Deep funk is a subgenre of
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
music which features a "hard, lean" sound and emphasis on groove,
improvisation
Improvisation is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. Improvisation in the performing arts is a very spontaneous performance without specific or scripted preparation. The skills of impr ...
, and musicianship over traditional songwriting.
The term is also used to describe rare funk recordings sought out by collectors and DJs.
Artists such as
James Brown
James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...
and
the Meters were basic reference points for the style.
Deep funk later saw increased popularity due to
hip hop producers seeking out new material to sample, as well as in the British
rare groove
Rare groove is music that is very hard to source or relatively obscure. Rare groove is primarily associated with funk, R&B and jazz funk, but is also connected to subgenres including jazz rock, reggae, Latin jazz, soul, rock music, northern soul ...
and
Northern soul scenes.
Though most deep funk was originally released on
45s, modern releases by labels such as Goldmine, BBE, and
Stones Throw, as well as DJ
Keb Darge
Keb Darge (born 1957[dirty interviews archives ...](_blank)
's compilations of deep funk, have helped usher the style into the CD age.
History
It got its name after DJ
Keb Darge
Keb Darge (born 1957[dirty interviews archives ...](_blank)
's "Legendary Deep Funk"
DJ night, held at Madame Jojo's nightclub in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
's
Soho
Soho is an area of the City of Westminster, part of the West End of London. Originally a fashionable district for the aristocracy, it has been one of the main entertainment districts in the capital since the 19th century.
The area was develop ...
district. The night started originally with Snowboy, Keb Darge and Greg Belson as the DJs for the club session.
The focus of the scene is collecting and DJing rare
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
45s of the deep funk genre, most usually released originally by local funk groups and artists in the USA throughout the 1960s and 1970s that usually stayed in their local home bases, only playing nearby clubs and other venues, and releasing their music on small local and regional record labels at the time in the form of 7" 45 rpm singles in quite small quantities (usually about 1000–5000 copies or fewer), hence their extreme rarity and high collectible value. Most of these records have quite high re-sale values due to their scarcity, with some selling for upwards of four to five figures.
See also
*
Northern soul
*
Rare groove
Rare groove is music that is very hard to source or relatively obscure. Rare groove is primarily associated with funk, R&B and jazz funk, but is also connected to subgenres including jazz rock, reggae, Latin jazz, soul, rock music, northern soul ...
References
{{Funkmusic
Funk genres