P-Funk Co-Founder and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Billy Bass Nelson Dies at 75

William "Billy Bass" Nelson Jr, founding member and original bassist for Parliament-Funkadelic, died on January 31. He was 75. The talented musician was known for his gritty, highly funky bass-playing style. He played bass on Funkadelic's first three albums: Funkadelic (1970), Free Your Mind... and Your Ass Will Follow (1970), and Maggot Brain (1971). These seminal LPs helped define Funkadelic’s dynamic acid-funk sound. Nelson also played bass on Parliament’s groundbreaking first album Osium, released in July 1970. And he played guitar on Parliament’s second album Up for the Down Stroke (1974). In addition to his formidable abilities on the bass and guitar, he was also a skilled songwriter. He cowrote the classic Funkadelic tracks “Super Stupid,” “Hit It and Quit It,” “I Call My Baby Pussycat,” “Music For My Mother,” and “You And Your Folks, Me And My Folks.” Additionally, Nelson coined the name “Funkadelic,” aptly describing the band’s electrifying stew of psychedelic rock, funk, blues, and soul. 

“Billy Bass Nelson was funk before funk had a name,” wrote Bootsy Collins in a social media post. “Respect forever.” In his 2014 autobiography, George Clinton wrote: “Billy set the standard for everything that followed. His Funkadelic work is still among my all-time favourite stuff. He had the Motown flavor with an aggressive rock attitude.” Shortly after Nelson’s death, Clinton wrote “Rest in eternal peace and Funk” on his Facebook page. “He doesn’t always get mentioned first,” said music historian Marcus Johnson. “But without Billy Bass Nelson, the P-Funk sound doesn’t exist.”

The musician was born on January 28, 1951, in Plainfield, New Jersey. As a teen, he worked sweeping floors and cleaning up at the Silk Palace, a Plainfield barbershop owned and operated by George Clinton. At the time, Clinton was a member of the doo-wop vocal group the Parliaments, which consisted of Clarence “Fuzzy” Haskins, Grady Thomas, Raymond Davis, and Calvin Simon. The group scored a big hit with their 1967 single, “(I Wanna) Testify.” It peaked at #3 on Billboard’s R&B singles chart and #20 on the Billboard Hot 100. This significantly increased the Parliaments’ popularity, resulting in them booking many more gigs. Nelson suggested that the group hire a backing rhythm section so they would no longer have to rely on house bands while touring. Clinton was receptive to this idea and recruited Nelson to be part of the then-unnamed backing band. Nelson initially played guitar for the band. He recommended his good friend Eddie Hazel, who was a gifted young guitarist. Hazel was quickly brought on board, with Nelson switching to bass.

Motown bass legend James Jamerson provided bass-playing tips and encouragement to Nelson, who had never played the bass before joining the Parliaments’ backing band. He took to the bass like a duck to water. He was a natural. The band eventually recruited drummer Ramon “Tiki” Fulwood, rhythm guitarist Lucius “Tawl” Ross, and keyboardist Mike Atkins (later replaced by Bernie Worrell). The band backed the Parliaments at all their shows and played on their studio recordings, including the minor hit “Good Old Music." The band's chemistry steadily grew, and they soon became a tight, badass groove outfit. Their sound gradually evolved from soul and doo-wop to powerful guitar-driven acid funk. In 1967, Nelson came up with the band’s name, “Funkadelic,” a merging of “funk” and “psychedelic.” The name stuck as it perfectly described the band’s sound and what they were about. However, it didn’t officially become the band’s name until the following year.

In 1968, the Parliaments and their backing band Funkadelic relocated to Detroit and signed with Westbound Records that same year. Contractural issues with the group’s previous label, Revilot Records, caused Clinton to temporarily lose the rights to the name “The Parliaments.” This necessitated that the entire ensemble–singing group and band–sign to Westbound Records under the name Funkadelic. The band released its self-titled debut album on the label in 1970. Nelson played on this album and Funkadelic’s next two LPs before leaving the band in late 1971 following a financial dispute with Clinton.

In the subsequent years, Nelson recorded or performed with prominent music acts such as the Commodores, Chairmen of the Board, Smokey Robinson, Fishbone, Wilson Pickett, Jermaine Jackson, and Lenny Williams. One of his most notable gigs was playing alongside his former Funkadelic bandmate Eddie Hazel on the Temptations' 1975 R&B chart-topper “Shakey Ground,” which Hazel also cowrote. The two musicians raised the funk level to the stratosphere on this wick cut. Nelson also played bass on the Temptations’ track “Happy For You,” which also topped Billboard’s R&B singles chart. It was the lead single from the Temps’ 1975 album A Song For You, the same album that features “Shakey Ground.”

Nelson also played on solo albums by various P-Funk members, including Bernie Worrell and Ruth Copeland, among others. Nelson briefly rejoined Funkadelic in the studio to play on “Better By The Pound,” a track from the band’s seventh studio album, Let’s Take It To The Stage, released in 1975. And he played on the Funk Mob’s eighth studio album, Tales of Kidd Funkadelic (1976).

In 1993, Nelson released his first and only solo album, Out of the Dark, under the name O.G. Funk. The collection was co-produced by Nelson and Bill Laswell. Its personnel included P-Funk veterans Bernie Worrell, Jerome Brailey, and Gary “Mudbone” Cooper. Nelson rejoined the P-Funk crew permanently in 1994, touring and recording with them. However, they no longer went by Parliament-Funkadelic when Nelson returned to the fold. They had rebranded themselves as George Clinton and the P-Funk All-Stars in 1981. Legal and financial issues led to the dissolution of Parliament-Funkadelic, hence the new name.

Nelson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside 15 other P-Funk members in 1997. The musician has had a significant impact on funk music and bass playing. He has influenced legions of bassists in the genres of soul, funk, rock, R&B, alternative, and hip-hop. Acclaimed bassists such as Norwood Fisher (Fishbone) and Flea (Red Hot Chili Peppers) cite Nelson as a major influence and inspiration, and he’s a venerated figure among funk and soul music lovers and, of course, P-Funk devotees.