JAMES BROWN
ROCKS

Revered as a pioneering soul and funk icon (not to mention as The Hardest Working Man in Show Business), James Brown would at first seem an unlikely subject for an entry in Bear Family’s long-running ‘Rocks’ series. But undeniable evidence that Mr. Dynamite proudly belongs in any pantheon of great and timeless rock and rollers defines this compilation (after all, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted him in 1986). During Brown’s early years at Syd Nathan’s Cincinnati-based Federal and King Records, Soul Brother Number One engaged in plenty of righteous rocking with his Famous Flames vocally backing him up, from the thundering jumpers I Feel That Old Feeling Coming On and the Little Richard-inspired Chonnie-On-Chon to a daffy Coasters-like That Dood It and into the screaming testifiers I’ll Go Crazy, This Old Heart, Think, Good Good Lovin’, Dancin’ Little Thing, and Shout And Shimmy. Along the way, he constantly invented and perfected new grooves and beats to anoint himself as the baddest R&B singer in the land while never allowing the sweat to dry from any stage he muscularly commanded. This collection offers 30 sizzling houserockers by The Godfather of Soul (or Funk - take your pick) from his crucial primordial era, closing with his earth-shattering game-changers Papa’s Got A Brand New Bag and I Got You (I Feel Good), which permanently shifted the axis of soul music with their singular funky vision. There are even a handful of Brown’s all-too-often overlooked instrumentals, where he usually played drums or organ with his mighty band and grooved like a man possessed. Yes, James Brown could rock - and this scintillating compilation contains the invaluable goods!