Customer Reviews

This Boot Is Made for Fonk-N

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The story: after three years of mega-successful concert tours and recordings at the height of George Clinton's P-Funk empire, the fast life begins taking it's toll on Bootsy and the Rubber Band and the darker side of stardom rears its head. Rumours abound of drug trips gone bad, business problems, power struggles within the band, and the like. So, "This Boot..." was released in late spring 1979, during Bootsy's retreat from the front lines as a result of these problems. And even though Bootsy did an aborted tour for this LP, the glory days of Bootsy's Rubber Band were clearly over. He never really got back out there as a touring artist until the 1990s, and then only sporadically. Same for his recordings.

This album is mixed, overall. Some of the musical arrangements are brilliant. In fact I would say that musically, the album is one of Bootsy's most sophisticated statements. "Under the Influence of A Groove" and "Bootsy Get Live" are the standout tracks in this regard. Bootsy has moved his psychedelic-funk bass playing to a new level, and the rest of the music features some very complex and layared guitar, horn and keyboard parts. Catfish Collins and Garry Shider contribute some amazing guitar arrangements, and Bernie Worrell and Razor Sharp Johnson do the same on the keyboards. At times (such as on the opening track "Under the Influence..."), the rhythm parts are incredibly lush and almost dizzying in their complexity. Bootsy is offering a kind of psychedelic funk-rock that he would also develop on his next album "Ultra Wave" (from 1980). "Oh Boy Girl" is another very strong track, musically. Also, the album definitely represents a solid advance forward in terms of production. Musically, it's possibly Bootsy's deepest album. It sounds as if he was trying to get a bit more experimental with his style. I don't remember the LP getting much radio play at the time, but how could it - the sound and concept were miles away from the disco and funk-disco that was dominating black radio in 1979?

Lyrically, however, the album suffers from an over-extension of Bootsy's vocal persona. "Jam Fan" is an example of this: the 45 single edit is one of the tightest and deepest slabs of funk anyone in P-Funk EVER released, but the extended album version suffers from too much silly rapping on Bootsy's part, which makes the song diffuse and detracts from the musical impact. The flip side of the "Jam Fan" 45 offered an instrumental take of "She Jam (Almost Bootsy Show)" which was a sweet, charming, disco-funk track with a great horn arrangement by Fred Wesley. The album version, with vocals, is silly to the point of being almost unlistenable (at least to me). "Chug-A-Lug" suffers from the same syndrome - the groove and bass playing are deep, but Bootsy sounds like he's grasping for lyrical ideas. It is said that Bootsy was pulling away from George Clinton during this period, and maybe this is a reason that the vocal ideas are somewhat lacking, since Clinton was a genius at vocal arrangements, witty catchphrases, and lyrical hooks. Bootsy himself later admitted that the album was rushed out and not thoroughly thought-through.

So, this album graphically displays Bootsy's strengths and weaknesses. If you are a fan of his very innovative bass playing (which is very elastic, liquid, and stretched out on this album), his style of druggy bass-driven funk-rock, or the increasingly complex production styles P-Funk got into during 1978 and 1979 (Parliament's "Motor Booty Affair" is another example), you will find a lot to appreciate about this album. But don't expect to find his best-crafted songs. On the strength of the music the album could have been a masterpiece, but it would have benefitted from a stronger editorial hand.

I'll leave the reader with one of Bootsy's wittiest lines from the album: "If the funk gets too hot for your rump, turn the other cheek!"

Wipe out music at its rowdiest perhaps. Under the Influence of a Groove, Chug a Lug and Jam Fan are 3 of the best Bootsy jamms anywheres. They really get me funked up. Bootsy says he rushed this lp and this is the result. I remember getting this one for my 13th birthday and flat wore out the grooves on the record. Also worth seeking out is the single release for Jam Fan which contains an instrumental version of She Jam. And the single for Bootsy Get Live contains an alternate take that reflects the printed lyrics on the liner notes. Go for your Funk!!

By the time this, the 4th of Bootsy's Rubberband's releases
was dropped on the funk-buying public in summer 1979, the
whole "P-Funk Thang" had began to peak & wane commercially
and drugs, ego-clashes, bad business moves, etc., were beginning
to bring the whole thing crashing down!
This offering was very weak and thrown together because
as Bootsy Collins & George Clinton have both said themselves,
they were nursing massive cocaine habits by this time and
George was at war with Warner Brothers Records
(both home to Bootsy's Rubberband & Funkadelic).
They basically took some hodge-podge tracks which were
leftover from Bootsy, Parliament/Funkadelic, Brides of Funkenstein
and Parlet sessions, spliced some crazy lyrics on them,
came up with a half baked album concept, and VIOLA!!---
"THIS BOOT WAS MADE FOR FONK'N!!"
This album comes nowhere near to the brilliance, tightness, wittiness,
and sheer funkiness of the preceeding 3 albums:
1976's "Stretchin' Out", 1977's "Ahh, The Name Is Bootsy Baby!"
and 1978's "Bootsy?"!!--No Way!!
The best tracks on here are "OH BOY GIRL", a slow jam
which flashes of the former genius of slow jams like
"I'd Rather Be With You", Munchies 4 Your Love",
"Physical Love", "Telephone Bill", "Very Yes", etc.
The other two good tracks are fast jams "BOOTSY GET LIVE"
and "JAM FAN (HOT!!)", which the latter was the lead single
and was moderately sucessful. This album is a collectors item
for people who admire and/or are researching the P-Funk legacy
and would be the only reason for really buying it.
But if you were there when this music was current,
the way I was, then you know that 1979 marked the death nell
of the Parliafunkdelicment Thang!! (After "Knee Deep",
"Freak Of The Week", and "Big Bang Theory/Theme From The Black Hole")---
The tides were changing and a new sound was brewing in Minneapolis
which would take over in the first part of the coming decade!
The Purple One was just beginning to turn heads in 1979...
Giving Notice That Something New & Funky Was Blowing In The Wind!!

"This Boot is Made For Fonk-N" is the last fo the "classic" Bootsy's Rubberband albums. After this various members were absent from the line-up. The sound of the album is glorious chaos with jams like "Chug-a lug" and "Bootsy Get Live, both of these songs feature the haphazard style of bass that Bootsy made an art of. It's worth the trip.

Jam Fan will seriously melt your face off, you have to buy this album, bootsy's improv on "bootsy get live" is thunderous, this album bumps back hard, BUy this album it will make your life 10 times funkier than it was before, did i mention there is acid freakouts in the middle of bun patrol

Oh boy girl is worth buying the whole cd for. This is definately a classic Mudbone Cooper and Bootsy ballard. The most powerful Bootsy song I've ever hurd.

I have Been Digging Bootsy for many,many years.his Grooves&vibe are timeless.the Man knows how to groove.Jam Fan is rocking&slamming.Bootsy can hang with anyone when it comes to Grooves.he is very underrated The Man is a Genius.check this set out.

Like his other stuff Bootsy makes "This Boot Is Made For
Fonk-N" a somewhat overly funk affair-all groove,little songcraft.But on such tracks as "Shejam" and Jam Fan (Hot)" this
album does have a memorable twist...sort of.

not casper's best effort the rubber band was starting to break up as was the whole p funk empire we know bootsy and george had drug habits but they was'nt the only guilty ones anyway oh boy gorl was the weakest song on here but the other songs are okay bootsy was'nt that thrilled with this album and he does'nt like it you get to hear his wild space bass for those wildf casper faNS WHO CAN'T GET ENOUGH OF BOOTSY PLAYING BASS BUT shejam, jam fan, chug a lug, and bootsy get live are worth having those are typical bootsy jams a shame prince, zapp and roger picked up on this formula and ran with it thrloughout the 80's.

from p-funk's dying days there is still some good material on here, like chug a lug, jam fan, and bootsy get live.but the ballads suck, bootsy sounds tired and weary with his fame and the signs show on here a loy. the first 3 cd's were better than this.