George Clinton (musician) - Biography - Early Life and Parliament-Funkadelic

Early Life and Parliament-Funkadelic

Clinton was born in Kannapolis, North Carolina (allegedly in an outhouse), grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey, and currently resides in Tallahassee, Florida. During his teen years Clinton formed a doo wop group inspired by Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers called The Parliaments while straightening hair at a barber salon in Plainfield. For a period in the 1960s Clinton was a staff songwriter for Motown. Despite initial commercial failure (and one major hit single, "(I Wanna) Testify" in 1967), The Parliaments eventually found success under the names Parliament and Funkadelic in the seventies (see also P-Funk). These two bands combined the elements of musicians such as Jimi Hendrix, Sly and the Family Stone, Cream and James Brown while exploring different sounds, technology, and lyricism. Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic dominated diverse music during the 1970s with over 40 R&B hit singles (including three number ones) and three platinum albums. Clinton's efforts as a solo artist began in 1982. He is also a notable music producer working on almost all of the albums he performs on, as well as producing albums for Bootsy Collins and Red Hot Chili Peppers, among others.