The Electric Spanking of War Babies
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Title of album: The Electric Spanking of War Babies
Artist: Funkadelic
Release date: 1981
Record label: Warner Brothers
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Electricspanking.jpg
Image:Electricspanking.jpg
This album is the final LP of Funkadelic's Golden Era. It features many relative newcomers to the P Funk mob, though it is still very popular among Funkadelic fans. At one point, Clinton planned on this being a double album, but the idea was squashed by Warner Brothers. The title is an allusion to the Vietnam War.
Track Listing:
- The Electric Spanking of War Babies (Bob Bishop, George Clinton, Walter Morrison)
- Electro-Cuties (J. Ali, Clinton, Ron Ford)
- Funk Gets Stronger (Part I) (Clinton, Michael Hampton)
- Brettino's Bounce (Larry Fratangelo)
- Funk Gets Stronger (Killer Millimeter Longer Version) (Clinton, Sylvester Stewart)
- She Loves You (John Lennon, Paul McCartney)
- Shockwave (Ron Dunbar, DeWayne McKnight)
- Oh, I (Clinton, Rodney Curtis, Garry Shider)
- Icka Prick (Clinton, Shider)
Critical response:
- ”Electric Spanking is an above-average party album"
- the Motherpage (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&uid=SEARCH&sql=A28520r8ac48x)
"Icka Prick" may have been a response to the flak that Funkadelic and LP cover artist Pedro Bell were getting from Warner Bros. and certain women's groups concerning the album cover art, hence the lyric: "You ain't seen obscene yet/We gonna be nasty this year". The lyrics are intentionally filthy.
Other external links:
- the Motherpage (http://www.duke.edu/~tmc/motherpage/albums_funkadelic/alb-espank.html)
Title of song: The Electric Spanking of War Babies
Artist: Funkadelic
Title of album: The Electric Spanking of War Babies
Year of first release: 1981
Trivia: The title is George Clinton's characterization of the Vietnam War.
Description of music:
Complete tabs at [external site with complete tabs]
Songwriters: Bob Bishop, George Clinton, Walter Morrison
Memorable Lyrics:
- "I, at the early age of seventeen/Was adopted by aliens"
- "They have long since programmed me/To return with this message/When you learn to dance/You won't forget it"
- "It's a bummer to find/That your mind/And your behind/Gets exploded in time"
- "You've seen the bomb (electric)/Vietnam (spanking of)/LSD (war babies)/You've seen the ?/You've seen DNA/Watch them go to the moon/Live on TV"
Complete lyrics at the Motherpage (http://www.duke.edu/~tmc/motherpage/lyrics_funkadelic/lyr-espank.html#lyr-s-espank)
The song begins with a silly, spoken intro where the speaker claims to have been adopted by aliens. The aliens gave him a message, which is apparently an urgent need to get Funky. The song then turns obliquely political, and the song's titular reference to the Vietnam War is referred to again.
Personnel:
- Vocals: George Clinton
- Bass, Rhythm Guitar, Keyboards, Drums: Walter Morrison
- Lead Guitar: Michael Hampton
Critical response: