The Parliaments were an early doo-wop singing group from Plainfield, New Jersey. They were a quintet formed in the back room of a barbershop comprised of:
* George Clinton
* Stingray Davis
* Fuzzy Haskins
* Calvin Simon
* Grady Thomas
The group was based on Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers, but quickly created a unique sound, including, most notably, very bizarre lyrics. While Clinton, the leader of the group, made weekly trips to Detroit to produce for such groups as The Pets and Roy Handy, the Parliaments switched labels repeatedly, releasing several EPs, including Poor Willy/Party Boys (APT), Lonely Island/Cry For Flip (Golden World) and Heart Trouble/That Was My Girl (Golden World) without success. In 1967, the Parliaments released I Wanna Testify for Revilot, and song went to #3 R&B; and #20 Pop on the Billboard Music Charts. This was followed by a dispute with Revilot in 1968, and Clinton's renaming of the group as Funkadelic (which was more in keeping with the musical direction of the group, funk, and integrated the popular genre of psychedelic music), composed of the backing band for the Parliaments, including Billy Bass Nelson. When Revilot declared bankruptcy, the Parliaments were sold to Atlantic Records, and Clinton abandoned doo-wop to avoid working for Atlantic. Funkadelic, and its soon created sister group, Parliament, soon became the legendary creators of funk.
The Parliaments - Testify! - The Best of the Early Years
01 - Parliaments, The - (I Wanna) Testify - 1967
02 - Parliaments, The - I Can Feel The Ice Melting - 1967
03 - Parliaments, The - All Your Goodies Are Gone (vocal) - 1967
04 - Parliaments, The - Don't Be Sore At Me - 1967
05 - Parliaments, The - Little Man - 1968
06 - Parliaments, The - The Goose That Laid The Golden Egg - 1968
07 - Parliaments, The - Look At What I Almost Missed - 1968
08 - Parliaments, The - What You Been Growing - 1968
09 - Parliaments, The - Good Old Music - 1968
10 - Parliaments, The - Time - 1968
11 - Parliaments, The - A New Day Begins - 1969
12 - Parliaments, The - I'll Wait (vocal) - 1969
13 - Parliaments, The - I'll Wait (instrumental) - 1969
14 - Parliaments, The - All Your Goodies Are Gone (instrumental) - 1967
15 - Parliaments, The - Baby, I Owe You Something (instrumental) - 1967
16 - Parliaments, The - Let's Make It Last (by the Fellows) - 1967
17 - Parliaments, The - She's Always There (by the Fellows) - 1967
18 - Parliaments, The - Heart Trouble (unissued demo)
19 - Parliaments, The - That Was My Girl (unissued demo)
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