Clinton, George,
1941- , American singer, songwriter, producer, and
bandleader, b. Kannapolis, N.C. Although born in North Carolina, Clinton was
raised in Plainfield, N.J., where he operated a small barber shop that
became a hangout for local musicians in the late ‘50s-early
‘60s. His first group, the Parliaments, performed in a doowop style,
but—under the influence of James Brown—took a more
funk-oriented approach in the later ‘60s-early ‘70s,
performing both under its original name and the new name, Funkadelic, and
sometimes under the combined name of P-Funk. The joint groups had four
number one R&B hits and three platinum albums, and placed over 40 songs
on the R&B charts. His best known hit was “Atomic Dog”
(1982). As a producer, Clinton worked with groups like the Red Hot Chili
Peppers and saxophonist Bootsy Collins (who was also a member of the P-Funk
collective). His ‘70s-‘80s era recordings were highly
influential on the original hip hop and rap artists, and continue to be
widely sampled. He was given a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2019
Grammys.
See his autobiography (2014; with B. Greenman).
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