Funky Friday – Episode 32: The Junk Yard
- Noah McDonough
- Sep 6
- 3 min read
Updated: Sep 12
🎷🚛 Jazz + Funk = JUNK — and this week, the Funky Tow Truck is pulling straight into The Junk Yard.
Airdate: 9.12.25 - 9am Pacific Time
🔗 Quick Links:
🎧 Listen live on Renegade Radio → Here
🎶 Catch the Replay → Here
📖 Full Episode Recaps + Setlists → Here
🎟 RSVP to Episodes → Here
📂 Renegade Radio Site → Here
Welcome to Episode 32: The Junk Yard
Where jazz scraps meet funk steel, sparks fly. Episode 32 digs into the Junk Yard, a place where horns, grooves, and grit are welded into something brand new. Funk doesn’t just survive here, it thrives, rising from the piles of brass and bass to build a machine built for movement.
We open with Quincy Jones’ Street Beater, better known as the Sanford & Son theme, a perfect junkyard anthem that sets the tone. From there, the set rolls through horn-heavy grooves, jazz-funk crossovers, and raw funk classics that sound like they were pulled straight from the scrap heap and polished into gold.
This week’s episode also carries two special dedications:
A moment of reflection for September 11th, with Miles Davis’ It Never Entered My Mind.
A tribute to my parents’ 60th wedding anniversary, with Stevie Wonder’s As.
We close the show with a fan request from one of Funky Friday’s earliest and most loyal listeners — Earth, Wind & Fire’s Fantasy, the perfect celebratory sendoff for an episode built on salvage and swagger.
🎧 Track List – Funky Friday 32: The Junk Yard
Quincy Jones – Street Beater (1973)
The Bar-Kays – Soul Finger (1967)
The J.B.’s – Pass the Peas (1972)
Herbie Hancock – Chameleon (1973)
Miles Davis – It Never Entered My Mind (1956)
Roy Ayers – Funk in the Hole (1976)
Stevie Wonder – As (1976)
The Meters – People Say (1974)
Eddie Harris – Listen Here (1968)
Donald Byrd – Places & Spaces (1975)
Earth, Wind & Fire – Fantasy (1977)
🛠️ Why The Junk Yard?
Because jazz and funk collide here — Jazz + Funk = JUNK. The Junk Yard is where brass, bass, and groove get stripped down, rebuilt, and fired up again. It’s gritty, it’s raw, and it proves that funk can be forged from the scraps.
🔗 Quick Links:
🎧 Listen live on Renegade Radio → Here
🎶 Catch the Replay → Comming Soon
📖 Full Episode Recaps + Setlists → Here
🎟 RSVP to Episode → Here
📂 Renegade Radio Site → Here
Funk Facts
🎺 “It Never Entered My Mind” – Miles Davis (1956) One of Miles’ most haunting ballads, with muted trumpet over delicate piano. Its reflective tone made it the perfect piece to honor September 11.
🎹 “Chameleon” – Herbie Hancock (1973) A cornerstone of jazz-funk, blending improvisation with deep groove. Recorded with his Headhunters band, it became a blueprint for the fusion sound.
🎸 “People Say” – The Meters (1974) New Orleans funk at its finest, driven by George Porter Jr.’s bass and Zigaboo Modeliste’s drumming. Gritty, swampy, and pure Junk Yard funk.
🪘 “Fantasy” – Earth, Wind & Fire (1977) A soaring anthem of hope and imagination, this track was a special request from one of Funky Friday’s most loyal fans — and the perfect closer for this episode.
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