Released 30 years ago
T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M.
George Clinton · 1996
75 min · 14 tracks · funk
A vibrant tapestry of funk grooves and soulful melodies that invites listeners to dance and celebrate life.
Top tracks — play these first
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If Anybody Gets Funked Up (It's Gonna Be You) Start here — This track opens the album with infectious energy and embodies the playful yet assertive essence of Clinton's lyrical style, establishing a party atmosphere right from the start.
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Mathematics — With its complex rhythms and clever wordplay, this track showcases Clinton's innovative approach to funk, merging intellectual themes with danceable beats.
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Get Your Funk On — This song serves as a call to action for listeners to engage with the music physically, highlighting Clinton's knack for creating tracks that encourage movement and celebration.
Elevation
Our rating, out of 100 — and why.
AI-generated from five scored dimensions. An opinion, not a measurement.
The album showcases strong funk elements with engaging grooves but lacks some cohesion in its pacing.
What we noticed
- The album features a consistent use of syncopated rhythms and layered brass sections that create a rich, danceable groove.
- Several tracks incorporate call-and-response vocal patterns, engaging listeners to participate actively in the music.
- The first half of the album maintains an upbeat tempo, while the latter half introduces slower, more reflective pieces that shift the mood.
- Composition 25% of the score
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7/10
- Craft 20% of the score
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8/10
- Durability 25% of the score
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6/10
- Distinctiveness 18% of the score
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7/10
- Sequencing 12% of the score
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5/10
the writing — melody, harmony, structure, lyrics
production, performance, arrangement
whether it rewards returning to it
whether it sounds like itself
running order, pacing, length
Known within its scene. Reported but not counted — how far a record travelled describes its reception rather than the record, and a newer release has had less time to travel than an older one.
Is this for you?
Good fit if you like
- danceable grooves for celebration
- wave-like pacing for engagement
- eclectic rhythms for diverse moods
- dynamic exploration experience
- community vibes with friends
Maybe skip if you
- prefer straightforward song structures
- dislike lengthy listening sessions
Where this album fits
- In the catalog
- Fan Favorite — Celebrated by fans for its authentic funk sound during a genre revival.
- Career context
- By the time George Clinton released T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M. in 1996, he was a seasoned genre-definer who had already shaped funk music through his work with Parliament-Funkadelic. This album came several years after his previous solo effort, 1986's Some of My Best Jokes Are Friends, marking a return to form as Clinton sought to re-establish his influence in the music scene amidst evolving trends.
- Stylistic neighbors
- Parliament· Funkadelic· Sly and the Family Stone
Tracklist
- 1 If Anybody Gets Funked Up (It's Gonna Be You) Start here 4:24
- 2 Summer Swim 5:37
- 3 Funky Kind (Gonna Knock It Down) 5:36
- 4 Mathematics 7:12
- 5 Hard as Steel 5:09
- 6 New Spaceship 4:00
- 7 Underground Angel 4:28
- 8 Let's Get Funky 5:04
- 9 Flatman & Bobbin 3:31
- 10 Sloppy Seconds 6:59
- 11 Rock the Party 3:33
- 12 Get Your Funk On 5:16
- 13 T.A.P.O.A.F.O.M. (Fly Away) 7:54
- 14 If Anybody Gets Funked Up (It's Gonna Be You) (Colin Wolfe mix) 6:11
Reference: Wikipedia · MusicBrainz · Wikidata
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