by PenultimateManStanding » Fri 14 Dec 2007, 21:07:58
In the spirit of the OP, The Funk Brothers were the studio musicians to back up all the Motown greats. Everybody knew of May Wells, Smoky Robinson, The Supremes and the other great Motown acts back in the late 50s, 60s and 70s but few ever heard of these guys:
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'T')he Funk Brothers was the nickname given to a group of Detroit, Michigan, session musicians who performed on the backing tracks to most Motown Records recordings from 1959 until 1972, when the company moved to Los Angeles. The Funk Brothers played on many major Motown hits such as "My Guy", "I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "Baby Love", "Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours", "Papa Was a Rollin' Stone", "The Tears of a Clown", and "(Love is Like a) Heat Wave".
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'E')arly members included bandleader Joe Hunter and Earl Van Dyke (piano); James Jamerson (bass guitar); William "Benny" Benjamin and Richard "Pistol" Allen (drums); Robert White, Eddie Willis, and Joe Messina (guitar); Jack Ashford (tambourine, percussion, vibes, marimba); Jack Brokensha (vibes, marimba); and Eddie "Bongo" Brown (percussion). Hunter left in 1964, replaced on keyboards by Johnny Griffith and as bandleader by Van Dyke. Around the same time Uriel Jones joined the band as a third drummer.
In 1967, guitarists Dennis Coffey and Melvin "Wah-Wah Watson" Ragin, who introduced the wah-wah pedal sound that defined Motown's psychedelic soul records, joined the band. Benny Benjamin died the next year, and Bob Babbitt began to replace James Jamerson on many recording dates. The Funk Brothers were a racially integrated band. Most members were black; Messina, Brokensha, Babbitt, and Coffey were white.