Son’s of Funk – i.e., Fred Wesley & the JB’s – with their 1972 single release on the King label:
“From the Back Side (Pt. 1)”
Son’s of Funk (1972)
Is it really true – as YouTube contributor, BuckeyeCat2002, recalls – that “this James Brown / Fred Wesley cut was given to King Records as a going away present by James Brown?”
As it turns out, both parts of this rare soul 45 made the final cut in Ace’s top-notch collection of King Funk, and Dean Rudland‘s CD liner notes affirm that this two-part instrumental recording by The JB’s was, indeed, “given to King as a favour by James himself a couple of years after he had left to go to Polydor.”
Even though the artist on this track is but one of several amusing variant names for Fred Wesley & The JBs, it is fascinating nevertheless to discover that this 45 would be the only one to be released under the name, Son’s of Funk.
Brown’s last release for King, “Soul Power (Pt. 1),” would reach #3 on the soul chart and hit the US Top 40 (#29), as well as UK Top 100 (#78) in 1971. The Collins brothers, Bootsy and Catfish — young musicians who lived close to the King studio — played as part of The JBs on “Soul Power,” an epic 3-part soul tune that was, curiously enough, recorded in Washington, DC.
Brown’s first single release for Polydor meanwhile, “Escape-ism (Pt. 1)” — which was written by Brown’s arranger and bandleader, David Matthews — would hit Top 10 R&B (#6) and Top 40 (#35) in the US.
