Funky Friday – Episode 67: Taurus Sonic

🎧 Quick Links:

🎧 Listen live on KDOG 9 AM Pacific Time→ Here

🎧 Listen live on KCSM HD2 9 PM Pacific Time→ Here (On mobile, scroll down to the KCSM HD2 player)

📆 Add to Calendar — Funky Friday (Weekly):

• 9 AM KDOG

Add to Google Calendar

• 9 PM KCSM HD2

Add to Google Calendar

🎶 Catch the Replay → Comming Soon

📖 Full Episode Recaps + Setlists → Here

📂 Renegade Radio Site → Here

Airdate: 5.15.26 - 9 AM Pacific Time on KDOG & 9 PM Pacific Time on KCSM HD2

Happy Funky Friday, Renegades of Funk!

Funky Friday – Episode 67: Taurus Sonic

Funky Friday Episode 67 moves through pressure systems, resource wars, and economic instability without losing the groove.

Markets shake. Fuel prices rise. Headlines stack on top of each other faster than most people can process them. The world feels increasingly mechanical and unstable at the same time. This episode leans directly into that tension.

“Taurus Sonic” opens with Tower of Power’s “Only So Much Oil in the Ground,” a warning delivered through brass, rhythm, and Bay Area funk precision nearly fifty years before today’s energy anxieties returned to the center of global conversation. The groove arrives first. The message follows close behind.

“For the Love of Money” and “The Bottle” deepen the atmosphere early. Economic pressure settles into the room. The rhythms stay tight while the subject matter grows heavier. These are not protest songs standing outside the culture. They are songs from inside it. Records built during moments of inflation, uncertainty, corruption, and social strain that still feel uncomfortably current.

As the episode develops, the signal widens.

“Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved” pushes momentum back into the bloodstream while “Chocolate City” reframes politics through Parliament’s surreal funk mythology. “Low Rider” cruises through the middle of the set with confidence and survival instinct intact. Movement becomes resistance. Style becomes resilience.

The emotional center of the episode arrives with Marvin Gaye’s “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” and Stevie Wonder’s “Living for the City.” Two records that refuse escapism without ever abandoning musicality. Soul music documenting systems under pressure while still sounding alive, human, and deeply rhythmic.

Near the end of the broadcast, the energy lowers slightly without collapsing.

“Use Me” and “Why Can’t We Live Together” shift the focus toward dependence, exploitation, and isolation inside modern life. The grooves remain minimal and intimate. Human voices moving through uncertainty.

“People Make the World Go Round” closes the episode with reflection rather than resolution.

Because the systems may shake.

But the people still carry the signal forward.

Funky Friday Episode 67 stays grounded in material reality while keeping the groove alive.

Pressure. Rhythm. Survival.

The groove during instability.

Funky Friday – Episode 67: Taurus Sonic

🔥 SETLIST + RENEGADE NOTES

Tower Of Power — “Only So Much Oil In The Ground” (1973)

Personnel: Lenny Williams (vocals), Emilio Castillo (tenor saxophone), Stephen “Doc” Kupka (baritone saxophone), Bruce Conte (guitar), Tower of Power horn section.

Renegade Note: The thesis statement of the episode. Resource anxiety wrapped inside unstoppable Bay Area funk.

The O’Jays — “For the Love of Money” (1973)

Personnel: Eddie Levert, Walter Williams, William Powell (vocals), Anthony Jackson (bass), Gamble and Huff production team.

Renegade Note: One of the darkest grooves ever pressed to vinyl. Wealth, power, and corruption move together through the bassline.

Gil Scott-Heron — “The Bottle” (1974)

Personnel: Gil Scott-Heron (vocals), Brian Jackson (flute, keyboards), Midnight Band ensemble.

Renegade Note: Economic despair hidden inside movement and rhythm. The dance floor and the social critique occupy the same space.

Parliament — “Chocolate City” (1975)

Personnel: George Clinton (vocals, production), Bootsy Collins (bass), Bernie Worrell (keyboards), Parliament ensemble.

Renegade Note: Political commentary refracted through cosmic funk mythology and deep groove architecture.

War — “Low Rider” (1975)

Personnel: Lonnie Jordan (keyboards), Howard Scott (guitar), Lee Oskar (harmonica), War ensemble.

Renegade Note: Survival music. Cruising through instability with style intact.

Marvin Gaye — “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)” (1971)

Personnel: Marvin Gaye (vocals, piano), James Jamerson (bass), Detroit session musicians.

Renegade Note: The emotional center of the episode. Systems pressure translated directly into soul music.

James Brown — “Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved” (1970)

Personnel: James Brown (vocals), The J.B.’s rhythm section, Bobby Byrd (vocals).

Renegade Note: Momentum returns. Participation becomes the message.

Stevie Wonder — “Living for the City” (1973)

Personnel: Stevie Wonder (vocals, keyboards, drums), Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff (synthesizer programming).

Renegade Note: Urban realism collides with innovation, rhythm, and storytelling precision.

Bill Withers — “Use Me” (1972)

Personnel: Bill Withers (vocals, guitar), Melvin Dunlap (bass), James Gadson (drums).

Renegade Note: Minimalist groove carrying themes of dependence, labor, and emotional imbalance.

Timmy Thomas — “Why Can’t We Live Together” (1972)

Personnel: Timmy Thomas (vocals, organ, drum machine).

Renegade Note: Sparse, intimate, and hauntingly modern. Isolation reduced to rhythm and voice.

The Stylistics — “People Make the World Go Round” (1971)

Personnel: Russell Thompkins Jr. (vocals), Thom Bell (arrangements), Sigma Sound Studios musicians.

Renegade Note: Reflection replaces resolution. Humanity remains the final signal beneath the machinery.

🔗 Quick Links:

🎧 Listen live on KDOG 9 AM Pacific Time→ Here

🎧 Listen live on KCSM HD2 9 PM Pacific Time→ Here (On mobile, scroll down to the KCSM HD2 player)

📆 Add to Calendar — Funky Friday (Weekly):

• 9 AM KDOG

Add to Google Calendar

• 9 PM KCSM HD2

Add to Google Calendar

🎶 Catch the Replay → Comming Soon

📖 Full Episode Recaps + Setlists → Here

📂 Renegade Radio Site → Here

Funk Facts

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🔥 Tower of Power — “Only So Much Oil in the Ground”

Built around aggressive horn stabs and a tightly locked rhythm section, the groove creates forward pressure without losing precision. The arrangement mirrors the tension inside the lyrics through constant rhythmic momentum.

💸 The O’Jays — “For the Love of Money”

Driven by one of the most recognizable basslines in soul music, the groove cycles hypnotically while layered percussion and guitar textures create unease beneath the surface. Repetition becomes part of the message.

🍾 Gil Scott-Heron — “The Bottle”

A flute-driven jazz-funk groove disguises the weight of the subject matter beneath movement and rhythmic warmth. Percussion and electric piano maintain dance-floor energy while the vocal delivery carries social commentary.

🏙️ Parliament — “Chocolate City”

A slow, elastic funk groove anchored by deep bass and spacious keyboard textures. The arrangement leaves room for spoken delivery and atmosphere while maintaining a steady rhythmic pull.

🚘 War — “Low Rider”

Centered on a relaxed Latin-influenced groove, the rhythm section relies on pocket and restraint rather than speed. Harmonica and percussion create movement without overcrowding the mix.

🌆 Marvin Gaye — “Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)”

Built around descending bass movement and restrained percussion, the groove creates emotional heaviness without sacrificing flow. The arrangement allows tension to simmer continuously beneath the vocal.

✊ James Brown — “Get Up, Get Into It, Get Involved”

Built on interlocking rhythm guitar, syncopated bass, and sharp horn accents, the groove functions like a machine designed for momentum. Nearly every instrument operates as percussion.

🏢 Stevie Wonder — “Living for the City”

A layered groove driven by clavinet, synthesizer textures, and shifting rhythmic dynamics. Narrative sections interrupt the musical flow intentionally, reinforcing the realism inside the storytelling.

🔗 Bill Withers — “Use Me”

Constructed from minimalist electric piano chords, tight bass phrasing, and controlled drum patterns. The groove stays repetitive and intimate, creating tension through subtle rhythmic variation.

🫂 Timmy Thomas — “Why Can’t We Live Together”

Built almost entirely from organ, drum machine, and vocal layering. Sparse instrumentation creates emotional vulnerability while repetition reinforces the hypnotic pulse of the track.

🌍 The Stylistics — “People Make the World Go Round”

A smooth orchestral soul groove combining soft percussion, floating string arrangements, and restrained bass movement. The rhythm remains understated while the atmosphere carries emotional weight.