R.I.P. Clyde Stubblefield

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[youtube id=”8vDXrN-90p0″] [youtube id=”Z3xSXc1vy5I”] Clyde Stubblefield, James Brown’s famous percussionist better known as the Funky Drummer passed today at the age of 73 due to kidney failure. Stubblefield started played for Brown in the ’60’s and provided the rhythms for “Sex Machine,” “Cold Sweat” and many other songs. But it is the often-sampled “Funky Drummer” that gave him his nickname because it has been sampled countless times in hip-hop. The Chattanooga, Tennessee native was key to Brown’s style and in the process became his own legend. He released three solo albums and in 2011 performed “Fight The Power” with Chuck D and The Roots on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Stubblefield was respected by music fans, peers and those he influenced including Prince who paid a huge portion of his medical bills when he received treatment for bladder cancer in 2000.

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