Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine
Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine (also known as Sex Machine ) is a funk track recorded by James Brown in 1970. The song was released as a single on King Records , the album of the same name from the same year contains an eleven-minute version of the piece. It was written by James Brown, Bobby Byrd, and Ron Lenoff.
The song was one of the first that Brown recorded with his new band, the "JB's". A difference to his earlier recordings such as Papa's Got a Brand New Bag and Cold Sweat is the equalization of the brass sections. Instead, the song focuses on the haunting bass and guitar riffs from Bootsy and Catfish Collins and the drums from Jabo Starks.
According to his bassist Bootsy Collins, James Brown got the song idea on the tour bus, Brown sketched the notes on a paper bag. The piece was then recorded directly in the studio and without rehearsals. The focus is on the alternating vocals (" Call and Response ") between James Brown and Bobby Byrd, who is also named as co-author.
In the original, the piece begins with a short spoken dialogue between Brown and the members of his band. Brown recorded another version for his Sex Machine Today album in 1975.
The Rolling Stone magazine chose the song at number 326 of the top 500 songs of all time .
Musician of the original recording
- James Brown - vocals, piano
- Bobby Byrd - organ, vocals
- Clayton "Chicken" Gunnells - Trumpet
- Darryl "Hassan" Jamison - trumpet
- Robert McCollough - tenor saxophone
- Phelps Collins - guitar
- William "Bootsy" Collins - bass
- John Starks - drums
US chart positions
| Charts (1970) | position |
|---|---|
| Billboard Hot 100 | 15th |
| Billboard Hot R&B Charts | 2 |
Cover versions
The Flying Lizards recorded a cover version of the piece in 1984, which appeared on the Top Ten album. In 1986 the Japanese musician Haruomi Hosone and his band recorded a vocal and instrumental version. Brown's longtime saxophonist Maceo Parker also performed on the instrumental version . The rock band Widespread Panic recorded the song for their live album Jackassolatern in 2004 .
literature
- Leeds, Alan M., and Harry Weinger (1991). Star Time: Song by Song. In Star Time (pp. 46–53) [CD liner notes]. London: Polydor Records.
- White, Cliff (1991). Discography. In Star Time (pp. 54–59) [CD liner notes]. London: Polydor Records.
Web links
- Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine at Allmusic (English)
- Get Up I Feel Like Being Like A Sex Machine (Pt. 1 & 2) on YouTube
- List of cover pieces
Individual evidence
- ↑ The bassist Bootsy Collins, 59, about the "Sex Machine", his nickname and his glasses . In: KulturSPIEGEL 9/2011.