Welcome, one and all, to Funkytown. Taking you through 20 years’ worth of funk music — from The Isley Brothers’ “It’s Your Thing” to The Whispers’ “Rock Steady” — Big Gigantic will be your tour guide today.
But first, a few words about your hosts. Made up of saxophonist Dominic Lalli and drummer Jeremy Salken, Big Gigantic’s band members got their start performing in jazz and funk groups before teaming up to produce electronic hip-hop and dance music as a pair. From there, they became essential players in the 2010s-era EDM inception — but with a twist.
Instead of copying and pasting the time period’s trending blend of 808s and edgy synths, Big Gigantic added a unique layer of, that’s right, funk. It was only made possible, however, by doing something that was completely revolutionary for electronic music at the time: playing live instruments.
Rather than following suit and simply playing their beats using a set of equipment onstage, the duo committed to showcasing Lalli’s saxophone skills and Salken’s drumming prowess in real time at their performances. And as more and more people from places outside of their home state of Colorado started turning up to their concerts, they knew they’d done something right.
“Funk wasn’t cool until the last few years,” Salken told Billboard of Big Gigantic’s innovation. “Now it’s cool to play an instrument, whereas there was a period of time where these kids didn’t even know instruments existed. It was all electronic. Now, through electronic music, instruments have been brought back in. It’s a cycle for sure.”
At this point, the guys behind Big Gigantic are bona fide funk experts, which is why Billboard Dance asked them for their expert list of the genre’s 30 best songs ever. Keep reading to see their picks but proceed with caution: it’s about to get funky.
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Isaac Hayes – “Theme from ‘Shaft'”
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for two weeks beginning Nov. 20, 1971
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Wild Cherry – “Play That Funky Music”
Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for three weeks beginning Sept. 18, 1976
Listen here.
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Lyn Collins – “Think (About It)”
Hot 100 peak: No. 66 for two weeks beginning Sept. 30, 1972
Listen here.
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The Isley Brothers – “It’s Your Thing”
Hot 100 peak: No. 2 for one week: May 3, 1969
Listen here.
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War – “Low Rider”
Hot 100 peak: No. 7 for two weeks beginning Nov. 29, 1975
Listen here.
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Marvin Gaye – “Got To Give It Up - Pt. 1”
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for one week: June 25, 1977
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James Brown – “Papa's Got A Brand New Bag - Part I”
Hot 100 peak: No. 8 for two weeks beginning Sept. 4, 1965
Listen here.
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Funkadelic – “One Nation Under A Groove (Part 1)”
Hot 100 peak: No. 28 for two weeks beginning Nov. 18, 1978
Listen here.
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Herbie Hancock – “Chameleon”
Hot 100 peak: No. 42 for one week: May 25, 1974
Listen here.
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Carl Carlton – “She's A Bad Mama Jama (She's Built, She's Stacked)”
Hot 100 peak: No. 22 for two weeks beginning Oct. 24, 1981
Listen here.
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Stevie Wonder – “Higher Ground”
Image Credit: Echoes/Redferns Hot 100 peak: No. 4 for one week: Oct. 13, 1973
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The Meters – “Cissy Strut”
Hot 100 peak: No. 23 for one week: June 7, 1969
Listen here.
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Sly & the Family Stone –"Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin"
Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for two weeks beginning Feb. 14, 1970
Listen here.
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James Brown – “Get Up (I Feel Like Being A) Sex Machine (Part 1)”
Hot 100 peak: No. 15 for two weeks beginning Aug. 8, 1970
Listen here.
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Parliament – “Flash Light”
Hot 100 peak: No. 16 for two weeks beginning April 22, 1978
Listen here.
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Lipps, Inc. – “Funkytown”
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for four weeks beginning May 31, 1980
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Rufus feat. Chaka Khan – “Tell Me Something Good”
Hot 100 peak: No. 3 for three weeks beginning Aug. 24, 1974
Listen here.
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The Whispers – “Rock Steady”
Hot 100 peak: No. 7 for one week: Aug. 29, 1987
Listen here.
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Kool & The Gang – “Jungle Boogie”
Hot 100 peak: No. 4 for one week: March 9, 1974
Listen here.
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Michael Jackson – “Don’t Stop 'Til You Get Enough”
Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for one week: Oct. 13, 1979
Listen here.
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Earth, Wind & Fire – “Shining Star”
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for one week: May 24, 1975
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Kool & The Gang – “Get Down On It”
Hot 100 peak: No. 10 for two weeks beginning May 22, 1982
Listen here.
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Stevie Wonder – “Superstition”
Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for one week: Jan. 27, 1973
Listen here.
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Commodores – “Brick House”
Hot 100 peak: No. 5 for one week: Nov. 5, 1977
Listen here.
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Cameo – “Word Up”
Image Credit: Courtesy Photo Hot 100 peak: No. 6 for three weeks beginning Nov. 22, 1986
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Mtume – “Juicy Fruit”
Hot 100 peak: No. 45 for one week: Aug. 6, 1983
Listen here.
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Average White Band – “Pick Up the Pieces”
Hot 100 peak: No. 1 for one week: Feb. 22, 1975
Listen here.
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Rick James – “Super Freak (Part I)”
Hot 100 peak: No. 16 for two weeks beginning Oct. 24, 1981
Listen here.
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Parliament – “Tear the Roof Off the Sucker (Give Up the Funk)”
Image Credit: Michael Ochs Archives/GI Hot 100 peak: No. 15 for two weeks beginning July 31, 1976
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Zapp – “More Bounce to the Ounce Part I"
Hot 100 peak: No. 86 for one week: Nov. 1, 1980
Listen here.