Best Funk Songs

If you listen to a lot of old funk records, the drums are really small. But you don't perceive it like that because the groove is so heavy. - Lenny Kravitz

Funk is a different type of music which blends soul, jazz, and R&B into a single composition. It is believed that this music genre was introduced by the African-Americans in the late 1960s. Funk mostly concentrates on bass guitar music pieces and drum beats, rather than comprising too much melodies and harmonies. There is a notable presence of rhythm guitar and keyboard sounds though. The guitarists in funk music incorporate a rhythmic style, as the theme of this type of music concentrates on rhythm, bass, and beats. A majority of funk musicians come from a background of soul and jazz music. Many of the best funk songs are composed by artists and bands such as James Brown; Kool & The Gang; The Isley Brothers; The Temptations, etc. Recent developments in conventional funk music includes touches of rock and metal music genres. The following part of the article lists some of the best funk songs of all time.

20 Best Funk Songs

• (Not Just) Knee Deep - Funkadelic
• Atomic Dog - George Clinton
• Chameleon - Herbie Hancock
• Cissy Strut - The Meters
• Cult Of Personality - Living Colour
• Flash Light - Parliament
• Freddie's Dead - Fishbone
• Get Up Offa That Thing - James Brown
• It's Your Thing - The Isley Brothers
• More Bounce to the Ounce - Zapp
• One Nation Under a Groove - Funkadelic
• Papa Was a Rollin' Stone - The Temptations
• Renegades Of Funk - Rage Against The Machine
• Rock Steady - Aretha Franklin
• Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud - James Brown
• Super Freak - Rick James
• Superfly - Curtis Mayfield
• Superstition - Stevie Wonder
• Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin) - Sly & the Family Stone
• When Doves Cry - Prince & The Revolution

List of Other Notable Funk Songs

• Amen, Brother - Winstons
• Apache - Incredible Bongo Band
• Ball of Confusion (That's What the World is Today) - The Temptations
• Brick House - Commodores
• Burn Rubber (Why You Wanna Hurt Me?) - Gap Band
• Bustin' Loose - Chuck Brown & The Soul Searchers
• Car Wash - Rose Royce
• Clean Up Woman - Betty Wright
• Cloud Nine - The Temptations
• Computer Love - Zapp & Roger
• Cutie Pie - One Way
• Dazz - Brick
• Do It ('Til You're Satisfied) - B.T. Express
• Don't Stop ('Til You Get Enough) - Michael Jackson
• Family Affair - Sly & The Family Stone
• Fantastic Voyage - Lakeside
• Fire - Ohio Players
• For the Love of Money - O'Jays
• Funkin' for Jamaica - Tom Browne
• Funky Broadway - Dyke & The Blazers
• Funky Stuff - Kool & The Gang
• Future Shock - Curtis Mayfield
• Genius of Love - Tom Tom Club
• Get Down On It - Kool & The Gang
• Get on the Good Foot - James Brown
• Get the Funk Out of Ma Face - Brothers Johnson
• Give It to Me Baby - Rick James
• Groove Me - King Floyd
• Heartbeat - Taana Gardner
• Higher Ground - Stevie Wonder
• Hollywood Swinging - Kool & The Gang
• Hot Fun in the Summertime - Sly & The Family Stone
• I Can't Stand the Rain - Ann Peebles
• I Got My Mind Made Up (You Can Get It Girl) - Instant Funk
• I'll Take You There - Staple Singers
• It's Just Begun - Jimmy Castor Bunch
• Jungle Boogie - Kool & The Gang
• Just Kissed My Baby - Meters
• Kiss - Prince & The Revolution
• Kung Fu Fighting - Carl Douglas
• Let it Whip - Dazz Band
• Little Red Corvette - Prince & The Revolution
• Living for the City - Stevie Wonder
• Love Rollercoaster - Ohio Players
• Lovely Day - Bill Withers
• Low Rider - War
• Mr. Big Stuff - Jean Knight
• No Parking (On the Dance floor) - Midnight Star
• Out of Sight - James Brown & The Famous Flames
• P-Funk (Wants to Get Funked Up) - Parliament
• Papa's Got a Brand New Bag - James Brown & The Famous Flames
• Pick Up the Pieces - Average White Band
• Play That Funky Music (White Boy) - Wild Cherry
• Right Place, Wrong Time - Dr. John
• Shakey Ground - The Temptations
• Shining Star - Earth, Wind & Fire
• Sign O' the Times - Prince
• Slide - Slave
• Stand! - Sly & The Family Stone
• Tell Me Something Good - Rufus
• The Jam - Graham Central Station
• The Payback - James Brown
• Think (About It) - Lyn Collins
• Upside Down (Inside Out) - Diana Ross
• Use Me - Bill Withers
• War - Edwin Starr
• What is Hip? - Tower of Power
• Word Up - Cameo
• You Dropped a Bomb on Me - Gap Band
• You Sexy Thing - Hot Chocolate

This is an alphabetically sorted list of the best funk songs. Though funk music was typically played by African-Americans, it is being played and experimented in almost all countries at present. Hence, there are new sub-genres coming up like funk rock, funk metal, G-funk, funk jam, and similar others.