Fred Wesley

In the 1990s, former James Brown sidemen Fred Wesley and Maceo Parker concentrated on instrumental jazz. But back in the late '70s they were both part of George Clinton's empire and focused on P-Funk. Having been in Brown's employ, trombonist Wesley and saxman Parker were obvious choices for Clinton's various projects. The Godfather of Soul was a major influence on Clinton and gave Wesley and Parker a first-class education in funk and soul that served them well when they hooked up with Clinton. In 1977, Clinton and Bootsy Collins produced A Blow for Me, A Toot for You, the debut album by Fred Wesley & the Horny Horns -- a group that boasted Wesley on trombone, Parker on tenor and alto sax, and Rick Gardner and Richard "Kush" Griffith on trumpet. Clinton and Collins did a lot of the writing, and not surprisingly, much of this vinyl LP is pure P-Funk. The album gets off to a gritty start with a remake of Parliament's "Up for the Down Stroke," and the Parliament influence is equally strong on "Between Two Sheets." As for the instrumentals, "Four Play" blends funk and jazz, while Wesley's moody "Peace Fugue" isn't unlike something you would have heard on a CTI recording in the 1970s. "Peace Fugue," in fact, is the least Clinton-sounding thing on the LP. A Blow for Me, A Toot for You isn't in a class with Parliament's The Mothership Connection, Collins' Ahh...The Name is Bootsy, Baby! or Funkadelic's One Nation Under a Groove, but it's a generally likable, if uneven, record that die-hard P-Funk collectors should be aware of. [This edition of the album adds two bonus remixes (of the title track and "Four Play") and a brief audio interview with George Clinton.] ~ Alex Henderson, All Music Guide