"Funkentelechy" is a

song A song is a musical composition intended to be performed by the human voice. This is often done at distinct and fixed pitches (melodies) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs contain various forms, such as those including the repetiti ...

by the funk band

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. ...

. It is the fourth track on the group's

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democrati ...

album '' Funkentelechy Vs. the Placebo Syndrome'' and was 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 ...

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd government). * January 6 – ...

. Part 1 peaked at number 27 on the U.S. R&B Singles chart. The song's title is a play on the philosophical concept of

entelechy In philosophy, potentiality and actuality are a pair of closely connected principles which Aristotle used to analyze Motion (physics), motion, Four causes, causality, Aristotelian ethics, ethics, and physiology in his ''Aristotelian physics, Ph ...

Trivia

* The phrase "

Urge Overkill Urge Overkill is an American alternative rock band, formed in Chicago, Illinois, United States, consisting of Nathan Kaatrud, who took the stage name Nash Kato (vocals/guitar), and Eddie "King" Roeser (vocals/guitar/bass guitar). They are widely ...

" from George Clinton's radio announcer-style patter on the song later became the name of an

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band. * One of Clinton's quips during the song, "Like a woodpecker with a headache," resembles the mood indication on a

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a musica ...

piece by the eccentric composer

Erik Satie Eric Alfred Leslie Satie (, ; ; 17 May 18661 July 1925), who signed his name Erik Satie after 1884, was a French composer and pianist. He was the son of a French father and a British mother. He studied at the Paris Conservatoire, but was an un ...

: "Like a nightingale with a toothache." *This song was sampled by

Ice Cube An ice cube is a small piece of ice, which is typically rectangular as viewed from above and trapezoidal as viewed from the side. Ice cubes are products of mechanical refrigeration and are usually produced to cool beverages. They may be p ...

for his song "Doing Dumb Shit" on his album ''

Death Certificate A death certificate is either a legal document issued by a medical practitioner which states when a person died, or a document issued by a government civil registration office, that declares the date, location and cause of a person's death, as ...

''. * The repeated phrase "You deserve a break today - Have it your way" is a reference to McDonald's "You Deserve a Break Today" and Burger King's "Have it Your Way" ad campaigns of the time. * The repeated references to "The Pleasure Principle" are a nod to Sigmund Freud's Pleasure Principle theory in psychology.

Charts

Weekly charts

References

Parliament (band) songs 1978 singles Songs written by George Clinton (funk musician) Casablanca Records singles Songs written by Bootsy Collins 1977 songs {{1970s-R&B-song-stub