Well, we're back from a holiday break on the Revolution 21 podcast but, unfortunately, we have another tribute show. This week, we say goodbye to the "Godfather of Soul," James Brown.Brown not only was "the hardest-working man in show business," he also was one of the most innovative. Hell, he was doing funk in 1965.
We lost Brown on Christmas Day. Some present. But we can pray that James Brown's Christmas present was life eternal with his Lord.
One of the best things about the Godfather I've seen is a column by the Boston Globe's Derrick Z. Jackson. Here's a snippet:
Before writing this column, I asked my 16-year-old son if there was an equivalent to James Brown in his generation. He flatly said no. There are a handful of artists who make the uplift of black people the subject of a handful of songs. But self-pride largely is drowned by recordings corrupted by the N-word, misogyny and glorification of violence. Instead of preaching about earning it in schools and the workplace, the symbols of making it are too often gold chains, gold rings and gold teeth.
James Brown once sang, "I got somethin' that makes me wanna shout; I got somethin' that tells me what it's all about. I got soul and I'm superbad!" Even though his soul was troubled, he nourished mine and those of countless black youth. The best tribute we can give him is another musician with the soul to inspire another generation to get what they deserve.
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