 What becomes crystal clear in trailing the
history of Bootsy Collins is that while his steps seldom came from design, they carried
him towards a vision that was indelibly locked in his mind. From his earliest experiences
in bar bands, Bootsy's mission was to simply take his music to the people and have fun
doing it.Born (1951 10 26) and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, William and his guitar-slinging older brother, Phelps, played music together from childhood. By 1969, their teenage Pacemakers (featuring Phelps "Catfish" Collins (his brother) (guitar), Frankie "Kash" Waddy (drums), and Philippe Wynne) were appearing in bans and clubs that legally shouldn't even have allowed them through the doors. Luckily, Cincinnati was still a bit of a music town, its heritage supported almost
entirely by the Having just endured the break-up of The Capps, another local band Brown had nurtured for several years, Hobgood viewed the young combo as a handy replacement. They quickly received a wide variety of recording assignments, backing up artists as diverse as gospel diva Kay Robinson and jazz crooner Anthur Prysock. While grateful for the experience, Bootsy and his gang were more impressed with their access to James Brown's own sessions, where such veterans as Bobby Byrd, Fred Wesley and sax star Maceo Parker took them under their wings. Brown reacted by renaming them The New Dapps and putting them on club tours backing Hank Ballard and Marva Whitney. But nothing could have prepared them for what happened next. |
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stubborn survival of the legendary King Records and its only remaining star, James Brown.
The presence of James Brown Productions offered hope of discovery to aspiring Queen City
talent and, sure enough, The Pacemakers caught the eye of Brown's production manager, Bud
Hobgood.