"Gimme Some More (Very Live)" - Fred Wesley

“Gimme Some More (Very Live)” (PDF) from The J.B.’s compilation Funky Good Time: The Anthology

Trombonist Fred Wesley returned to the James Brown organization in 1970 as its musical director and somehow withstood the seasonal rotation of The J.B.’s band members during this pivotal time. In doing so, Fred managed to instill a hit-factory work ethic by arranging the grunts supplied by Mr. Brown into uplifting funk grooves and full-stage routines. Of the influential Polydor recordings produced in this prolific manner, “Gimme Some More” quickly became a fan-favorite for its appearance on the 1972 album Food For Thought, as well as a standard in the live repertoire.

James Brown’s legendary performances at New York City’s Apollo Theater provided substantial material for a series of live albums - the first volume was released in 1963, followed by Volume II in 1968 and a third volume in 1971 titled Revolution of the Mind. The 1972 performances - featuring more of the company players in the spotlight rather than its lead singer - were also recorded, however the plans for an album were shelved likely due to Mr. Brown’s endorsements during that year’s presidential election, stinting the album sales of his re-packaged material. This “(Very Live)” version of “Gimme Some More” was recorded on September 14th, 1972, but remained unreleased until the 1996 Polydor CD compilation Funky Good Time: The Anthology.

A fourth volume of the Apollo series was eventually released in 2016 as Get Down With James Brown as a Record Store Day exclusive and contains the September 13th performance of “Gimme Some More,” as noted by the trombone solo’s variations after the opening glissando and preceding eight bars.

Recommended Reading: Hit Me Fred: Recollections of a Sideman by Fred Wesley Jr.  Published by Duke University Press.