The Gap Band

My most vivid memory of The Gap Band is from 1983.



I'm not sure where that footage is from but believe it was a performance for Dick Clark's American Bandstand or New Year's Rocking Eve. They were performing on a stage during a sunny day and the monstrous funk of You Dropped a Bomb on Me surely must have added some degrees to the thermometer.



If asked what is the first thing thought of when Charlie Wilson comes to mind, I would say it was the cowboy hat. Long before Sadat X, The Fugees, Kool Moe Dee or Juice Crew Posse played cowboys, The Gap Band's Charlie Wilson symbolized the black cowboy even more so than Charley Pride.



After many listens of The Best of Gap Band, I would later realize Charlie Wilson is one of funk's best vocalists. The fact would be reinforced while watching Wilson perform on a gospel television program during my CMJ 2011 trip to New York.

Similar to Rick James, the more synthesized funk of The Gap Band suits my needs as I bridge the gap between my soulful roots and present-day dabbling in electro/RPM.

The Gap Band 3 was a vinyl purchase for the beautiful Yearning For Your Love.



I was happy Snoop Dogg & Justin Timberlake teamed with Charlie Wilson for Signs.



I heard one song from the record below and it not only inspired this post but found its way onto my want list.