The Soul Train – The Funk Brothers

Detroit, Michigan, 1961.

The music world is still gripped by Elvis Presley and that Rock-N-Roll fever. The Beatles haven’t even become the Quarrymen yet, and Stevie Wonder is 11 years old and yet to be unleashed on the world.

Yet in a small residential suburb of Detroit, something was stirring.

In a place called Studio A aka The Snakepit.  Joe Hunter – a renowned pianist (influenced by such diversity as Rachmaninov and Nat King Cole) was the band leader of The Funk Brothers.  A band not many people may have heard of, but whose signature sound is on some of music’s most well-known, lasting and endearing sounds. Indeed, their music was heard on more Number 1 hits than Elvis, The Beatles, The Beach Boys and The Rolling Stones combined!

The Snakepit was the name given to the basement studio at 2648 West Grand Boulevard, Detroit, aka the home and HQ of Motown Records (and its subsidiary labels). A 24/7 operation very much in the spirit of Detroit’s famous auto factories (hence the name Motown – a portmanteau of Motor Town).

Like all good musical ensembles, there were roles, Like bass, lead and rhythm guitar, drums, percussion, brass and woodwind, and of course keyboards.
So what was so different about The Funk Brothers that made so many hits, for so many artists?

Virtuosos, together.

In James Jamerson, one of the finest exponents of the bass guitar the world has ever heard. Joined and driven forward later by Bob Babbitt.

In William “Benny/Papa Zita” Benjamin a driving force on the drums the likes of which no one had ever heard before. He literally defined the 4-4 beat that became Motown – and Soul and Funk music’s – signature support structure. In other recordings, Richard “Pistol” Allen and Uriel Jones picked up the sticks in a seamless, constant beat-making symphony.

In Joe Hunter and then Earl Van Dyke a pianist and a bandleader that drove this group on.

In Robert White and Joe Messina, the guitar “licks” that lifted the boom and bass into melody and catchy riffs,

In Jack Ashford and Eddie “Bongo” Brown – percussionists who would redefine bongos, tambourine, xylophone and even the triangle!

Saxophone in particular captured the Motown sound thanks to Norris Patterson, Mike Terry and Eli Fontaine.

And yet all the attention was on Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Contours, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Junior Walker % The All-Stars, The Four Tops, Mary Wells, Jimmy Ruffin, Martha & The Vandellas and later Gladys Knight & The Pips and The Jackson 5

As you read out these artists in your mind you’ll remember “Shop Around”; “Do You Love Me?”, “Stop, In The Name Of Love”, “Uptight”, “I Heard It Through The Grapevine”, “My Girl”, “Shotgun”, “Reach Out (I’ll Be There”, “My Guy”, “What Becomes Of The Brokenhearted”, “Heatwave”, “It Should Have Been Me” and “I Want You Back” you can hear the guitar licks, bass lines, drum beats, driving sax, tingling tambourine and sweet piano from The Funk Brothers.

Label owner Berry Gordy was both fierce and loyal to this group of talented musicians. Pushing them hard on sound. His quality control was famously strict. He would listen to the final recordings through mono-speakers as if in a car or a kitchen of the average American listener. If it wasn’t 100%, it didn’t go out.

He resisted their attempts to carve out additional work (these studio artists loved to live perform) and would send his team out to make sure there wasn’t any moonlighting in Detroit’s jazz and late-night lounges.

He pushed this group to the limits. A production line, song after song. Performance after performance. It was tiring but the results were incredible and shaped much of the music to follow and to this day. Arguably Mark Ronson’s use of The Dap-Kings on Amy Winehouse’s hits was inspired by Phil Spector’s Wall of Sound but more so, The Funk Brothers’ tightness, drive and harmony.

The Motortown Revue – a series of mid-60s live performances by the stable’s artists – saw the Funk Brothers on stage, out front and playing their hearts out backing vocal groups and solo performers and even crafting some of their own hits (often under the guise Earl Van Dyke & the Soul Brothers (apparently Gordy thought the word Funk was a bit crass for the record-buying public of America).

And then, in 2002, came their moment to step out into the light. Standing In The Shadows of Motown (a play on The Four Tops’ iconic “Standing In The Shadows Of Love”) was their movie, tour and celebration. As – sadly – some of the founding members had passed away it reunited Jack Ashford (percussion); Bob Babbitt (bass); Joe Hunter (keyboards); Uriel Jones (drums); Joe Messina (guitar); Eddie Willis (guitar); Richard “Pistol” Allen (drums); Benny “Papa Zita” Benjamin (drums); Eddie “Bongo” Brown (percussion); Johnny Griffith (keyboards); Earl Van Dyke (keyboards); and Robert White (guitar) who all reformed and were led by the late Gerald Levert, Me’shell Ndegeocello, Joan Osborne, Ben Harper, Bootsy Collins, Chaka Khan, and Montell Jordan singing to much of the glorious back-catalogue that had their signature.

Standing In The Shadows Of Motown featured archival footage and still photos, dramatised re-enactments, and narration that really brought to life how powerful this collection of supremely talented musicians was. And gave the world a sense that despite being uncredited to any of those hits (until Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” album listed their contributions) THIS was the force behind that Motown sound.

This 2-minute trailer gives you all you need to seek out that great movie and soundtrack:

So even if you’ve never heard of the Funk Brothers, you’ve heard the Funk Brothers. On pretty much every Motown song from 1959 to 1972. And like much of life and work, the unsung heroes, the founding platform and the hard-working people, making the world just that little bit sweeter. Or in this case, funkier.

Respect, admiration and appreciation to that group who were – sorry James Brown – the hardest working people in show business.

Perry Timms
4 June 2022.

Perry is the Founder and Chief Energy Officer of People and Transformational HR Ltd (PTHR) and is a Chartered Member of the CIPD, a fellow of the RSA and Visiting Professor at 4x Business Schools in the UK. Perry is a 3x published author; a 2x TEDx Speaker and 3x Member of HR’s Most Influential Thinkers List.

Perry’s musical heritage is in music of black origin and particularly 1960s American R&B and British Soul & Funk from the 1980s-date.