# Funkiest song ever **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 2, 2009, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095 "2009-08-02T21:57:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![devilsknew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4da419/32.png) [@devilsknew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/devilsknew)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/41 "2009-08-03T04:29:18Z")
Probably the bridge between Funk and Metal… T. Rex- [Buick MacKane](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-UzarFCmPM&feature=PlayList&p=56FA0DE59455D5C0&index=16) and [Get it on](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56HI0Luy_kQ&feature=PlayList&p=56FA0DE59455D5C0&index=6). Is funk a musical attitude as much as a genre? ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/42 "2009-08-03T04:31:37Z")
Shit, let me school y’all a bit here. “Stomp!” - Brothers Johnson “Burn This Disco Out” - Michael Jackson “The Groove Line” - Heatwave “Let’s Get Serious” - Jermaine Jackson featuring Stevie Wonder “Shake Your Body (Down To The Ground)” - The Jacksons “Take Your Time (Do It Right)” - SOS Band “Doo Wah Diddy” - Zapp featuring Roger “Oh Sheila” - Ready For The World “Private Joy” - Prince “Fire” - Ohio Players “Confusion” - New Order “No More Lies” - Michel’le “Get On The Floor” - Michael Jackson “Got To Give It Up” - Marvin Gaye “The Sun Goes Down” - Level 42 “Open Sesame” - Kool & The Gang “Footsteps In The Dark” - Isley Brothers “Just An Illusion” - Imagination “Serpentine Fire” - Earth, Wind & Fire “Skin Trade” - Duran Duran “Get Off” - Foxy “Fantastic Voyage” - Lakeside “Le Freak” - Chic “Good Times” - Chic Let me put together my ultimate funk band: Bass - Louis Johnson Guitar - Nile Rodgers Keys - Rod Temperton Vox - Michael Jackson Drums - not sure, maybe Tony Thompson? But that’s almost Chic completely. Especially if I put Bernard Edwards on bass - he’d be a close #2 to Johnson. ---
**Author:** ![bramma23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@bramma23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bramma23)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/43 "2009-08-03T04:53:01Z")
Gza - 4th Chamber Rza lost his mind. ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/44 "2009-08-03T04:56:29Z")
Super Freak. “I’m Rick James!!, Bitch!!” ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/45 "2009-08-03T05:46:03Z")
> [@bramma23](#): > > Gza - 4th Chamber > > Rza lost his mind. Up in here? ---
**Author:** ![Gatopescado](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gatopescado/32/5711_2.png) [@Gatopescado](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gatopescado)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/46 "2009-08-03T05:53:45Z")
_Groove Is In The Heart_ needs a mention. ---
**Author:** ![Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bb73d2/32.png) [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleeps_With_Butterflies)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/47 "2009-08-03T05:59:40Z")
I’ve got to go with Stevie Wonder “Superstition” as well. “[It’s Your Thing](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v2-DSKx3Eg)” by the Isley Brothers deserves a mention. ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 7:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/48 "2009-08-03T07:51:12Z")
> [@stpauler](#): > > I was thinking of ["I Need More Love"](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4zpzEIdoPc)by Robert Randolph for contemporary funk. (The studio version is a bit better than this live version). > > But for all time, the funkiest song belongs to the funkiest bass player which, to me, is the backbone for funk. [Bootsy Collins’ (Bootsy’s Rubber Band) “Bootzilla”.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4zpzEIdoPc) You can feel that bass in your soft palate. Both links are the same. I LOVE Robert Randolph’s playing, but I was wanting to listen to the Bootsy Collins link as well. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/49 "2009-08-03T11:38:10Z")
> [@Sleeps\_With\_Butterflies](#): > > I’ve got to go with Stevie Wonder “Superstition” as well. > > “[It’s Your Thing](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2v2-DSKx3Eg)” by the Isley Brothers deserves a mention. Thanks for mentioning the Isleys - I only saw them in Hippy’s list besides. Amazing stuff, with a harder edge vs. the slipperier (is that a word) groove of Parliament or James Brown. ![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/PRkw9UnVhug/maxresdefault.jpg)https://www.youtube.com/embed/PRkw9UnVhug?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque [Livin’ in the Life / Go for Your Guns](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ssWDBMkm8ZE) - again, uses the heavy, thick clavinet sound that Stevie Wonder uses in Superstition but for a more straight-up beat. But check out the high-hat drum work - like the Stewart Copeland of funk. And Ernie Isley’s guitar work in Go For Your Guns is amazing - you can tell he took lessons from Jimi Hendrix when Jimi was touring with the Isleys… Personally, I would pick something by\*\* James Brown, Stevie Wonder or Parliament \*\*as at the heart of funk, but its all good 😉 **Prince’s Housequake** has always been a personal favorite. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 11:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/50 "2009-08-03T11:50:31Z")
sunuvagun, it is a word - [Slipperier Definition & Meaning - Merriam-Webster](http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/slipperier) I thought I had Monday-morning brain there for a sec. And that first link is to \*\*Fight the Power \*\*- the original, not the inspired by sample from \*\*Public Enemy \*\*in the movie **Do the Right Thing** , which I also love. ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 12:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/51 "2009-08-03T12:42:54Z")
> [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](#): > > Both links are the same. I LOVE Robert Randolph’s playing, but I was wanting to listen to the Bootsy Collins link as well. :smack: [Here’s Bootsy.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1K_XX4HEBZA) ---
**Author:** ![Mycroft\_Holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a5b964/32.png) [@Mycroft\_Holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mycroft_Holmes)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/52 "2009-08-03T13:42:19Z")
[Atomic Dog](http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2clgy_george-clinton-atomic-dog_music) Bow wow wow yippy yo yippy yea. ---
**Author:** ![bramma23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@bramma23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bramma23)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/53 "2009-08-03T14:29:02Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Up in here? You’re gonna make me lose my cool. ---
**Author:** ![Mariemarie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/58f4c7/32.png) [@Mariemarie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mariemarie)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/54 "2009-08-03T15:02:39Z")
James Brown’s Papa’a Got A Brand New Bag. ---
**Author:** ![Sigmagirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c89c15/32.png) [@Sigmagirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sigmagirl)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/55 "2009-08-03T15:14:04Z")
Heh. Doesn’t win the thread, but I was playing trivia last week and went to the bathroom, and \*in the ladies’ room \*they were playing “Skinny Legs and All” by Joe Tex. I didn’t want to go back to the bar. > [@](#): > > Originally Quoted by **Joe Tex** > Say man, don’t walk ahead of that woman like she don’t belong to you! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Scrivener](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@The\_Scrivener](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Scrivener)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/56 "2009-08-03T16:47:45Z")
I dunno if it’s the absolute funkiest song ever, but this clip of The Ohio Players doing [“Love Rollercoaster”](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBkVV9xxCHE) on \*The Midnight Special \*[1975] is a lot of fun, especially when the dancers hit the catwalk. ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/57 "2009-08-03T16:56:37Z")
_Making Flippy Floppy_ by Talking Heads. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/58 "2009-08-03T18:15:28Z")
There’s a whole lotta funk to go around. For the dog that chases his tail … will be dizzy. - **WOOF!** \* ---
**Author:** ![orderfire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/orderfire/32/10908_2.png) [@orderfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/orderfire)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 7:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/59 "2009-08-03T19:36:36Z")
A show of hands for Billy Preston’s _Outta Space_? That funk cannot be denied. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/ncrROmVJT2s/hqdefault.jpg "OUTASPACE") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ncrROmVJT2s) Wack light show, and the guy getting down in the front row is _the best_. ---
**Author:** ![Hammer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/bc79bd/32.png) [@Hammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hammer)\ **Post date:** [August 3, 2009, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095/60 "2009-08-03T20:14:30Z")
Some runner ups: Early in the Morning - The Gap Band Cutie Pie - One Way Just be good to me - S.O.S band Knee-deep - P funk. Talkin out the side of your neck - Cameo [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/funkiest-song-ever/505095.md?page=4)