The cowbell is not an instrument you naturally associate with funk. And cowbell solos are as rare as hens’ teeth… unless you’re listening to this smooth groove by British funksters Cymande. (more…)

James Brown invented funk in 1965 with Papa Got A Brand New Bag, a song he memorably described thus: “The title told it all – I have a new bag.” (more…)

Not being of an overly religious persuasion, gospel has never been my go-to musical genre. But this exuberant fusion of gospel with soul and funk is irresistible. Especially on a quintessentially English summer’s day like today (ie. wet). (more…)

With its slinky, sinuous groove and rattling percussion, Pusherman offers a fly-on-the-wall trip through the inner-city ghetto, guided by Curtis Mayfield’s inimitable falsetto. (more…)

New York vocal group The Persauders had their only UK hit with Thin Line Between Love And Hate long before before The Pretenders. (more…)

Undiscovered for decades, here is the full 33-minute version of Isaac Hayes’s psychedelic jam Do Your Thing. (more…)

James Brown channels his anger into a revenge fantasy in the influential funk classic The Payback, much sampled by hip-hop artists in later years. (more…)

This is probably the soppiest song I like. It’s the antithesis of the soul music I like best – the gritty, sweaty, southern soul of Stax and Muscle Shoals. And yet… (more…)

This is another long jam for a summer’s day, fusing an R&B groove with the flightier embellishments of jazz. (more…)

The Five Stairsteps were five teenage brothers and sisters nicknamed The First Family Of Soul – a title that would soon be passed on to The Jackson 5. (more…)