Bootsy Collins and Oliver Wang on Al Green

Episode notes

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Ahh…The Name Is Bootsy, Baby! Bootsy Collins Pushes James Brown’s Buttons and Gets Wild with George Clinton’s P-FunkBootsy Collins is a legend in the world of funk. He’s a bassist who came to his instrument by happenstance and fell in love. He was only in his teens when he was discovered and hired by the Godfather of Soul, James Brown, to be part of his backing band, The J.B.’s. Bootsy went on to play with another notoriously inventive and pioneering funk artist, George Clinton, as part of Funkadelic and Parliament.

He continued the funk with Bootsy’s Rubber Band and a number of other musical collaborations. His most recent album is Tha Funk Capitol Of The World, and he currently teaches bass at his own Funk University. He’s also playing a couple of festivals this spring and summer.

Bootsy talks to us about being on the forefront of funk, playing with James Brown, doing LSD on stage, quitting and/or being fired from The JB’s, pushing the boundaries of black popular music with George Clinton, and his own amazing solo career.

He and Jesse spoke in 2011. Find an extended version of that original conversation here.

The Dissolve Talks about All-Time Favorite Movies: “Real Life” and “To Be or Not to Be”This week, a look back at some all-time favorite movies from our pals at The Dissolve. Staff writer Nathan Rabin and Editorial Director Keith Phipps join us to talk about some of their all-time favorite films.

Nathan recommends Albert Brooks’ 1979 satire Real Life, a prescient look at documenting “real life” in pre-reality television times.

Keith recommends the 1942 Ernst Lubitch classic To Be or Not to Be (Criterion Collection), starring Jack Benny and Carole Lombard.

Canonball with Oliver Wang: Al Green’s I’m Still In Love With YouIn Canonball, we take a flying leap into the canon of popular music. We’re joined by professor and music writer Oliver Wang to talk about an Al Green album that deserves your attention. No… it’s not Green’s chart-topper, Let’s Stay Together. Wang says that it was Al Green’s followup to that album that really rattled him to his core.

Wang talks to us about 1973’s I’m Still in Love with You, the record that created a new kind of soul music. Green’s beautiful, if flawed voice, was merged with Willie Mitchell’s innovative rhythm section and a new sound emerged.

You can find Oliver Wang’s thoughts on soul rarities and more on his blog, Soul Sides.

The Outshot: Orson Welles’s F for FakeJesse recommends Orson Welles’ final masterwork, F for Fake. Part documentary, part film essay, it features tricks and truths layered atop each other, creating a mesmerizing narrative.