A beginners guide to Funk?
 

Hello guys!

My interest in funk started very recently as I first heard "Uptown Funk" by Mark Ronson/Bruno Mars, but of course I wanted more.
The thing is I really don't have any idea where to begin and would be very thankful for anyone giving suggestions what to listen to first and foremost.
Maybe you can provide even some youtube links, would be very appreciated anyway.

Off the top of my head, The Isley Brothers and Parliament/Funkadelic are great gateway bands into the world of Funk.

You've got to have some Kool and the Gang



and one that doesn't get as much play, B.T. Express (turn up the volume)

Classic man !!!!!!
This is the stuff I first started dancing to.
Early Kool and the Gang is the way I remember them.

[QUOTE=Oriphiel;1565505]Off the top of my head, The Isley Brothers and Parliament/Funkadelic are great gateway bands into the world of Funk.

Two of the Giants!
One of my favorite Funk tunes by Isley Brothers.



Isley Brothers were one of the very best R&B bands EVER.
IMHO.

Sly!

Sorry if this ruins all of the rest of the funk out there for you, but Herbie Hancock is the king of funk.

^^^^

Killer track!

Hmmm...This is a tough one. Funk, like Rock and other genres, can actually be divided up into sub-genres. In your case, if "Uptown Funk" served as your gateway into the genre, well, "Uptown Funk" is more related to 80s Minneapolis Funk as opposed to the 70s Dayton Ohio Sound, etc.....Similar to "Uptown Funk" would be the videos below:


As far as getting into Funk, here is the best I can do in one paragraph:

Start familiarizing yourself with its roots, such as 60s R&B like Sam & Dave, james Brown, Joe Tex, etc. The formation of true funk starts with Sly & The Family Stone and whole bunch of lesser known bands from the era between about '68 - '71 or so. Get familiar with the previously mentioned "70s Dayton Sound", such as Ohio Players, Lakeside, Slave, Sun, etc. Familarize yourself with Parliament/Funkadelic, which falls into the "Progressive Funk" category...There is also a ton of Jazz Funk out there starting in the 70s which includes the previously mentioned Herbie Hancock, Stanley Clarke, The Crusaders, and The Meters, just to name a few. There is a New York Sound as well and includes great bands such as Fatback and the NY Sound also spun off both Disco Funk and early Hip Hop)...Into the 80s, there is the previously mentioned Minneapolis Sound (see videos) and includes acts such as Prince, The Time, Shiela E, etc and is what "Uptown Funk" mimics but there is also DC Go Go Funk which includes bands like EU and Trouble Funk