Blasters Of The Universe
If Funkadelic was aimed at older rock fans and Parliament at older R&B; fans, then the offshoot Bootsy's Rubber Band was aimed at younger listeners, the "geepies" in Bootsy-talk, who would be attracted to Bootsy's cartoon character and funky, cartoonish songs. His lengthy career continues with the double CDBlasters of the Universe. The first disc contains 14 songs, which recall the glory days of P-Funk with their catchy chants and elaborate vocal harmonies atop a churning, muscular dance beats. The second disc recycles eight of those tunes in extended, instrumental mixes, thus making it easier for today's hip-hop collagists to sample (and pay royalties on) Collins' inimitable grooves. After all, there's hardly a major rap act who hasn't sampled a P-Funk or Bootsy's Rubber Band track at some point.--Geoffrey Himes