Leroy "Sugarfoot" Bonner (Ohio Players)
Ohio Player Sugarfoot not only introduced the nasal "aw garl" style of singing to funk music, he also played a mean guitar. His single note wah-wah work on tunes like Skin Tight is great, as is his scratchy rhythm on the likes of Love Rollercoaster and Fire. Bonner is also one of those annoying funkateers (Leo Nocentelli is antother) who effortlessly peels off a complicated, swinging jazz solo every now and then - as on Sweet Sticky Thing.
James Brown's funky axemen
If one player invented funk rhythm playing, it was probably James Brown's trusty sideman Jimmy Nolen. Jimmy's inventions were elaborated on by his successor (and eventually also predecessor as Nolen returned when he left) Phelps "Catfish" Collins. Catfish is an incredibly underrated player, behind many of James Brown's, The JB's, Bootsy Collins' and some of Parliament's funkiest recordings. Meanwhile, it is a little known fact that Nolen's partner "Country" Kellum often played the trademark scratchy rhythm parts, with Nolen contributing repeating single note figures (a two guitar approach later mirrored by the Average White Band). Check out James Brown's Love Power Peace and Sex Machine albums to hear Catfish on fine form. Nolen and Kellum are all over The 20th Aniversary Collection, latter-day classic The Payback and The JB's Anthology.
Steve Cropper (Booker T and the MG's)
Steve "The Colonel" Cropper is a member of Booker T and the MG's and his impeccable Telecaster playing can be heard on many of soul's greatest hits (Knock On Wood, Soul Man, Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay). Time is Tight, the title of one of his best-loved songs just about says it all. The MG's were one hell of a tight unit. Check out Melting Pot for some minority complex-inducing rhythm playing.
Jesse Johnson (The Time)
These days, most people know that the guitar player on the first two Time albums was actually Prince. Their third, Ice Cream Castle, however not only features their biggest hit (Jungle Love), but also some of the best guitar playing in the groups history. The underrated successor Pandemonium is also full of tasty guitar playing. Johnson later went on to solo semi-fame.
Jimi Hendrix
Many funk guitarists owe their careers at least in part to the innovations of James Marshall Hendrix, very likely the greatest guitarist this world will ever see. Check Band of Gypsies for Jimi at his funkiest and dream about what might have happened had he lived. Or listen to Axis: Bold as Love to hear how much can be said with a clean sound and partial chords. A final tip: the intro to Killing Floor (Live at Monterey) features what must be the most exciting lead/rhythm hybrid playing ever.
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield's unorthodox tuning and partial chords revolutionised rhythm playing before there was funk. Check his inventive lead/rhythm lines on Curtis Live and find out where Hendrix got that bit from.
Leo Nocentelli (Meters)
If anyone could be called the ultimate funk guitarist, Nocentelli would be a natural choice. Tight-yet-loose rhythm, precise, aggressive lead, incredible riffs, the guy can do it all. Check all their early albums, but especially The Meters (funky instrumentals) and Rejuvenation. You could learn all you need to know about funk guitar from these two albums.
The P-Funk Guitar Army
George Clinton's Parliament-Funkadelic has featured an impressive series of lead guitarists through the years. First off was the late Eddie Hazel, probably the truest heir to Jimi Hendrix' crown. His solo on Funkadelic's Maggot Brain, though very "delic" and not really funky, is a bona fide classic. But Hazel consistently delivered brilliant leads and riffs throughout the first half of the seventies. While the P-Funk guitar army consisted of many fine players like Gary "Starchild" Shider and the sadly missed Glenn Goins, the one to really fill Hazel's shoes was and is Michael "Kidd Funkadelic" Hampton.
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From the late seventies to this day, Hampton is joined by Dewayne "Blackbyrd" McKnight, formerly of the Headhunters and Herbie Hancock, another true funk virtuoso. Most of the above also feature on Bootsy Collins' albums, but the most impressive rhythm duties on these are handled by his brother Catfish (check the Oklahoma live 1976 album), who also contributed the insanely funky rhythm part to Parliament's smash Flash Light. Though Eddie Hazel sometimes crops up near the bottom of "Greatest Guitarists Ever" lists, he, Hampton and Blackbyrd are criminally underrated. Part of this may be due to racism in the music industry (a black guy playing heavy rock solos in the seventies didn't and doesn't fit some people's preconceptions). But is also doesn't help that the credits on classic mid-period Funkadelic albums rarely clarify who played what, making it hard to single out one or two guitar heroes.
Prince
The last of the great funk guitarists? Whatever your feelings about the purple squiggly midget Jehova's witness, no-one with even a passing interest in funk guitar can miss tracks like Controversy, Kiss, Alphabet Street and Sign "O" the Times. Prince's perfectly timed chucking often provides the only organic groove in an electronic arrangement, usually with great tone, too. And he's fabulous at Hendrix/Funkadelic/Santana style psychedelic blues soloing too. His leads on Purple Rain and Let's Go Crazy are well known, but for something a little more obscure and funky, check out his 80's twelve-inches, the instrumental album N.E.W.S or the One Night Alone Live box set.
Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Raglin
Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Raglin played THAT guitar part on the Temptations' Papa Was A Rolling Stone. What else do you need to know? Well, maybe that he also played great parts on most other stuff they recorder with producer Norman Whitfield. Oh, and be sure to check his fantastic playing on Marvin Gaye's Let's Get it On and Herbie Hancock's Man-Child. (This album's Hang up your Hang-ups is a certified and much sampled classic).
Nile Rodgers
On the edge of disco and funk, Nile Rodgers brought incredible rhythm playing to music that may not suit the tastes of every funkateer. Make up your own mind. I personally feel that his playing deserves better music, but also that no funk guitarist can live without Le Freak, Good Times and I Want Your Love. If you can't get yourself to buy a Chic record, at least get David Bowie's Let's Dance and hear him playing with Stevie Ray Vaughan - an unusual but inspired combination (Rogers later produced SRV's own album with his brother Jimmy).
Freddie Stone (Sly and the Family Stone)
Sly's Tele-toting brother Freddie's playing set the standards in terms of locking in with the bass. His choppy licks perfectly fit in with Larry Graham's groundbreaking slapping on tracks like Thank You (Falettin' Me Be Mice Elf Agin). Also, with Sing a Simple Song, Freddie delivered funk's Satisfaction - the ultimate riff.
Roger Troutman (Zapp)
Zapp's Roger Troutman was probably THE funk guitarist of the early eighties. Similar in style to Prince, Troutman's rhythm playing was as tight as it was funky. He was also a mean jazz/blues soloist. But Roger Troutman is probably best remembered as the absolute master of the Talk box. Check out More Bounce To The Ounce, So Ruff So Tuff or Heartbreaker to hear the man's sadly missed, devastating chops.
And also...
Many more players contributed to the history of funk guitar. Few remember the guitarists who played the legendary riffs on Kool and The Gang's Funky Stuff, Fatback's Yum Yum (Gimme Some), The Bar Kay's Son of Shaft, Funk Inc's Kool is Back and other classic funk jams. Even Charles "Skip" Pitts, who played the legendary wah-wah intro to Isaac Hayes' Shaft is hardly a household name. So be it. Funk, as George Clinton puts it, is its own reward. The best way to say "thank you" to these great guitarists is to join or start a funk band and help keep funk music alive!
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