George Clinton returns to Youngstown

Staff report

The world lost two of its greatest funksters this year when Prince and Bernie Worrell died.

But George Clinton, the Godfather of Funk, is still going strong.

Clinton and his legendary band Parliament-Funkadelic will return to Youngstown Sunday night for a concert at Stambaugh Auditorium. Opening act will be Youngstown’s reigning funk champs, Geo C and Tha Storm.

Clinton and Parliament-Funkadelic last came to Youngstown in 2012 for a concert at Covelli Centre.

At age 75, Clinton & Co. are still touring the globe, delivering funk-filled concerts that draw on the catalog of his long career.

The same should be expected at Sunday night’s concert. Fans should expect to hear hit songs that include “Flashlight” and “Give Up the Funk.”

As for Prince, Geo C and The Storm will include a segment of funky stuff by the Purple One during their set. Prince died suddenly in April at age 57.

Clinton was definitely one of Prince’s primary musical influences. The two met in the late ’70s and became friends. Prince even signed Clinton to his Paisley Park Records label in the late ’90s and released his “The Cinderella Theory” album.

Clinton also appeared in Prince’s 1990 film “Graffiti Bridge,” and when he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, Prince was the one who inducted him.

In an interview shortly after Prince’s death, Clinton told Billboard that the artist was “the epitome” of a rock star.

“As an artist, I think it’s becoming more clear to everybody now just how much volume of work and stuff [Prince] has done, all the stuff and how fast he was doing stuff and all the stuff that I know has never come out.,” Clinton told the website. “Coming to grips with all that stuff he was doing and knowing how he worked and, wow, people are just now beginning to see what that was all about.”

Clinton also suffered the loss of his long-time band mate Bernie Worrell, who died of cancer in June at age 72.

In a statement Clinton released in Billboard, he said “Bernie’s influence and contribution — not just to funk but also rock and hip hop — will forever be felt. Bernie was a close and personal friend and this is a time of sadness for me personally. P-Funk stands with his family and fans alike in mourning this loss. ...The world is a little bit darker and a little less funky without Bernie in it.”