"(Not Just) Knee Deep" is a song by the American funk band

Funkadelic Funkadelic was an American funk rock band formed in Plainfield, New Jersey in 1968 and active until 1982. As one of the two flagship groups of George Clinton's P-Funk collective, they helped pioneer the funk music culture of the 1970s.John, ...

, written by George Clinton. The song was released as a single for their album '' Uncle Jam Wants You'' (1979). The song is widely regarded as a

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 ...

classic, peaking at No. 77 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and topping the US R&B charts in 1979. An edited version of the song, appearing as Side A on the single release, reached number one on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' Black Singles chart.

Composition

The song was written by George Clinton (credited on some releases as "George Clinton, Jr."); the recording was arranged by Walter "Junie" Morrison and produced by Clinton under the alias "Dr. Funkenstein". The Funkadelic version is sung by Clinton and several other group members, including Philippé Wynne, who was a former lead singer of the rhythm and blues group, The Spinners, which he left two years earlier. The lyrics tell of a "girl" who "was a freak of the week" and the man who was dancing with her. He was unimpressed by the Jerk, the

Monkey Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes. Thus monkeys, in that sense, co ...

, the Chicken, and the Moose, but was turned on by the Freak.

Personnel

*Lead vocals: George Clinton,

Garry Shider Garry Marshall Shider (July 24, 1953 – June 16, 2010) was an American musician and guitarist. He was musical director of the P-Funk All-Stars for much of their history. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, with fifteen ...

, Walter Morrison,

Jessica Cleaves Jessica Marguerite Cleaves (December 10, 1948 – May 2, 2014) was an American singer and songwriter who was the lead singer of the Friends of Distinction, Earth, Wind & Fire, Parliament Funkadelic, and Raw Silk. Early life Jessica Cleaves was ...

, Philippé Wynne *Lead guitar:

Michael Hampton Michael Hampton (born November 15, 1956) is an American funk/rock guitarist. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Career Hampton was born in Cleveland, Ohio, ...

, Walter "Junie" Morrison *Keyboards/Synth Bass : Walter "Junie" Morrison *Drums:

William "Bootsy" Collins William Earl "Bootsy" Collins (born October 26, 1951) is an American bass guitarist, singer, and songwriter. Rising to prominence with James Brown in the early 1970s before joining the Parliament-Funkadelic collective, Collins established himse ...

*Percussion: Larry Fratangelo *Background vocals: Larry Heckstall, Amuka, Sheila Horne, Ron Ford, Jeanette McGruder, Dawn Silva, Mike Payne, Greg Thomas, Ray Davis,

Mallia Franklin Rosalind Mallia Franklin (March 1, 1952 – February 5, 2010), also known as The Queen Of Funk, was a vocalist of the American funk band Parliament-Funkadelic. She introduced friends George Clinton and Bootsy Collins in 1971, and brought ex- Oh ...

, Lige Curry, James Wesley Jackson, Greg Boyer, Jerome Rogers, Linda Shider

Sampled in other music

The song has been heavily sampled by many artists.

Hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

group

De La Soul De La Soul ( ) is an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the village of Amityville on Long Island, New York (state), New York in 1988. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, eccentric lyrics, and contributions to the evoluti ...

sampled the intro to the song in their hit " Me Myself and I", which reached #34 on the Billboard Pop Charts and #1 on the R&B Charts. The song was also notably sampled in

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, alongside fellow new school hip ho ...

's "Nitro",

Everlast Erik Francis Schrody (born August 18, 1969), known by his stage names Everlast and Whitey Ford, is an American Rapping, rapper, Singing, singer, and songwriter who was the Lead vocalist, frontman for Hip hop music, hip hop group House of Pain. ...

's "Never Missin A Beat", Tone Lōc's " Funky Cold Medina",

MC Hammer Stanley Kirk Burrell (born March 30, 1962), better known by his stage name MC Hammer (or simply Hammer), is an American rapper known for hit songs such as "U Can't Touch This", "2 Legit 2 Quit", and "Pumps and a Bump", flashy dance movements, e ...

Deion Sanders Deion Luwynn Sanders Sr. (born August 9, 1967) is an American American football, football coach with the Colorado Buffaloes football, Colorado Buffaloes. Sanders is also a former professional football and baseball player, having played in the N ...

' "Straight to My Feet", the rap group Mass 187's "Swang Your Hips",

Tha Dogg Pound Tha Dogg Pound is an American hip-hop duo composed of West Coast rappers Kurupt and Daz Dillinger. They were among the first acts to sign to Death Row Records in 1992. Kurupt and Daz went on to release solo albums starting in 1998; they left th ...

's unreleased track "Can't C Us" (later remixed as

2pac Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

's "Can't C Me"),

Geto Boys Geto Boys (originally spelled Ghetto Boys) were an American hip hop group originally formed in Houston, Texas. They saw commercial success in the 1990s with the lineup consisting of Bushwick Bill, Scarface and Willie D. The group became best ...

' "Homie Don't Play That", X Clan's "Funkin' Lesson",

Bobby Brown Robert Barisford Brown Sr. (born February 5, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and dancer. Alongside frequent collaborator Teddy Riley, he is recognized as a pioneer of new jack swing: a fusion of hip-hop and Contemporary R&B, R ...

's " Get Away", and

Jessie J Jessica Ellen Cornish (born 27 March 1988), known professionally as Jessie J, is an English singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, she began her career on stage, aged 11, with a role in the West End musical '' Whistle Down the Wind ...

's "Seal Me with a Kiss".

The Black Eyed Peas The Black Eyed Peas are an American musical group formed in Los Angeles in 1995, composed of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap and Taboo (rapper), Taboo. Fergie (singer), Fergie was a member during the height of their popularity in the 2000s, and ...

also used the beat behind it to remix their hit single " Shut Up", although George Clinton sued the band over copyright infringement, claiming that his signature was forged on the release forms clearing the use of the song.

EPMD EPMD is an American hip hop duo from Brentwood, New York. The duo's name is an initialism for "Erick and Parrish Making Dollars", referring to its members: emcees Erick Sermon ("E" a.k.a. E Double) and Parrish Smith ("PMD" a.k.a. Parrish Mi ...

sampled it in their song "Gold Digger", and

Digital Underground Digital Underground is an American alternative hip hop group from Oakland, California. Its lineup grows with each album and tour. Digital Underground's leader and mainstay was Gregory "Shock G" Jacobs (also known as Humpty Hump). Shock G forme ...

used it in two of their songs, " Kiss You Back" and "Bran Nu Swetta". Rapper

2Pac Tupac Amaru Shakur (; born Lesane Parish Crooks; June 16, 1971 – September 13, 1996), also known by his stage names 2Pac and Makaveli, was an American rapper and actor, regarded as one of the greatest and most influential rappers of all tim ...

sampled the song for his "Intro/Bomb First (My Second Reply)". In 1997,

Vanessa Williams Vanessa Lynn Williams (born March 18, 1963) is an American singer, actress, model, producer and dancer. She gained recognition as the first Black woman to win the Miss America title when she was crowned Miss America 1984. She would later Vanes ...

sampled "Knee Deep" for her song "

Happiness Happiness is a complex and multifaceted emotion that encompasses a range of positive feelings, from contentment to intense joy. It is often associated with positive life experiences, such as achieving goals, spending time with loved ones, ...

". Dr. Dre's song, " Fuck wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebratin')" is based on "Knee Deep". The South Korean girl band

Mamamoo Mamamoo (; commonly stylized in all caps) is a South Korean girl group formed and managed by RBW (company), RBW. The group is composed of four members: Solar (singer), Solar, Moonbyul, Wheein, and Hwasa. Known for their strong live vocals, Harm ...

song "Um Oh Ah Yeh" from their third mini-album

Pink Funky ''Pink Funky'' is the third extended play by South Korean girl group Mamamoo. It was released by RBW on June 19, 2015 and distributed by CJ E&M Music. It contains six songs, including the singles "Ahh Oop!" (a collaboration with Esna) and "Um Oh ...

was influenced by it.

Appearances in other media

*Featured in the 1979 episode of

Diff'rent Strokes ''Diff'rent Strokes'' is an American television sitcom, which originally aired on NBC from November 3, 1978, to May 4, 1985, and on ABC from September 27, 1985, to March 7, 1986. The series stars Gary Coleman and Todd Bridges as Arnold and ...

"The Rivals" (Season 2; Episode 10) *Frequently played by

Paul Shaffer Paul Allen Wood Shaffer (born November 28, 1949) is a Canadian musician, actor, and comedian who served as David Letterman's musical director, bandleader, and sidekick on ''Late Night with David Letterman'' (1982–1993) and ''Late Show with D ...

and The World's Most Dangerous Band as bumper music on episodes of ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...

'' (1982-1993). The song was the basis of an extended sketch, aired on 20 October 1983, in which Letterman, Shaffer and Larry "Bud" Melman argued about who played the guitar solo on the original recording. Melman proves that it was Michael "Kidd Funkadelic" Hampton—then robs Dave and Paul at gunpoint. *In the 1997

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation, commonly known as Paramount Pictures or simply Paramount, is an American film production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the flagship namesake subsidiary of Paramount ...

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

film ''

Good Burger ''Good Burger'' is a 1997 American teen comedy film directed by Brian Robbins, written by Dan Schneider with Kevin Kopelow and Heath Seifert, and starring Kenan Thompson, Kel Mitchell, and Abe Vigoda. The film is a spin-off of the "Good B ...

'' during the

insane asylum The lunatic asylum, insane asylum or mental asylum was an institution where people with mental illness were confined. It was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. Modern psychiatric hospitals evolved from and eventually replace ...

scene, George Clinton cameos as one of the mental patients who complains about the boring music on the radio, and asks Ed, played by

Kel Mitchell Kel Johari Rice Mitchell (born August 25, 1978) is an American actor, comedian, rapper, singer, and TV host. He was an original cast member of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series '' All That'' for its first five seasons (1994–1999), where he ...

, to change the station. Ed finds a station playing this song, and the patients subsequently dance to it. *Featured in the 2001 movie ''

The Wash The Wash is a shallow natural rectangular bay and multiple estuary on the east coast of England in the United Kingdom. It is an inlet of the North Sea and is the largest multiple estuary system in the UK, as well as being the largest natural ba ...

''. *Featured in the 2003 video game '' True Crime: Streets of LA''. *Performed by George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars on the FOX television series ''

New York Undercover ''New York Undercover'' is an American police drama that aired on the Fox television network from September 8, 1994, to February 11, 1999. The series starred Malik Yoba as Detective J.C. Williams and Michael DeLorenzo as Detective Eddie Torre ...

'' in 1995. *Performed by George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars on "

" on June 25, 1991. *Performed by an animated version of George Clinton (played by himself) in

The Cleveland Show ''The Cleveland Show'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane, Richard Appel, and Mike Henry (voice actor), Mike Henry for the Fox Broadcasting Company. A Spin-off (media), spin-off of ''Family Guy'', and the second television ...

episode " When a Man (or a Freight Train) Loves His Cookie." *Featured in the 2015

N.W.A N.W.A (an abbreviation for Niggaz Wit Attitudes) was an American hip-hop group formed in Compton, California in 1987. Among the earliest and most significant figures of the gangsta rap subgenre, the group is widely considered one of the great ...

biopic ''

Straight Outta Compton ''Straight Outta Compton'' is the debut studio album by American hip-hop group N.W.A, released on January 25, 1989, through Priority Records, Priority and Ruthless Records. It was Record producer, produced by N.W.A members Dr. Dre, DJ Yella, a ...

''.

References

External links

* Song Reviewat

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Not Just Knee Deep Funkadelic songs 1979 singles Songs written by George Clinton (funk musician) 1979 songs Songs about dancing Warner Records singles