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| Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Parliament | ||||
| Released | November 28, 1977 | |||
| Recorded | 1976–1977 | |||
| Studio | United Sound Systems, Detroit, Michigan, and Hollywood Sound, Hollywood, California | |||
| Genre | Funk | |||
| Length | 44:22 | |||
| Label | Casablanca | |||
| Producer | George Clinton | |||
| Parliament chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  |
| Robert Christgau | A [2] |
| Ink Blot | favorable [3] |
| Rolling Stone | favorable (1978) [4]  |
| Spin | |
Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome is a funk album by Parliament, released in 1977 (see 1977 in music).
Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when African-American musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of soul music, jazz, and rhythm and blues (R&B). Funk de-emphasizes melody and chord progressions and focuses on a strong rhythmic groove of a bass line played by an electric bassist and a drum part played by a drummer. Like much of African-inspired music, funk typically consists of a complex groove with rhythm instruments playing interlocking grooves. Funk uses the same richly colored extended chords found in bebop jazz, such as minor chords with added sevenths and elevenths, or dominant seventh chords with altered ninths and thirteenths.
Parliament is a funk band formed in the late 1960s by George Clinton as part of his Parliament-Funkadelic collective. Less rock-oriented than its sister act Funkadelic, Parliament drew on science-fiction and outlandish performances in their work. The band scored a number of Top 10 hits, including the million-selling 1975 single "Give Up the Funk ," and Top 40 albums such as Mothership Connection (1975).
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1977.
Contents
It is a loose concept album warning the listener of falling into the "Placebo Syndrome," which according to George Clinton is consumerism, and listening to disco music, which he saw as a simplification of funk music in attempt to gain commercial success. The album spawned the R&B number #1 single in "Flash Light", which features a funky synthesizer bass line played in a Minimoog by keyboardist Bernie Worrell. The album became Parliament's fourth consecutive gold album and second platinum album. The song "Sir Nose d'Voidoffunk (Pay Attention – B3M)" contains nursery rhymes "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" and "Three Blind Mice", the lyrics were changed to make reference to drug use.
George Edward Clinton is an American singer, songwriter, bandleader, and record producer. His Parliament-Funkadelic collective developed an influential and eclectic form of funk music during the 1970s that drew on science-fiction, outlandish fashion, psychedelic culture, and surreal humor. He launched a solo career with the 1982 album Computer Games, and would go on to influence 1990s hip-hop and G-funk. He is regarded, along with James Brown and Sly Stone, as one of the foremost innovators of funk music. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, alongside 15 other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. In 2019, he and Parliament-Funkadelic will be given Grammy Lifetime Achievement Awards.
Consumerism is a social and economic order that encourages the acquisition of goods and services in ever-increasing amounts. With the industrial revolution, but particularly in the 20th century, mass production led to an economic crisis: there was overproduction—the supply of goods would grow beyond consumer demand, and so manufacturers turned to planned obsolescence and advertising to manipulate consumer spending. In 1899, a book on consumerism published by Thorstein Veblen, called The Theory of the Leisure Class, examined the widespread values and economic institutions emerging along with the widespread "leisure time" in the beginning of the 20th century. In it Veblen "views the activities and spending habits of this leisure class in terms of conspicuous and vicarious consumption and waste. Both are related to the display of status and not to functionality or usefulness."
Disco is a music genre and subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. The music, the fashion, many song lyrics and other cultural phenomena associated with disco were focused on having a good time on the dance floor of a discotheque to the loud sounds of records being played by a DJ, usually enhanced by coloured lighting effects.
The original vinyl release contained a 22" by 33" inch poster of the character "Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk", as well as an 8-page comic book that explains the concept behind the LP. Both the poster and the comic book were illustrated by Overton Loyd.
Overton Loyd is an artist best known for creating the cover art for the Parliament album Motor Booty Affair. His style of art varies often from work to work, and can range from loose sketches and paintings to fully fleshed out pieces. He is a friend of George Clinton of Parliament, and most of the subjects for his art are either Clinton or Parliament.
