Artist Roster |
Bootsy Collins
Official Website : | www.bootsycollins.com |
MySpace: | www.myspace.com/bootzillaproduction |
Territory of Representation
Non-exclusive representation in Europe (in agreement with Bootzilla Productions)
Biography
Bootsy was born William Collins on October 26, 1951 in Cincinnati, Ohio.
When he was a child his mother gave him the nickname "Bootsy" because
she thought he looked like a Bootsy…
He started playing guitar at 8, because his elder brother, Phelps "Catfish" Collins
played guitar. Four years later Bootsy bought his first guitar. By 14,
Bootsy was playing his first gigs, starting with teen talent shows and
gospel groups. Back then, Bootsy was switching between bass and guitar,
as was his brother; but as soon as Bootsy and Catfish started playing
together they decided Catfish would play the guitar and Bootsy the bass.
As their new lifestyle didn't fit with high school, Bootsy convinced
his mother he should drop out in the 10th grade.
Things began happening in the mid-60's, when Cincinnati was a hotbed
of R&B. James Brown, cranking out hits at King Records, led the roster
of artists. As the Pacesetters, first with drummer Will Jackson and then
with Frankie "Kash" Waddy, the brothers became the hot young
group in town. One night at a club, a man from King invited them to the
Evanston studio. The group became King's rhythm section for the next
year-and-a-half, playing dozens of sessions, from R&B to country,
first backing Hank Ballard ("The Twist"), then singer Marva
Whitney. Both acts were part of James Brown Productions. Then, one night,
the Pacesetters got a call: James Brown wanted them to play with him,
that same night! Figuring his opening act had cancelled, the band headed
to the airport, and Brown's private Lear jet. When they got to the auditorium,
they found out that Mr. Brown's band "The Famous Flames" had
quit and, with no rehearsals, the Pacesetters were to replace them. They
passed the audition, were renamed the JB’s, and at 17 Bootsy was
touring the world with one of soul music's biggest stars.
However, it was 1969 and new bands were up front singing and dressing crazy
and Bootsy also wanted to look wild, freaky and crazy and have fun. But
James Brown didn't want them to have fun: the JB’s had to have their
straight tuxes on! Brown even fined musicians for infractions, from musical
mistakes to dress-code violations to behaviour. By 1971 Bootsy, Catfish
and Frankie Waddy got restless and on their return from Europe, after yet
another clash with Brown, they left the JB’s.
Enlisting Philippe Wynne, who'd sung with the Pacesetters, they formed "The
Houseguests", their own band with their own rules and visuals for the
glam-rock 70's. The Spinners asked them to be their back-up band. At the
same time, George Clinton, leader of "Parliament/Funkadelic",
was looking for a band to replace the one that had walked out on him. Clinton
said they could keep "The Houseguests" name and be billed as Parliament/Houseguests.
While Wynne left the band to become a "Spinner", the rest of the
group joined the P-Funk psychedelic carnival. But soon Bootsy, schooled
at JB Military Academy, found P-Funk a little too crazy.
Consequently, in 1975 – in order to find some balance - Bootsy, Catfish,
Waddy, Joel 'Razorsharp' Johnson, Gary 'Mudbone' Cooper, Robert 'P-Nut'
Johnson and The Horny Horns (featuring former "Famous Flames" saxophonist
Maceo Parker and trombonist Fred Wesley) formed "Bootsy's Rubber Band".
Around that time Bootsy also adopted his trademark space bass. Signing to
Warner Bros., Bootsy enjoyed the first of his 15 R&B singles chart entries
in 1976 with "Stretchin' Out (In a Rubber Band)." His most successful
singles were "The Pinocchio Theory" (1977) and the chart-topping "Bootzilla" (1978).
Like Clinton, Bootsy took on several aliases, from "Casper" to "Bootzilla",
as part of an ever-evolving character, an alien rock star who grew gradually
more alien, bizarre and flashy as time went on. Through 1982 Bootsy released
six albums on Warners, including the gold-sellers "Ahh...The Name Is
Bootsy, Baby!" (1977) and "Bootsy? Player of the Year" (1978).
He then took a six-year recording hiatus, and returned on Columbia in
1988 with the appropriately named "What's Bootsy Doin'?" That
same year Bootsy appeared in NWA’s Eazy-E’s video for the song "We
want Eazy" which heavily sampled Bootsy’s "We want Bootsy".
In 1989, Bootsy appeared as member of the Bootzilla Orchestra on Malcolm
McLaren's album "Waltz Dancing", featuring the hit single "Something’s
jumping in my shirt". In 1990, Bootsy reformed "Bootsy’s
Rubber Band" and released the "Jungle Bass" EP which featured
the funky dancefloor killer "Disciples of Funk (The Return of the Funkateers)".
That same year Bootsy also collaborated with Deee-Lite on their massive
hit "Groove Is In The Heart" to which he contributed bass and
additional vocals. He also appeared in the music video, while Bootsy's Rubber
Band became the defacto backing musicians for Deee-Lite during a world tour.
In 1994 Bootsy released "Blasters of the Universe" (featuring
Bootsy’s NEW Rubber Band), followed in 1998 by "Fresh Outta 'P'
University" (featuring collaborations with Norman Cool aka Fatboy Slim
and Mousse T.), and in 2002 by "Play with Bootsy" (featuring Snoop
Dogg, Macy Gray, Bobby Womack, George Clinton, Rosie Gaines, Lady Miss Kier
and a bunch of other guests). In 2006 Bootsy released a Christmas album
titled "Christmas Is 4 Ever".
Over the last 20 years Bootsy has collaborated with dozens of artists
from Eurythmics’ Dave Stewart to Ice Cube, from Lucky Peterson to
Color Me Badd… He worked extensively with Bill Laswell, Praxis and
Buckethead and made appearances on two Fatboy Slim records, including the
hit single "Weapon of Choice". Bootsy was also involved in various
film projects like "Friday" and "Undercover Brother".
In 2002 Bootsy was featured in the documentary movie "Standing in the
Shadows of Motown" and in 2006 Bootsy appeared with the Black Eyed
Peas in a series of 5 digital short films for Snickers (which can be viewed
on InstantDef.com).
In 1997 Bootsy was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for his
work with "Funkadelic". Now he's passing on what he's learned
to a new generation of players like D-Jizzle & i-Candy.
Bootsy is currently planning a European tour in support of his brand new album titled “Bootsy Collins - Tha Funk Capital of the World” (scheduled for release in April 2011).
About the new album
A desire to memorialize his heroes -- including James Brown, Jimi Hendrix, Parliament-Funkadelic guitarist Garry Shider and jazz legends such as Thelonious Monk and Miles Davis -- drove Bootsy Collins to make "Tha Funk Capitol of the World," his first new album in five years.
"In 2008 we went out and did a tribute to James Brown tour with...as many of the JBs together as I could," the iconic bassist and bandleader, who's worked with Brown as well as Parliament-Funkadelic and his own Rubber Band, tells Billboard.com. "That really got me thinking about all these great cats who are no longer around and how people are just forgetting about them, and the music is becoming so watered down now. We're forgetting the ones that really opened the door. Since I'm still here, I really wanted to connect those dots...so young people can see that what they think is so new isn't so new."
The 16 tracks on "Tha Funk Capitol of the World" -- due out April 26 on Mascot Records -- were written and recorded during the past two and a half years, according to Collins. They feature a stellar guest list that includes P-Funk mate George Clinton and Shider's widow, Linda, on "Garry Shider Tribute;" the rap trio of Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube and Public Enemy's Chuck D, on "Hip Hop @ Funk U;" Musiq Soulchild and Tom Joyner, on "Yummy, I Got the Munchies;" Bobby Womack and Collins' brother, the late guitarist Catfish Collins, on "Don't Take My Funk;" actor Samuel L. Jackson ("After These Messages"); Dr. Cornel West ("Freedumb") and Rev. Al Sharpton on the Brown tribute, "JB -- Still the Man."
The speaking voice of Jimi Hendrix, meanwhile, shows up on "Mirrors Tell Lies." "We've got him speaking about certain things that went on in his career and how he saw things," says Collins, who narrated the "Jimi Hendrix Voodoo Child" documentary for "West Coast Seattle Boy" box set released in November. "He's speaking through it in different spots. It's pretty cool, a different approach to a song, I think."
Bela Fleck, Victor Wooten and Dennis Chambers, meanwhile, play on a "country meets funk, folk kind of thing" called "If Looks Could Kill," while Collins is putting the finishing touches on a tribute track called "The Jazz Greats," which will include guest performances by George Duke and possibly Herbie Hancock.
"I wanted to kind of expand and not just have an album of only funk," Collins explains. "I wanted to add a little rock, a little jazz, a little gospel in there, just come up with this thing where I can break out into a whole new kind of area. You still get a whole lot of funk, but at the same time we took a few different approaches."
Collins is planning appearances at the NAMM convention Jan. 12-16 in Anaheim and on Feb. 28 at the private Hard Rock Funk Legends show in New York City, but he also hopes to tour behind "Tha Funk Capitol of the World" this year.
"The next project is to try to work that out," he says. "(The show) would have to be based around this album, not based around what I've done in the past...All these (guests) are up for it, so it's a matter of scheduling...maybe get one or two people to show up at certain gigs. That would be amazing. I'm into challenge. I'm into change and doing things differently. This would be something different for me."
The full track listing for "The Funk Capitol of the World" includes:
1. "Intro"
2. "Hip Hop @ Funk U" (ft. Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, & Chuck D)
3. "Mirrors Tell Lies (ft. Jimi Hendrix)
4. "JB-Still the Man" (ft. Rev. Al Sharpton)
5. "Freedumb" (ft. Dr. Cornel West)
6. "After These Messages" (ft. Samuel L. Jackson)
7. "Kool Whip" (ft. Phil Ade & iCandice)
8. "The Real Deal" (ft. Sheila E. & iCandice)
9. "Don't Take My Funk" (ft. Catfish Collins & Bobby Womack)
10. "If Looks Could Kill" (ft. Bela Fleck, Zionplanet-10, & Dennis Chambers)
11. "Minds Under Construction" (ft. Buckethead & (Z-Class))
12. "Siento Bombo" (ft. Olvido Ruiz & Ouiwey)
13. "Garry Shider Tribute" (ft. George Clinton & Linda Shider)
14. "Stars Have No Names (They Just Shine)" (ft. Nick Arnold & Chrissy Dunn)
15. "Chocolate Caramel Angel" (ft. Faith Daniels, Ronnie Racket, & Casper)
16. "Yummy, I Got the Munchies" (ft. Musiq Soulchild, Razzberry Hershey & Tom Joyner)
