Parliament-Funkadelic singer Clarence ‘Fuzzy’ Haskins dies at 81 : NPR

Clarence Eugene “Fuzzy” Haskins, an unique member of the influential musical collective Parliament-Funkadelic, has died. He was 81.

Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame

disguise caption

toggle caption

Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame

Clarence Eugene “Fuzzy” Haskins, an unique member of the influential musical collective Parliament-Funkadelic, has died. He was 81.

Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame

Clarence Eugene “Fuzzy” Haskins, an unique member of the influential musical collective Parliament-Funkadelic, has died. He was 81.

The Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame, which inducted Haskins together with different core Parliament-Funkadelic members in 1997, confirmed the demise to NPR in a assertion.

Born in Elkins, W.V., in 1941, Haskins began out singing within the Nineteen Fifties and ’60s in New Jersey within the doo-wop vocal quintet The Parliaments.

Named after the American cigarette model and led by charismatic musician and producer George Clinton, the group did not obtain nice success till they scored successful in 1967 with “I Wanna Testify.”

After their small Detroit report label dissolved, Clinton teamed The Parliaments up with a gaggle referred to as Funkadelic. Finally often called Parliament-Funkadelic or P-Funk, the musical collective made a huge impact on the Seventies R&B and funk scenes.

In line with his biography on Clinton’s web site, “He was identified, throughout reside P-Funk exhibits, to don skin-tight bodysuits and gyrate in opposition to the microphone pole as he whipped the gang right into a frenzy, particularly after they carried out ‘Standing on the Verge of Getting It On.’ “

“Parliament-Funkadelic pushed boundaries additional and additional on traditional albums like Mothership Connection and Maggot Mind, and set a futuristic tempo for Black music,” stated Rock & Roll Corridor of Fame spokesperson Daybreak Wayt. “However Clarence ‘Fuzzy’ Haskins saved issues linked to their road nook concord roots.”

Beginning within the mid-Seventies Haskins developed a solo profession, however continued to carry out and report with varied P-Funk members on and off over time.

P-Funk member Bootsy Collins paid tribute to Haskins on social media. “We misplaced his frequency at this time,” wrote the musician on Twitter. “We are going to miss you my good friend, bandmate and soul brother.”