Biography
Raymond Davis entered the world on March 29, 1940, in Sumter, SC, yet spent his formative years in Plainfield, NJ. There he joined forces with fellow high-school students George Clinton, Clarence "Fuzzy" Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas to launch the Parliaments, a doo-wop ensemble that would eventually morph into the psychedelic-funk behemoth Parliament-Funkadelic. The ensemble cut its first sides in 1956, although commercial recognition waited until 1967, when the single "(I Wanna) Testify" climbed to number three on the R&B chart and number twenty pop. Davis supplied the group’s signature bass lines on enduring R&B staples such as "Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof off the Sucka)," "One Nation Under a Groove," and "Flashlight."
Drawing cues from Sly & the Family Stone and the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Clinton redirected the Parliaments toward psychedelic rock. In 1970 he streamlined the name to Parliament, emphasizing horns, while simultaneously launching the guitar-driven counterpart Funkadelic. The resulting P-Funk collective forged an unprecedented alloy of rock, funk, and gospel that left an indelible mark on successive waves of hip-hop acts. After Clinton disbanded Parliament in 1980, Davis largely withdrew from the spotlight and seldom joined later P-Funk reunions.
By the mid-1990s he had taken over bass-vocal responsibilities with the Temptations following Melvin Franklin’s passing, and in 1998 he resumed the road with original Parliaments Haskins and Thomas. On July 5, 2005, respiratory failure claimed Davis at age sixty-five.
Drawing cues from Sly & the Family Stone and the Jimi Hendrix Experience, Clinton redirected the Parliaments toward psychedelic rock. In 1970 he streamlined the name to Parliament, emphasizing horns, while simultaneously launching the guitar-driven counterpart Funkadelic. The resulting P-Funk collective forged an unprecedented alloy of rock, funk, and gospel that left an indelible mark on successive waves of hip-hop acts. After Clinton disbanded Parliament in 1980, Davis largely withdrew from the spotlight and seldom joined later P-Funk reunions.
By the mid-1990s he had taken over bass-vocal responsibilities with the Temptations following Melvin Franklin’s passing, and in 1998 he resumed the road with original Parliaments Haskins and Thomas. On July 5, 2005, respiratory failure claimed Davis at age sixty-five.
Singles
