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Donald Dunn

Bob Davis of Soul-Patrol.com: This has been one heck of a week (if you are a F-U-N-K-A-T-E-E-R)

Belita WoodsNote from Nadir: Earlier this week I posted about the passing of bass master Donald “Duck” Dunn of Booker T and the MGs. Well, wouldn’t you know it, before the virtual ink of my blog had dried, we heard that Detroit’s own, P-Funk and Brainstorm vocalist Belita Woods also left us. The very next day we got the news that Chuck Brownthe Godfather of DC Go-Go, made his transition. UPDATED: And right after I posted this, we learned that Donna Summer passed away. What a week!

Our good friend, Bob Davis of Soul-Patrol.com, by virtue of his esteemed role as connector between artists and fans in the worlds of soul and funk, sometimes holds the unenviable position as bearer of bad news. He laments that too often his weekly Soul-Patrol newsletters function as a black music obituary column. As you could expect, this has been a trying week for him in that regard. Yet, in his late night email, he comments on these deaths with his usual eloquence and poise. I can’t say it any better, so we’ll let Bob do the talking.

This has been one heck of a week (if you are a F-U-N-K-A-T-E-E-R)
Originally posted by Bob Davis of Soul-Patrol.com
May 17, 2012

There has certainly been a whole lot going on in my world and the world around me over the past week, that has absolutely nothing to do with music. I won’t bore you all with the details, but I will tell you that it has all been quite good.

All of that good stuff is somewhat tempered by all of the bad stuff that has been happening in the neighborhood of the world that Soul-Patrol lives in.

This has been one of the worst weeks that I can recall. (and the week is not yet even 1/2 over yet)

We lost 3 soldiers this week. FUNK soldiers that is:
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Rest in the Funk – Donald “Duck” Dunn

While Motown bassist, James Jamerson, revolutionized the bass guitar by applying his jazz training to 60s pop music, the great Stax bass god Donald “Duck” Dunn melded gut bucket blues with good old-fashioned southern soul. The result was a rugged blue-collar groove that shines on dozens of timeless recordings.

On May 13, 2012 the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer passed away in his sleep after a hit at the Blue Note in Tokyo. His music, like the two classic cuts below, will live on forever. Rest in the Funk, Duck Dunn.

© Nadir Omowale