Parliament: Chocolate City LP

Inspired by Motown‘s assembly line of sound, George Clinton gradually put together a collective of over 50 musicians and recorded the ensemble during the '70s both as Parliament and Funkadelic. While Funkadelic pursued band-format psychedelic rock, Parliament engaged in a funk free-for-all, blending influences from the godfathers (James Brown and Sly Stone) with freaky costumes and themes inspired by '60s acid culture and science fiction. Clinton began introducing a lot of elements of Funkadelic into the Parliament fold at the time of Chocolate City's 1975 release yet the tracks are still short and very tight, with a focused approach to both funk and male and female lyrical interaction. Chocolate City is anchored by the sublime title cut, a singular political number that mirrors the album's cover art. One of the most unified albums that Clinton ever recorded!