Funky Town: Students Worship the Father of Soul

If the only god you worship is James Brown and you like to wear vinyl and velvet to your religious services, then groove your way to the Funk Appreciation Society (FAS).

"On an abstract level, our goals are to educate the people about funk music, to allow them to express their inner groove, feel the funk that permeates the universe and unleash their inner booty shaker," says Grandmaster of Funk Eric R. Rosenbaum '01.

According to Rosenbaum, whose title translates roughly to "president," the group has several specific goals for this year. Each semester, FAS plans to hold a showcase of Harvard funk and hip-hop bands, many of whose members are among the group's ranks.

FAS will also organize trips to concerts in Boston, and it hopes to bring a well-known funk artist to perform at Harvard. The group is compiling a CD lending library, and Rosenbaum says a funky clothing library may be on the horizon.

FAS was founded last spring by Michael A. Cohen '99. The group stepped up its recruiting efforts this fall and, according to Moneymaker Shaker Alex G. Scammons '01, is currently applying for grant money to get its plans off the ground.

About 30 students attended FAS's first meeting of the year last Tuesday, at which members wore their funkiest threads and got to know each other to the tunes of some funk immortals.

"We take James Brown as our deity," says Rosenbaum, whose fellow officers include the Funkmaster General, the Curator of the Mothership and the Sex Machine--also known as the vice president, secretary and social chair.

But if the terminology is a bit outlandish-indeed, every member picks a nickname--FAS officials take their art very seriously.

According to their constitution, "Any member who insults the integrity of James Brown shall be subject to excommunication from the Funk Appreciation Society due to the crime of Treason against Funk."