"Papa Don't Take No Mess" is 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 m ...

song performed by

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 ...

. An edited version of the song released as a two-part

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

1974 Major events in 1974 include the aftermath of the 1973 oil crisis and the resignation of United States President Richard Nixon following the Watergate scandal. In the Middle East, the aftermath of the 1973 Yom Kippur War determined politics; f ...

was Brown's 17th and final number one R&B hit and peaked at number thirty-one on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. The full-length version, nearly 14 minutes long, appeared on the

double album A double album (or double record) is an audio album that spans two units of the primary medium in which it is sold, typically either records or compact disc. A double album is usually, though not always, released as such because the recording i ...

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

''. Like "

The Payback ''The Payback'' is the 37th studio album by American musician James Brown. The album was released in December 1973, by Polydor Records. It was originally scheduled to become the soundtrack for the blaxploitation film ''Hell Up in Harlem'', but w ...

," "Papa Don't Take No Mess" was originally recorded for a rejected soundtrack to the

blaxploitation Blaxploitation is an ethnic subgenre of the exploitation film that emerged in the United States during the early 1970s. The term, a portmanteau of the words "black" and "exploitation", was coined in August 1972 by Junius Griffin, the president o ...

film '' Hell Up in Harlem''. ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of the three main music industry trade magazines in the United States, along with '' Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 under the name ''Music Vendor'', but in 1964 it was changed to ''Record Wo ...

'' said that the song is "carefully fashioned from disco and pure black leather funk."

Personnel

- lead vocal ''with Fred Wesley and

The J.B.'s The J.B.'s (sometimes punctuated The JB's or The J.B.s) was the name of James Brown's band from 1970 through the early 1980s. On records the band was sometimes billed under alternate names such as Fred Wesley and the JBs, The James Brown Soul T ...

:'' * Fred Wesley - trombone * Ike Oakley - trumpet * Maceo Parker - alto saxophone *

St. Clair Pinckney St. Clair Pinckney (September 17, 1930 – February 1, 1999) was an American saxophonist who performed with James Brown as a member of the James Brown Orchestra and The J.B.'s. He played tenor A tenor is a type of classical male singing vo ...

- tenor saxophone * Jimmy Nolen - guitar * Hearlon "Cheese" Martin - guitar *

Fred Thomas Frederick or Fred Thomas may refer to: Sportspeople *Fred Thomas (manager), Major League Baseball manager of the 1887 Indianapolis Hoosiers *Fred Thomas (third baseman) (1892–1986), Major League Baseball player *Fred Thomas (cornerback) (born 1 ...

- bass *

John "Jabo" Starks John Henry "Jabo" Starks (; October 26, 1937Sources vary as to his year of birth. According to his obituary, published by Mobile Register, Starks was born on October 26, 1937; The New York Times gives 1938 – May 1, 2018), sometimes spelled Jab' ...

- drums * John Morgan or Johnny Griggs - percussionLeeds, Alan, and Harry Weinger (1991). "Star Time: Song by Song". In ''Star Time'' (pp. 46–53)

D booklet D, or d, is the fourth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''dee'' (pronounced ), plural ''dees''. History The ...

New York: PolyGram Records. A piano solo, performed by Brown, is included in the longer edit that appears on the ''Hell'' album.

Covers and samples

Steely Dan Steely Dan is an American rock band founded in 1971 in New York by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Initially the band had a stable lineup, but in 1974, Becker and Fagen retired from live ...

covered this song in the band introduction segment of their "Rarities night" concerts in September 2011. The song, like much of Brown's catalogue, was sampled into many other compositions, most notably in

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

's 1993 hit song " That's the Way Love Goes".

References

External links

*
List of songs that sample "Papa Don't Take No Mess"
James Brown songs 1974 singles Songs written by James Brown Songs written by Fred Wesley Songs written by John "Jabo" Starks 1974 songs Polydor Records singles {{1970s-R&B-song-stub