aaamusic | On 01, Feb 2011

Celebrated American funk bassist, singer and songwriter Bootsy Collins will release his new studio album “Tha Funk Capital of the World” in the UK on Monday 25th April 2011.

Released by Mascot Records, “Tha Funk Capital of the World” is a collective masterpiece so full of grooves, grit, guts and glory that Collins refers to as “the best thing I’ve ever done – a whole new chapter in the life of Bootsy.” “Funk Capital” is Bootsy’s first new studio album of original funk material since 2002’s “Play With Bootsy.” The album artwork features a dazzling 3D lenticular sleeve.

The new album features guest performances from a staggering A-list of real-life heroes including the scholar Dr. Cornell West, activist Rev. Al Sharpton, the actor Samuel L. Jackson, rappers Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg and Chuck D, P-Funkers George Clinton and Bernie Worrell, percussionist Sheila E, R&B legend Bobby Womack and guitarists Buckethead and Catfish Collins; the latter being Bootsy’s brother and longtime six-string foil, who passed away during the disc’s making.

Rising to prominence playing bass guitar for James Brown in the late 1960s, and with Parliament Funkadelic in the 1970s, Collins’ thunderous, infectious bass guitar and humourous vocals established him as one of the leading pioneers of funk. In 1997 Collins, along with 15 other members of Parliament Funkadelic, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

“James Brown is the biggest influence on this whole album,” says Bootsy. “When I joined his band, he took me under his wing and taught me about the business, but the most important thing he taught me about was the ‘one’ – the downbeat that always drove his music and is the engine for all great funk. What’s funny is that I was a guitar player before I joined Mr. Brown’s band, and I wanted to play bass like Jimi Hendrix. Eventually, that’s exactly what I did, adding effects and freeing up the instrument to go anywhere I imagined it could go. That’s how Bootsy became Bootsy.”