''His Majesty King Funk'' is a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

album recorded in 1965 by

Grant Green Grant Green (June 6, 1935 – January 31, 1979) was an American jazz guitarist and composer. Green has been called one of the "most sampled guitarists." Biography Grant Green was born on June 6, 1935, in St. Louis, Missouri, to John and ...

. It features Green with tenor saxophonist

Harold Vick Harold Vick (April 3, 1936 – November 13, 1987) was an American jazz saxophonist and flautist. Biography Harold Vick was born on April 3, 1936, in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. At the age of 13, he was given a clarinet by his uncle, Prince Rob ...

, organist Larry Young, drummer Ben Dixon and percussionist

Candido Candido is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Candido Amantini (1914–1992), Italian Roman Catholic priest * Candido Camero, known simply as "Candido" (1921–2020), Cuban percussionist * Candido J ...

Reception

The

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 ...

review by Michael Erlewine awarded the album 3 stars and stated “This is

soul-jazz Soul jazz or funky jazz is a subgenre of jazz that incorporates strong influences from hard bop, blues, soul, gospel and rhythm and blues. Soul jazz is often characterized by organ trios featuring the Hammond organ and small combos including sax ...

with a deep

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station ...

. ''His Majesty King Funk'' is the last of five albums Green recorded with Young. Produced by Creed Taylor, it is the only album Green did for Verve and perhaps his last real jazz album before several years of inactivity, after which he became somewhat more commercial in his approach”. John Heidt wrote about this album at

Vintage Guitar magazine ''Vintage Guitar'' is an American magazine that focuses on vintage and classic guitars, amplifiers, effects, and related equipment, as well as notable guitarists from all genres and eras. The publication's feature stories and monthly columns co ...

: “Green’s ''His Majesty King Funk'' is well-named. With five cuts of soul-drenched jazz, it’s easy to see why he’s the darling of the

acid-jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul, and hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1980s with the rare groove ...

movement. He had an earthiness to his playing not found in lots of other jazz guitarists, and this set, with Larry Young on organ lets that shine through”.

Track listing

#"The Selma March" (Grant Green) - 8:26 #"

Willow Weep for Me "Willow Weep for Me" is a popular song composed in 1932 by Ann Ronell, who also wrote the lyrics. The song form is AABA, written in time,Zimmers, Tighe, E. (2009). ''Tin Pan Alley Girl: A Biography of Ann Ronell''. McFarland. pp. 19-22. alth ...

" (

Ann Ronell Ann Ronell (née Rosenblatt; December 25, 1905 – December 25, 1993) was an American composer and lyricist. She was best known for the standards " Willow Weep for Me" (1932) and "Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf" (1933). Early life Ronell was bo ...

) - 10:01 #"The Cantaloupe Woman" ( Ben Dixon) - 4:55 #"

That Lucky Old Sun "That Lucky Old Sun (Just Rolls Around Heaven All Day)" is a 1949 popular song with music by Beasley Smith and words by Haven Gillespie. Background Like "Ol' Man River", its lyrics contrast the toil and intense hardship of the singer's life ...

" (

Haven Gillespie James Lamont Gillespie (February 6, 1888 – March 14, 1975), known under the pen name Haven Gillespie, was an American Tin Pan Alley composer and lyricist. He was the writer of " You Go to My Head", "Honey", "By the Sycamore Tree", " That Luc ...

Beasley Smith John Beasley Smith (September 27, 1901 – May 14, 1968) was an American composer and big band musician. " That Lucky Old Sun" (1949) one of his better known works, was covered by many well-known artists. He often worked with Haven Gillespie and t ...

) - 5:20 #"Daddy Grapes" (Robert Graham) - 4:35

Personnel

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (whi ...

flute The flute is a member of a family of musical instruments in the woodwind group. Like all woodwinds, flutes are aerophones, producing sound with a vibrating column of air. Flutes produce sound when the player's air flows across an opening. In th ...

* Larry Young -

Hammond B-3 organ The Hammond organ is an electric organ invented by Laurens Hammond and John M. Hanert, first manufactured in 1935. Multiple models have been produced, most of which use sliding drawbars to vary sounds. Until 1975, sound was created from rotat ...

* Ben Dixon -

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

Candido Camero Candido is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name * Candido Amantini (1914–1992), Italian Roman Catholic priest * Candido Camero, known simply as "Candido" (1921–2020), Cuban percussionist * Candido ...

bongos Bongos (Spanish language, Spanish: ''bongó'') are an Afro-Cubans, Afro-Cuban percussion instrument consisting of a pair of small open bottomed hand drums of different sizes. The pair consists of the larger ''hembra'' () and the smaller ''macho'' ...

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are stave (wood), staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (drum), quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), an ...

References

External links

* 1965 albums Grant Green albums Albums produced by Creed Taylor Verve Records albums Albums recorded at Van Gelder Studio {{1960s-jazz-album-stub