RIP Bernie Worrell [[1944-2016)

[timmyfunk]

Confirmed by his manager today.
This hurts to the bone.

[soulster]

And you won't see or hear anything about it on the lamestream media.

[timmyfunk]

Not TV. Yet. But the APP and damn near every major news site has.

[marv2]

Just as when I lost my uncle last week. I knew this was coming but it is still very sad. Bernie was really one of the best. The joy I got from his music I cannot describe. My condolences to his family, friends and the others fans like myself. Rest in peace Bernie and God Bless.

Marv

[theboyfromxtown]

RIP Benny Worrell

[Jerry Oz]

Bernie Worrell Dead: Parliament-Funkadelic Cofounder Loses Battle to Lung Cancer at 72
June 24, 2016 @ 8:07 PM

By Joyce Chen

Bernie Worrell, one of the cofounders of the band Parliament-Funkadelic, died of lung cancer on Friday, June 24. He was 72.

The legendary musician revealed he was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer in January. Despite the diagnosis, he remained in the public eye, taking part in a massive benefit concert last April with the likes of George Clinton, Meryl Streep, Questlove and David Byrne performing.

Earlier this month, however, his wife, Judie Worrell, said in a statement to Twitter that his health was quickly deteriorating, noting that “Bernie is now heading ‘Home.’”

In a post to his Facebook page, his wife was announced that the beloved pianist died midday Friday.

“At 11:54, June 24, 2016, Bernie transitioned Home to The Great Spirit,” the post reads. “Rest in peace, my love — you definitely made the world a better place. Till we meet again, vaya con Dios.”

Worrell, who was also known fondly as “The Wizard of Woo,” showed signs of musical genius early on, studying the piano at age 3 and writing his first concerto by the age of 8.

He would later go on to study classical piano at Juilliard and the New England Conservatory of Music, only to use his talents to further the musical style known as funk. [[According to Variety, Dr. Dre would go on to sample Worrell’s music heavily in his own hits.)

Along with fellow New Jersey native George Clinton, Worrell and several others founded Parliament-Funkadelic, fusing Clinton’s doo wop group The Parliaments with their backing band, The Funkadelics.

Worrell recorded his first solo album in 1978, All the Woo in the World, produced by Clinton, and he would later also be a key collaborator with the Talking Heads.

In 1997, Worrell was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Parliament-Funkadelic. He performed with the Talking Heads during the group’s 2002 induction.

He is survived by his wife, Judie.

http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-...cancer-w211256

[splanky]

I will miss him so much...Goodbye Bernie.....

[Motown Eddie]

I'm so sorry to hear that Bernie Worrell has died. Here's a list of 10 Essential Tracks that Bernie played on from Rolling Stone.com.

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/li...rdist-20160624

[Motown Eddie]

RIP Benny Worrell

Bernie Worrell's clavinet playing on Chairmen Of The Board's classic "Finder Keepers" is truly one of the high points of his career.

[timmyfunk]

Backstage at BB Kings in NYC. 2013.

[timmyfunk]

All the Woo, All The Time

[marv2]

Great pictures Timmy. Thanks for sharing.

[StuBass1]

RIP Bernie...sort of an end of an era...and certainly no disrespect intended as regards to this thread, however, I was doing some fact finding on Bernie for personal reasons [[as a former Detroit based musician at the time P-Funk was getting the mothership off the ground)...and was astonished to learn that benefits were being held to help Bernie pay for his medical treatment. Obviously, at his age, he would have been eligible for Medicare which would have paid 80% of his doctor/hospital bills, and for as little as $100-150 per month, could have purchased a supplement to pay practically all the remaining 20%. I realize that P-Funk didn't pull down Earth, Wind, & Fire money...but with Bernie's performing, songwriting royalties, etc with P-Funks litany of popular recordings and appearances...I'm amazed that efforts to raise $75,000 were being held or that George, Bootsy and the rest of his cohorts couldn't just come up with the 75 grand he needed to raise???...

[phil]

I realize that P-Funk didn't pull down Earth, Wind, & Fire money...but with Bernie's performing, songwriting royalties, etc with P-Funks litany of popular recordings and appearances..

About money due here is a sad/bitter letter from his widow Judie :

Hold on, funkateers, all is NOT what you've been told. George has been yakking for years; now Dr. G. Bernard Worrell, Jr. speaks: http://wooniversaltruths.bernieworrell.com/

[splanky]

About money due here is a sad/bitter letter from his widow Judie :

Hold on, funkateers, all is NOT what you've been told. George has been yakking for years; now Dr. G. Bernard Worrell, Jr. speaks: http://wooniversaltruths.bernieworrell.com/

I grew up with the music of Parliament Funkadelic as a major part of my musical life. No other music outside of Jazz, particularly John Coltrane, had so great an impact on me. I've
heard suggestions of these stories over the years but mostly rants from Billy Bass Nelson
and I guess I'm as guilty as anyone for basically ignoring them. Bernie opened up that can
of worms publicly before his passing. As I've said before George Clinton was incredibly
lucky to have so many talented musicians to support him, it's a shame he apparently never
truly appreciated them enough to give them their due. It's too late for me to boycott P-funk
product. More than 40 years too late. And I won't toss my collection or stop listening to it.
But I have to say George, .....why?.......

[StuBass1]

About money due here is a sad/bitter letter from his widow Judie :

Hold on, funkateers, all is NOT what you've been told. George has been yakking for years; now Dr. G. Bernard Worrell, Jr. speaks: http://wooniversaltruths.bernieworrell.com/

Messed up...of course at some point...sooner or later...everyone gets called in to pay the "Ultimate Royalty"...

[ollie]

Confirmed by his manager today.
This hurts to the bone.

It does hurt deeply. May he rest in peace, and may his family find comfort and joy during these troubled days.
His legacy will live on forever.

[timmyfunk]

When the smoke thoroughly clears, it is Armen Boladian who is the main villian in all of this.

[marv2]

When the smoke thoroughly clears, it is Armen Boladian who is the main villian in all of this.

Armen from the record company?

[StuBass1]

So many versions and stories...Obviously, the record company guys are usually the first to get called onto the carpet in these kind of situations and given the blame...Like Chaka Khan called it...the "demonic" side of the business...That said...others blame George, and certainly it's quite conceivable that George did pilfer some writing credits...to the point that it's been said that Bernie and George would appear on stage together, and Bernie wouldn't even look in Georges direction for the entire performance...Of course George has recently written about what he calls his drug addiction, so I suppose it's ok to pass along stories of George at recording sessions going around pouring out cocaine for all the musicians before the session started...When it was time for those musicians to get paid...George always remembered how much coke he had laid out for them and deducted it from their session fee...LOL...All that said...when the tour bus pulled into town, many of those musicians who were bad mouthing George showed up to get on stage for the gig...and I can't remember too many stories of George actually ever firing anyone...Who knows what really happened behind the scenes...however with sound financial advice, lots of common sense, a little less partying, and insisting on getting their due...many of those guys should have been sitting a lot prettier today than they actually are in most cases...Even George...

[daddyacey]

Such is the Music Business , which is fucked up. Individuals who have contributed important things to the music go uncredited and unpaid because thats the way it is. I have seen it first hand ,through my uncle who worked with Mtume and did arrangements on tracks by Flack ,Mills and Hyman. Hit tracks. I saw my first cousin Keith "Cowboy" Wiggins signed up as a minor by Sylvia Robinson in the rap group The Furious 5 and Leroy Burgess of Black Ivory ,contribute revolutionary contributions to music , that you hear in the "bastard" Pop and R&B, Hip Hop of today. Jose Rodriguez , a Nuroyrican from the Johnson Projects in N.Y, who mastered hundreds of recordings that are sonic classics and with Tom Moulton created the 12" disc ,I used to DJ with , died with only the credits on some album covers and his trademark "JR" you will find on the dry grooves on the original pressings. Prince passed and all of a sudden everybody who only knows his commercial output is a Prince expert and they don't know shit about Prince. It's a thorn in the perception of the music, They need to put music back in the education system . Get the shit right. Those of us who KNOW the truth need to spread the TRUTH and get the story right. Forget the storybook bullshit that is in the mass media. Give the credit to the people in the background. With the sampling it's only got worse . Allen Gumbs lives down the block from me and we talk about this all the time. The music is the important thing ,but those that create it always get fucked over by those that sell it. The labels,lawyers ,managers and publishers. There's no place in the creative process to worry about royalties and such when you are trying to feed your family and make a living. Art is art and money is money and that's fucked up , but it is what it is then and now.

[kenneth]

And you won't see or hear anything about it on the lamestream media.

It seems you are correct. I was surprised that even after Prince's death, when they related how many contributions he'd made to others' musical careers, George Clinton's name was never mentioned, yet The Bangles [[!) "Manic Monday" was cited over and over.