"On May 1 the Brooklyn Masonic Temple will welcome a host of artists to participate in a unique evening of live improvisation. No Wave pioneer James Chance, Wilco's Glenn Kotche, ?uestlove of The Roots, Grammy Award-winning jazz saxophonist Joe Lovano, Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth fame, and Parliament Funkadelic founding member Bernie Worrell are among the more than 20 artists slated to perform together on stage. The show is part of the 2013 Red Bull Music Academy festival that will touch down in New York from April 28 to May 31 with an unprecedented series of 37 concerts, club nights and special events in 34 venues around town."

Tickets are still on sale. The just-announced list of performers and more information is below...

Continue reading "Kim Gordon, James Chance, Questlove, Andrew WK, Glenn Kotche & more in for big Red Bull improv jam"

George Clinton & P-Funk at Beekman Beer Garden in 2011 (more by Chris La Putt

George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic have a few shows scheduled this month including one in NYC TONIGHT (7/12) at Rockefeller Park as part of the River to River Festival. Tonight's show is free and starts at 7 PM. All George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic dates are listed below.

Meanwhile, P-Funk member Bootsy Collins, who was here in June for a BB King's show as part of Blue Note Jazz Festival, will be playing a free NYC show on Monday (7/16) at Wingate Field with SOS Band as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Concert Series.

Another P-Funk member, Bernie Worrell, will be in NYC even sooner for a show at Mercury Lounge on Friday (7/13) with Deathrow Tull. Tickets for that show are on sale now.

All dates are listed below...

Continue reading "George Clinton & Parliament-Funkadelic playing NYC tonight; Bernie Worrell & Bootsy Collins playing shows too (separately)"

photos by Chris La Putt

Neither recent health problems or a battle with lawyers could stop the funk. George Clinton (that's him in the blue coat) just turned 70 and he celebrated with a multi-hour Parliament Funkadelic show at Beekman Beer Garden at the South Street Seaport in NYC last night (7/28).

Earlier this summer George played a free lunchtime show at Metrotech in Brooklyn. Ginzburg was at that one:

"Covering just about all their hits, and even throwing in a ten foot or so alien life form on stage, George danced, pranced, did poetry, and sang in that gravelly voice of his that won't make Al Green lose any sleep. Sure, he took a few uncharacteristic rests in a chair in back of the stage, but great this was. And when the twenty or so musicians jammed, it was indeed a joyful noise."

Pictures from the Beekman show are in this post. More of them below...

Continue reading "George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic played Beekman Beer Garden (pics)"

photos by Dana (Distortion) Yavin

NY. yall treated a brother right last night at BB.Kings. We off to Canada now, but thanks for the love yall show us, the funk never forgets a good funkin'! Now that the Funkship is up & runnin', we plan to make many more Big Apple stops. We love, we funk! -[Bootsy Collins]

Member of James Brown's band, Parliament-Funkadelic, a solo artist, and hands down one of the most fashion-conscious men in music, Bootsy Collins played BB King's on June 26th as part of the Blue Note Jazz Festival which comes to a close tonight (6/30). The starry-eyed one's 13-piece band Funk U-Nity, which featured former P-Funk members Bernie Worrell, Blackbyrd McKnight, and Frankie Kash, shook the booties of attendees at BB King's with the help of a special, and rather surprising guest:

Bootsy Collins brought the funk and Dr. Cornel West to B.B. King on Sunday night. The former Parliament-Funkadelic bassist and his all-star Funk U-nity band... tore the roof off the packed house with the help of the Princeton professor. West declared Collins an "unadulterated genius" before performing "Don't Take My Funk," a track off Bootsy's new CD, "Tha Funk Capital of the World." West guest-stars on the album, too, as does his Obama debating partner, the Rev. Al Sharpton. -[NY Daily News]

The funkin' legend (and Dr. West) played a set of dancefloor burning grooves that included Bootsy's amp literally bursting into a cloud of smoke. Too much funky, I guess.

More pictures and a video from BB King's and all upcoming Bootsy dates are below...

Continue reading "Bootsy Collins funked up BB King's w/ his funky band & special guest Dr. Cornel West (pics & video)"