Veteran funk bassist Bootsy Collins is gearing up to release a new album called The Power of the One. The guest-filled record is due to drop October 23rd via Bootzilla Records/Sweetwater Studios.
For Collins, who rose to prominence working with James Brown and then Parliament-Funkadelic, this forthcoming solo effort marks his 10th solo overall. It was begun prior to the pandemic, but completed during lockdown at his own Boot-Cave Studios in Cincinnati. The entire record was produced, written, and arranged by Collins himself.
Although quarantined in his own space, the 68-year-old artist was able to assemble long list of special collaborators, some of whom contributed from afar, including Snoop Dogg, fellow James Brown bandmate Christian McBride, bassists Larry Graham and Victor Wooten, and saxophonist Branford Marsalis. Also credited with cameos are Emmaline, Béla Fleck, and renowned author and activist Dr. Cornel West, who considers Collins an “unadulterated genius.”
“Music is always a soother, a healer, and that’s how I want to use this record,” Collins noted in a statement. He spoke further about the significance of the new album’s title,
“The Power of the One is what pulls us through. Everyone has ‘The One’ inside of them. You never know who is using you for guidance, so always be pure and never fake the funk. Everybody’s got a light. Everybody needs to shine. It’s there, we just have to trust and use the guidance that is within us, and know that The One knows your program. It was written inside your heart before you made that mad dash racing to be the first one to the egg! You are perfect in the eyes of The One.”
The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer is previewing the LP with its title track, a guaranteed groovy time. Listen in down below via its video, which boasts studio footage and psychedelic, trippy imagery.
In recent months, Collins linked up with Iggy Pop on a cover of Sly & the Family Stone’s “Family Affair”.