Parliament’s ‘Up For The Down Stroke’ & ‘Chocolate City’ Reissued On Vinyl

These albums marked the return of bassist and co-songwriter Bootsy Collins after a two-year hiatus, cementing his pivotal creative role in the group.

Parliament’s ‘Up For The Down Stroke’ & ‘Chocolate City’ Reissued On Vinyl

These albums marked the return of bassist and co-songwriter Bootsy Collins after a two-year hiatus, cementing his pivotal creative role in the group.

Urban Legends/UMe has reissued two classic Parliament albums on black vinyl and in limited special vinyl editions: Chocolate City (released June 21) and Up For The Down Stroke(released today). Up For The Down Stroke is also available in a limited translucent red vinyl edition, whileChocolate City is also available in a limited picture disc vinyl edition. To celebrate the new releases and to honor Parliament’s iconic funk influence, Urban Legends has collaborated with Feedfeed on a new co-branded Chocolate City-inspired recipe video co-hosted by acclaimed chef Roblé Ali and cookbook author/blogger/artist Jerrelle Guy.

Purchase Up For The Down Stroke and Chocolate City:

In July 1974, the George Clinton-led funk group Parliament released their second studio album, Up For The Down Stroke. The album marked the return of bassist and co-songwriter Bootsy Collins after a two-year hiatus, cementing his pivotal creative role in the group. Released as a single, the title track reached No. 10 onBillboard’s R&B Singles chart, while the acclaimed album peaked at No. 17 on the R&B Albums chart.

In April 1975, Parliament released their third album, Chocolate City, maintaining the classic, Clinton-led lineup with Collins, Bernie Worrell, and Eddie Hazel. For Chocolate City, the group was also joined by the Brecker Brothers (Michael and Randy Brecker), vocalist Glenn Goins, and bassist Prakash John. Propelled by Parliament’s signature up-tempo funk, and featuring vocal harmonies by doo-wop group The Parliaments, the “tribute to Washington, D.C.” (A.K.A. “Chocolate City”) earned rave reviews and reached No. 18 onBillboard’s R&B Albums chart.

To honor Parliament and Chocolate City, Roblé Ali and Jerrelle Guy met up at Feedfeed’s Brooklyn studio to film their creation of some stunning Chocolate City-inspired desserts. In the engaging video, Roble and Guy explore some of the legendary album’s complex themes, including the African diaspora and chocolate cities, the album’s influence on current music and their own music tastes, as well as music’s role in elevating the cooking/dining experience. Joining the conversation with Roblé Ali and Jerrelle Guy was Colleen Vincent of Black Food Folks and The James Beard Foundation, bringing her own vantage point of growing up in Brooklyn, her own chocolate city.

Bass Magazine   By: Bass Magazine