Fatback is as much about partying and having fun as about music. Listen to theWicky Wacky, Backstrokin' or Do the bus stop tracks and be honest. Can you resist to have a smile, tap your feet on the rythm and shake your butt on the vibrant grooves ? No, right, you've got the Fatback feeling !
Founded by Bill Curtis, the energetic drummer, and Gerry Thomas, trumpet player, in the early seventies, Fatback must be one of the funk history's best kept secrets. The Fatback Band started on Bill Curtis' privately owned independent label Fatback records, but was transferred to New York's Perception Records in 1972 due to cash problems. The Fatback band was quickly wellknown by funk insiders for the typical funkified crush grooves from Bill Curtis. Often based on a almost minimalistic but raw, deep and heavy kick drum, accompanied by heavy off beat hi-hat ride patterns, the Fatback grooves were slick and infectious. Added to this are cheesy almost humouristic lyrics and party crowd background sounds to accentuate the all over party dancegroove feeling. In Curtis' own words : "My music was party music. I wanted the people to get the feeling of the music as a party. I wanted always to feel like it was recorded live in some place. That's why we have that kind of sound" . Wow, was he right, our hero Bill Curtis !
Fatback produced almost 20 albums from 1972 to 1989. Remarkable was that the band managed to stick to it's image and trademarks through several succesive music styles. From the early seventies jazzfunk, via late seventies disco, to early eighties rap and the more sophisticated eighties funk, one could always easily recognize a Fatback record.

Now, where do you start discovering the Fatback band ? Well here is a series of absolutely essential Fatback tracks, handpicked with love by the Freestyle crew to start with :

Wicky Wacky : 1972 : Absolute infectious and funny party music
Let the drums speak : 1975 : Sure, drummer Bill Curtis in full effect
Bus stop : It's a Fatback party!
Groovy kind of day : 1975 : 200% pure delicate vibrant sunny piano solos on midtempo groove
Spanish Hustle : a Fatback classic hit
King Tim III : 1979 : rumoured to be the first recorded rap song, before Sugarhill Gang made it a trend
Backstrockin' : 1980 : simply slick'n'sleazy
Chillin' out : 1980 : Spacey lazy smokey almost instrumental discofunk
Is this the future : 1983 : Remarkable sophisticated rapfunk with exceptional vocals by Gerry Bledsoe.
Lover undercover : 1985 : The typical Fatback groove drive in a eighties funk sound

Enjoy the exceptional Fatback music, where music is fun and fun is music. Quite remarkable in the context of todays serious inpersonal money driven music business.

(EZ Boy jan '99)