James Brown was without doubt one of the most original and impressive figures in twentieth-century popular music. Laying aside the political nature of his performance, from a musical perspective he was extremely impressive. His death on Christmas Day 2006 is a loss to music everywhere.
Here’s an example of James Brown in performance on Youtube:
Here’s a list from The Guardian newspaper of James Brown’s seminal hits:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,,-6302678,00.html
Personally I love his tight, funk-orientated music. Its repetitious, rhythmically interlocking riffs work really well with the interesting basslines. In many ways its repetitive natures presages electronic music genres such as techno, and it’s no surprise that his music was so extensively sampled in hip-hop works as well.
My own response to the music of James Brown is evident in the work Comin’ Right Atcha, which I composed in 2002 for the Australian tour of the Absolute Ensemble. Its conductor, Kristjan Jaarvi, suggested Brown’s music to me as a starting point of inspiration and I am so pleased he did.
For more information and programme notes on this piece, click here, and streaming audio of a performance of Comin’ Right Atcha in a new arrangement for 15 member chamber ensemble can be found on the ABC Classic FM website.