled Ralphe. "This fool was probably just sittin' in front of his TV and said to himself, 'I feel like playing,.' So he drives halfway across town, gets it out of his system, and then runs back to the TV. You see, this cat just burns with music."
Recruited into Motown in 1962 by his mentor, Benny Benjamin, Pistol quickly learned he had to adapt his jazz drum style to the music being created down in the Snakepit. Pistol recalls, "Benny advised me, 'Jazz don't work down there. They want it straight with 8th notes and a big backbeat. Just play mm-mm-da, mm-mm-da and keep your mouth shut.'" Pistol listened well. The result was a new Motown drum style that featured a sledgehammer backbeat with a heavy hi-hat that gave the producers a nice variation to what Uriel Jones and Benny were doing. The master of the Beale Street shuffle and the Motown "four on the floor" groove (a snare drum hit on every beat), Pistol was the drummer on most of Holland-Dozier-Holland's hit productions of the '60s.
Born: Memphis, Tennessee in 1932 (died 2002 in Detroit)
Nickname: Pistol
Musical Influences: Benny Benjamin, Max Roach, Buddy Rich
Instruments Played: A studio set comprised of Ludwig, Slingerland, Rogers, and Gretsch components
Greatest Performances: "Heat Wave," "Baby Love," "How Sweet It Is"
Recruited into Motown in 1962 by his mentor, Benny Benjamin, Pistol quickly learned he had to adapt his jazz drum style to the music being created down in the Snakepit. Pistol recalls, "Benny advised me, 'Jazz don't work down there. They want it straight with 8th notes and a big backbeat. Just play mm-mm-da, mm-mm-da and keep your mouth shut.'" Pistol listened well. The result was a new Motown drum style that featured a sledgehammer backbeat with a heavy hi-hat that gave the producers a nice variation to what Uriel Jones and Benny were doing. The master of the Beale Street shuffle and the Motown "four on the floor" groove (a snare drum hit on every beat), Pistol was the drummer on most of Holland-Dozier-Holland's hit productions of the '60s.
Born: Memphis, Tennessee in 1932 (died 2002 in Detroit)
Nickname: Pistol
Musical Influences: Benny Benjamin, Max Roach, Buddy Rich
Instruments Played: A studio set comprised of Ludwig, Slingerland, Rogers, and Gretsch components
Greatest Performances: "Heat Wave," "Baby Love," "How Sweet It Is"
Uriel Jones
Uriel Jones - After touring with Marvin Gaye and various Motown road shows in the early '60s, Uriel became a Hitsville session player in 1964. Originally expected to be a Benny Benjamin clone (which he mastered as much as any human possibly could), Uriel quickly showed Motown's producers and arrangers that he had something else to offer: he rocked harder than any of the other drummers in the building. Motown arranger Paul Riser explains, "Uriel's drum sound was the most open and laid back and he was the funkiest of the three guys we had. He had a mixed feel and did a lot of different things well."
Uriel was an indispensable component of producer Norman Whitfield's "psychedelic soul" recordings with the Temptations, and Ashford and Simpson's Marvin Gaye-Tammi Terrell duets were all fueled by his slammin' drum grooves. Joined at the hip with Earl Van Dyke for the next three decades, Uriel was the main drummer when the Funk Brothers performed at the Chit Chat club, the Twenty Grand, and the other venues they frequented during Detroit's booming nightlife scene of the '60s.
Born: Detroit, MI in 1934
Nicknames: Possum
Musical Influences: Benny Benjamin, Art Blakey
Instruments Played: A studio set comprised of Ludwig, Slingerland, Rogers, and Gretsch components
Greatest Performances: "Ain't Too Proud To Beg," "Cloud Nine," "Ain't No
Mountain High Enough"
Uriel was an indispensable component of producer Norman Whitfield's "psychedelic soul" recordings with the Temptations, and Ashford and Simpson's Marvin Gaye-Tammi Terrell duets were all fueled by his slammin' drum grooves. Joined at the hip with Earl Van Dyke for the next three decades, Uriel was the main drummer when the Funk Brothers performed at the Chit Chat club, the Twenty Grand, and the other venues they frequented during Detroit's booming nightlife scene of the '60s.
Born: Detroit, MI in 1934
Nicknames: Possum
Musical Influences: Benny Benjamin, Art Blakey
Instruments Played: A studio set comprised of Ludwig, Slingerland, Rogers, and Gretsch components
Greatest Performances: "Ain't Too Proud To Beg," "Cloud Nine," "Ain't No
Mountain High Enough"
The 2 Percussionists
Jack Ashford
Jack Ashford - Upon hearing the early Motown records that invaded England in the '60s, EMI Records' president Sir Joseph Blackwood remarked they would never make it because the tambourine was mixed too hot.. But Sir Berry Gordy of Motown Records knew something that Sir Joseph didn't: Jack Ashford was not just any old tambourine player - he was a tambourine virtuoso. Just talk to any percussionist about "the cat that played tambourine at Motown" and watch them become enraptured.
But his first love was vibes, and his playing caught the eye of Marvin Gaye when he saw Jack playing with an organ trio in Boston. Coming to Motown at Marvin's request in 1963, Jack went on to become their most prolific percussionist, playing more than a dozen traditional percussion instrument as well as a few "off the beaten track" instruments like knee slaps, foot stomps, and his own invention, the "hotel sheet." A particular favorite of Marvin Gaye and Norman Whitfield, Jack's imaginative and colorful percussion grooves were one of the principal reasons why these two great artists always seemed to be breaking new ground with every recording they produced.
Born: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1934
Nicknames: None
Musical Influences: Milt Jackson, Lionel Hampton
Instruments Played: : Deagan model 510 and Deagan Imperial Nocturne vibes, marimbas, tambourine, wood block, foot stomps, hand claps, maracas, cabassa, bells, chimes, bell tree, hotel sheet, triangle, finger cymbals, kazoo
Greatest Performances: "What's Going On," "Ooh Baby Baby," "Where Did Our Love Go"
But his first love was vibes, and his playing caught the eye of Marvin Gaye when he saw Jack playing with an organ trio in Boston. Coming to Motown at Marvin's request in 1963, Jack went on to become their most prolific percussionist, playing more than a dozen traditional percussion instrument as well as a few "off the beaten track" instruments like knee slaps, foot stomps, and his own invention, the "hotel sheet." A particular favorite of Marvin Gaye and Norman Whitfield, Jack's imaginative and colorful percussion grooves were one of the principal reasons why these two great artists always seemed to be breaking new ground with every recording they produced.
Born: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1934
Nicknames: None
Musical Influences: Milt Jackson, Lionel Hampton
Instruments Played: : Deagan model 510 and Deagan Imperial Nocturne vibes, marimbas, tambourine, wood block, foot stomps, hand claps, maracas, cabassa, bells, chimes, bell tree, hotel sheet, triangle, finger cymbals, kazoo
Greatest Performances: "What's Going On," "Ooh Baby Baby," "Where Did Our Love Go"
Eddie "Bongo" Brown
Eddie "Bongo" Brown - As great a role as Eddie Bongo played musically, he was an irreplaceable element in the Funk Brother's family for one simple reason: In the pressure cooker atmosphere of the Snakepit, they desperately needed a comedian to keep things from boiling over and Eddie was a virtuoso. A master at playing "the dozens," many a session ground to a halt as players doubled over in laughter while Bongo wailed on James Jamerson's mother (his favorite target) or some other unsuspecting victim.
Coming into Motown through the back door as Marvin Gaye's valet, Eddie eventually became Hitsville's most prolific conga player gracing many of the label's greatest recordings with his latin and jazz grooves. Like some of the other Funk Brothers, Bongo moved to the West Coast in the mid-'70s hoping to still record for Motown while picking up recording gigs for other labels. But his fate was the same. Bongo found it impossible to regain the magic that he had been a part of in Detroit.
Born: Memphis, Tennessee in 1932 (died in Los Angeles 1983)
Nickname: Bongo
Musical Influences: Chano Pozo
Instruments Played: : LP congas, bongos, gourd, claves
Greatest Performances: "Cloud Nine," "What's Going On," "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep"
Coming into Motown through the back door as Marvin Gaye's valet, Eddie eventually became Hitsville's most prolific conga player gracing many of the label's greatest recordings with his latin and jazz grooves. Like some of the other Funk Brothers, Bongo moved to the West Coast in the mid-'70s hoping to still record for Motown while picking up recording gigs for other labels. But his fate was the same. Bongo found it impossible to regain the magic that he had been a part of in Detroit.
Born: Memphis, Tennessee in 1932 (died in Los Angeles 1983)
Nickname: Bongo
Musical Influences: Chano Pozo
Instruments Played: : LP congas, bongos, gourd, claves
Greatest Performances: "Cloud Nine," "What's Going On," "Beauty Is Only Skin Deep"