Somewhat of a mythical figure, original Funkadelic guitarist Eddie Hazel pioneered an innovative funk-metal sound in the early '70s, best exemplified on his mammoth classic instrumental jam "Maggot Brain." This mythological status arises from his brief, mysterious era of productivity, a shadowy three-album cycle capped by Maggot Brain.At the time, Hazel seemed a clear successor to the deceased Jimi Hendrix, one of the few black guitar players merging an acid rock approach with an R&B aesthetic. Furthermore, Hazel took things a step further, integrating a heavy dose of funk into his fiery guitar work as well, setting the precedent for successive Parliament/Funkadelic guitarists, as well as later generations of funk-metal guitarists.
Though born in Brooklyn on April 10, 1950, Eddie Hazel grew up outside the city in Plainfield, NJ, since his mother, Grace Cook, didn't want her son growing up in a negative, drug-littered environment (though, ironically, Plainfield wasn't much better in regard to drugs). While his mother commuted back and forth to Brooklyn to work as a silk presser, the young Eddie spent most of his time playing the guitar his brother had bought for him as a Christmas gift. In addition to his self-trained guitar playing, Eddie also sang in church and eventually met Billy "Bass" Nelson when he was only 12 -- the two instantly began playing together, teaching each other to sing and play guitar. Once they met up with yet another local youth, drummer Harvey McGee, they began jamming together as a trio, trying to learn all the early-'60s Motown hits. In 1967, another much more established Plainfield group, the Parliaments, had suddenly found themselves experiencing a considerable level of success and wanted to mount a tour. They needed a backing band, though, and looked to Nelson for help. Unfortunately, Hazel was nowhere to be found, supposedly in Newark, NJ, working with producer George Blackwell. When Nelson returned from a short summer tour in August, the first thing he did was hunt down Hazel in hopes of beefing up the Parliaments' rhythm section. There was one problem, though -- Eddie's mother. She wasn't crazy about the idea of letting her 17-year-old son head out on a tour with George Clinton's ensemble of wild musicians. Yet after a little begging and some convincing on both Clinton's and Nelson's part, Ms. Cook agreed to let her son follow his ambitions.
The Parliaments went back on tour in September 1967, with Nelson and Hazel anchoring the rhythm section. In Philadelphia during a show at the Uptown Theater, Hazel met Tiki Fulwood, who was the Uptown's house drummer. The two instantly became close friends, going out partying after the show together. Furthermore, since both Nelson and Hazel were unhappy with their drummer at the time, they argued with Clinton about replacing the Parliaments' inadequate drummer with Fulwood. By the time they left Philadelphia, the Nelson/Hazel/Fulwood rhythm section was finally in place, a tight squad that spawned Funkadelic.
In essence, Funkadelic was just a continuation of the Parliaments. With group member Calvin Simon gone off to the war, and with Hazel and Fulwood now in the group, the Parliaments abandoned their uniforms, donned extravagant costumes or street clothes, and began playing increasingly rock-influenced music driven by Hazel's dirty fuzz tone and Hendrix-influenced acid rock approach. The change to Funkadelic then became official with the introduction of Tawl Ross on rhythm guitar and Bernie Worrell on keyboards, resulting in a series of three landmark albums: the group's self-titled debut (1970), Free Your Mind...and Your Ass Will Follow (1970), and Maggot Brain (1971).
Maggot Brain ended up being one of the group's more essential albums, thanks primarily to Hazel's guitar playing. In particular, the title track has become his legacy, an epic instrumental piece fashioned as an emotive eulogy that has become a perennial staple of the group's live shows over the decades. The song's origins are supposedly rooted in a recording session where Clinton told Hazel to envision the saddest thought possible, his mother's death, and use that vision as inspiration. Other myths involve Hazel's voracious drug intake, a characteristic that led to the nickname "Maggot Brain." Either way, the song made Hazel famous and secured his legacy for successive decades.
While Hazel's role in Parliament/Funkadelic had diminished by the late '70s, Clinton did grant him the opportunity to record a solo album for Warner Brothers, 1977's Games, Dames and Guitar Things. The album featured covers of "California Dreamin'" and "I Want You (She's So Heavy)," along with a few songs written by Clinton and Bootsy Collins. The nine songs all prominently feature Hazel's lead guitar work, along with a considerable amount of backing vocals courtesy of the Brides of Funkenstein. Incredibly rare and highly collectable for years, the album remains one of the better P-Funk albums of the late '70s, highlighted by its guitar-heavy sound.
Following this album, Hazel continued to play with Clinton in successive years, but his contributions were never major, and he slowly descended further into oblivion, eventually suffering from chronic stomach problems and ultimately dying on December 23, 1992, from internal bleeding and liver failure. In the wake of his death, two posthumous collections of unreleased material were released. Jams From the Heart surfaced first in 1994, a brief four-song EP that eventually was eclipsed by a second import release, 2000's Rest in P. This latter collection compiled the material from Jams From the Heart along with a few other leftovers dug up from the vaults. In 2004 Rhino Homemade finally reissued Games, Dames and Guitar Things, appending the Jams From the Heart EP as an added bonus.
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Aaron Price is one of Asheville, North Carolina's most recognized and respected musicians. Known as a performer, producer, free-lance multi-instrumentalist for-hire, composer of theater score, few musicians anywhere boast the breadth of expertise, talent, and mojo as the man Asheville's Mountain Express has named "the man behind the Asheville Sound." Having played on or produced numerous local and regional releases from his own Collapseable Studios in West Asheville, Aaron has designated the JukeBox Alive site as his outlet for original musical works in progress and special releases. 
Alison Joy Williams is a performing songwriter with a very diverse style. She sings a torch song with her heart in every word, and then can rock you out with out slipping gears. Her clear strong vocals gives a unique beauty to her songs as she sings about life as she sees it. Not liking to be labeled, you can call her music what you will, Country, Rock, Folk, Americana. It's just good tunes
I am a singer, a songwriter, arranger, and producer..... I hope to keep growing in the music business, to write and record more songs, to touch people's hearts, and have my voice and music heard around the world....
If you happen to like rock n' roll, and are inspired by the rebellion of punk rock, past and present, if you like to dance and jump, have a broken heart or one on the mend, Ash Riot has something that you can relate to ...... This Time I’ll Forgive You…Again is the full length album from Vancouver Canada singer-songwriter Ash Riot."This Time I’ll Forgive You…Again" is the story of a 21 year-old artist with true rock ‘n roll spirit whose poetic lyrics could stitch the wounds of any hungry soul, rising from one experience to another, whether it be painful, beautiful, pensive or observant.
Brother 2 Brother follows in the footsteps of great Texas Bluesmen such as T-Bone Walker, Albert Collins, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. In addition to their faithful Rock, Blues, and R&B covers, their new original CD entitled "Lookin' for Texas" is a part of the evolution of Texas Blues, incorporating a wide variety of influences from the world of Rock, Country, Jazz, and Blues. Their new CD is getting quite a bit of airplay in their home base of Houston, Texas on KPFT 90.1 FM and they were the cover story of the Sept issue of "North of the Border" entertainment guide with CD review. Also, the CD has received glowing reviews in "Music News" and "The Scene", two more Houston area mags. On Oct. 9, 2005, they were interviewed on KPFT 90.1 FM, Houston, by Mr. V on his program "Blues on the Move". B2B is also getting airplay on Blues Programs in Canada, Argentina, Belgium, and on the #1 internet radio program in France "Midnight Special Blues Radio". 
Buckyball Records is an up and coming progressive jazz label. The label is in existence for seven years and has an impressive roster of talents whose work is strongly rooted in jazz, progressive rock, and fusion, providing a challenging ear cookie for the discriminating musical palette. 
Chesterwhite & His Orchestra is a rock-n-roll carnival led by tremendous vocalist Donny Dykowsky. This 4-piece gained momentum quickly, playing such venues as The Hammerstein Ballroom, The Roxy, and various Z-100 sponsored events. With Dave Dunn on guitar, Seth Moutal on drums, and Freddy Pastore on bass, Chesterwhite will dare, dazzle, and astonish as they take you on a true-life inspired, science-fiction journey. Their critically acclaimed, self-titled, debut album “Chesterwhite & His Orchestra” (Erroneous Records), is likened to David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, & T-Rex with a splash of George Orwell. The content is an honest look at the world of today and a stranger look of what’s yet to come.
Crank County Daredevils make me wanna drink beer in the shower at 10 o'clock in the morning"
:CRASHLANDING: is a Bay Area Rock and Blues band that is gathering momentum and a loyal fan base. Watch out for their next shows in a venue near you. The band, is a power trio that incorperates special guests throughout their set. Their guests range from percusionists to harmonica players. The trio consists of the traditional guitar, bass and drum kit. The Bassist (ALEXANDER ZELNICK) is also the lead Vocalist. The Guitar player (ELIJAH RICE) has a deep and rich history with the blues he also does back up vocals. The kit Drummer at the moment is ( JEFF RJEFSKI) he has choosen mentors such as Buddy Rich to enrich his energetic layers and textures. Keep your ears out for :CRASHLANDING:
"Dan Carrigan's a resolutely obtuse cat, who cloaks his keen eye for observation and abstraction in angular guitar lines and a type of self-aware vocal delivery that either works or doesn't - but even when it doesn't, it's at least as fascinating as when it does." Jim Reed, Connect Savannah.
Singer Songwriters "Engfer Brown"
Frankie Sorci and Friends Playing on the Steps of the California State Capitol Building 
