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Watch this video of MAGGOT BRAIN LIVE!
WATCH THIS VIDEO OF PARLIAMENT FUNKADELIC getting inducted into
the ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME.Eddie Hazel's wife Brenda was there in Eddie's place to accept on his behalf
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.
PARLIAMENT FUNKADELIC was inducted into the ROCK & ROLL HALL OF FAME in 1997 and PRINCE introduced them at the event.Brenda Hazel was there in her husband's place.Eddie Hazel was also named one of the TOP 100 Guitar players of all time in both ROLLING STONE and SPIN magazines! Everyone from METALLICA to PRINCE has been influenced by Eddie Hazel.He was and will always be one of the most soulful and creative musicians EVER!
Eddie Hazel at the age of six
EDDIE HAZEL & FRIENDS:
Brenda Hazel is the consultant for the much sought after singer and piano player Jon Bibbs.
Click his picture to visit his page
JON BIBBS
Brenda is the consultant for Le'Che Martin (a finalist on MTV's Making The Band 2005).Click Le'Che Martin's picture to visit her website!
www.le-chemartin.com.
Le'Che Martin
Brenda is also the consultant for Dash.Click his picture to visit his page
DASH
Brenda Hazel is the consultant for Nalaya Brown
(Click on her picture to visit her page)
Nalaya Brown
Brenda is the consultant for Piti Garcia (Singer, Rapper, Songwriter & producer)...Click his photo to visit him on myspace and check out his new video!!!
Brenda is the consultant for the amazing Russian
musician named Felix Lahuti
Click the pic to check out his page
Felix Lahuti
Brenda is the consultant for Karinne Hannah.
Click her pic to visit her page
Karine Hannah
Brenda Hazel is the consultant for funk musician Taki76.
(Click on Taki's picture to listen to his FUNK)
Taki76 & GEORGE CLINTON
