The Simplest Truths

U.S. Music with Funkadelic - This Broken Heart

Gary Shider.

Maybe you don’t know of Funkadelic’s Toronto connection. That would be Gary Shider, who, if you have any familiarity with Parliament Funkadelic’s famously bonkers live show, you’d recognize as the dude in the diaper.

While temporarily living in Toronto (because you could just do that in the early 70s, I guess; criss-crossing borders), George Clinton heard chatter chatter chatter about a phenomenal band led by another American, called US (United Soul). Clinton would go on to produce their only album, which was confusingly credited to US Music With Funkadelic, knotting it up with the rest of the confusion of names Clinton & crew were working under.

It’s a great, although short, album.

But the opener is a standout, both for the arrangement written by William Franklin and for the soaring vocal performance by Gary Shider. The double-tracked vocals are both gruff and sweet, and sweep in unexpected directions, and men, if you’ve ever upset that women and you know you’re wrong, but you’re sorry and you know she’s put up with so much of your shit, then this is your song.

Feel it.

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Not into this song? Stick around for the next one, it may be what you didn’t know you needed! Remember, there are only two genres of music here at SERMONS!: good and bad, and I have too much to do to waste time on bad music.