“Doing It to Death” (aka "Gonna Have a Funky Good Time") Pts. 1 & 2 by Fred Wesley & the J.B.’s

This rousing funk classic could be heard blasting out of car stereos everywhere back in 1973, and it had folks setting dance floors ablaze across the U.S. It’s one of the great feel-good party jams of the ‘70s. The Godfather of Soul and his superbad groove battalion the J.B.'s unleash an avalanche of funk on this bumpin’ track. It’s anchored by a wicked bass line and a hot beat. The track also features some killer guitar riffs and a sweet horn arrangement. The J.B.’s bandleader and musical director Fred Wesley delivers a dazzling trombone solo, and horn legend Maceo Parker pulls double duty–serving up an extra-funky alto sax solo that’s followed by an exquisite solo on flute. And Jimmy Nolen accompanies Maceo's flute solo with some smooth Wes Montgomery-style guitar work.

Also, the track has a terrific hook with the catchy chorus, “We’re gonna have a funky good time.” And it boasts one of the baddest buildups to a key change ever put on wax: “I need to get down and order for me to get down, I got to get in D, need to get in D, down D, funky D, stankin’ D.” 

“Doing It to Death” was written and produced by James Brown. It’s the title track from the J.B.’s third studio album, released in 1973 on Brown’s label People Records. The complete nearly 13-minute-long original recording of the track was first issued on the J.B.’s compilation Funky Good Time: The Anthology (1995).

The song topped Billboard’s R&B singles chart and climbed to #22 on Billboard’s Hot 100. It’s the J.B.’s biggest hit and has sold over a million copies. 

“Doing It to Death” has been sampled on 10 songs, including “Cold Blooded” by Common and Eazy-E’s “Eazy Street.” Also, talented dancer/choreographer Moga Almeri created an excellent dance routine to “Doing It To Death.” The video of her and the Beat Turf Tendo Dancers performing the routine currently has 2.6 million views on Youtube.

The personnel for "Doing It to Death" was James Brown (lead vocals), Fred Wesley (trombone, backing vocals), Fred Thomas (bass), Maceo Parker (alto saxophone, flute), John "Jabo" Starks (drums), St. Clair Pinckney (tenor saxophone), Jimmy Nolen (guitar), Darryl "Hasaan" Jamison (trumpet), Hearlon "Cheese" Martin (guitar), Ike Oakley (trumpet), Jerone "Jasaan" Sanford (trumpet) and Eldee Williams (tenor saxophone).

Brown often performed "Doing It to Death" at his concerts, and he never failed to blow the doors off the hinges whenever he performed it.

James Brown and the J.B.'s performing "Doing It to Death" in Zaire in 1974

Moga Almeri and the Beat Turf Tendo Dancers performing a stellar dance routine to "Doing It to Death"

 

 Doing It to Death single and album available at Amazon

Related blog entry: Gimme Some More by the J.B.'s

“I Was Made To Love Her” by Stevie Wonder

This sweet slice of Motown soul was an early Stevie Wonder classic that was released when he was still in his teens in 1967. The 17-year-old wunderkind brings tons of soul and conviction to his sterling vocal performance. His harmonica playing at the intro is also excellent. The song is masterfully arranged and boasts an infectious melody. And James Jamerson takes the song to a whole other level with his brilliant bass work. It’s truly a joy to listen to Jamerson work his groove magic on this track. The smooth, effortless finesse he always brought to his playing was unparalleled. 

Stevie wrote “I Was Made To Love Her” with his mother Lula Mae Hardaway, Motown songwriter/producer Sylvia Moy and Henry Cosby, who also produced the track. Stevie told Rock Around The World newspaper that the song, “kind of speaks of my first love to a girl named Angie, who was a very beautiful woman." He added, "Actually, she was my third girlfriend but my first love. I used to call Angie up and, like, we would talk and say, ‘I love you,’ and we’d talk and we’d both go to sleep on the phone. And this was like from Detroit to California, right? You know, mother said, ‘Boy, what you doing? Get off the phone!”

The song was a massive hit. It rose all the way to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent four non-consecutive weeks atop Billboard’s R&B singles chart. It also performed well on the charts in other parts of the world: The UK (#5), New Zealand (#16), Canada (#5) and Australia (#40).

The personnel for “I Was Made To Love Her” was Stevie Wonder (lead vocals, clavinet, harmonica), James Jamerson (bass), Benny Benjamin (drums), Eddie Willis (guitar) and The Andantes (backing vocals). It was the title track from Stevie Wonder’s album I Was Made To Love Her, released on Motown’s Tamla Records on August 28, 1967. 

The song has been covered by a slew of major artists, including Whitney Houston, The Beach Boys, Chaka Khan, Tom Jones, Boyz II Men, The Jackson 5 and Sister Sledge. Also, Stevie played drums on The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s instrumental cover of the song. It was recorded sometime in 1967. It’s included on The Jimi Hendrix Experience: The BBC Sessions, released on June 2, 1998.

Additionally, “I Was Made To Love Her” has been sampled on five songs, according to WhoSampled.com. The song has been featured on the soundtracks for the films Dead Presidents (1995), Bobby (2006) and The Secret Life of Pets 2 (2019).

This track was released during Motown’s golden era when artists from the label were a constant presence on the U.S. pop and R&B charts top 10. Many of the label’s releases during that period went on to become standards, including this one.

Stevie performing "I Was Made To Love Her" on The Merv Griffin Show in 1967

"I Was Made To Love Her" available at Amazon

Related blog entries:

"If You Really Love Me" by Stevie Wonder

Stevie Wonder Explores Love, Heartbreak and Spirituality on Fulfillingness' First Finale