Billy Bass Nelson, Funkadelic's original bassist, has died

Billy Bass Nelson, American bassist and key figure in the birth of Funkadelic, died on Saturday, January 31, at the age of 75. The news was announced via the official Facebook page of George Clinton and the Parliament-Funkadelic collective, with no details given on the location or cause of death, as reported by the New York Times. Nelson had been in palliative care for some time; in the preceding weeks, inaccurate reports of his death had already circulated.

Born William Nelson Jr. on January 26, 1951, in Plainfield, New Jersey, he began his career as a supporting bassist for the Parliaments, the doo-wop group led by Clinton. It was Clinton who brought him into a new project that, in 1967, would take the name Funkadelic — a name Nelson himself helped come up with. From the outset, the band forged an unprecedented blend of funk, psychedelic rock and experimental attitude, one that would leave a deep mark on Black American music of the Seventies.

His contribution was crucial on the band's early records: “Funkadelic” (1970), “Free Your Mind … And Your Ass Will Follow” (1970) and “Maggot Brain” (1971), albums on which Nelson appeared as bassist, co-writer and vocalist.

Alongside the music, he also helped shape the band's provocative aesthetic, becoming known for theatrical performances and visual stunts in keeping with the project's irreverent spirit.

Nelson was part of P-Funk's historic core lineup, later officially recognized with induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1997 alongside fifteen other members of the collective. After a financial dispute with Clinton, he left Funkadelic, going on to build a career as a session musician and collaborator. Among the most notable contributions of this period was his participation in the Temptations' “Shakey Ground” (1975).

In the Nineties he occasionally returned to the stage with the P-Funk All-Stars, and in 1994 he released his solo debut, "Out of the Dark", under the pseudonym O.G. Funk. A fragmented but pivotal career, whose weight remains evident in shaping the sound and imagery of one of the most radical chapters in American funk.

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