Important Information

HistoryThe band was formed by a pair of high school students in Vallejo, California, drummer Louis A.
McCall Sr.
and Lead singer/guitarist Michael Cooper.
The two put together a group that included bassist Cedric Martin, keyboardist Danny "Sweet Man" Thomas, trumpeter Karl Fuller, and woodwinds player Paul "Maceo" Harrell.
Soon thereafter, this fledgling group's classic lineup became complete when singer/multi-instrumentalist Felton Pilate came on board.
The band got their start as a backup group for the Soul Children under the name Project Soul.
They began working with Stax Records staff songwriters, and while recording at Audio Dimensions, a Memphis, Tennessee sound studio, producer Ted Sturges both named the group (after an instrumental recording by The Nite-Liters) and produced their first album, Organized Con Funk Shun.In 1976, Con Funk Shun signed to Mercury Records, releasing 11 albums over a span of 10 years.
The group's 1977 LP, Secrets, was certified gold in the US, as were 1978's Loveshine, 1979's Candy, and 1980's Spirit of Love.
They scored a string of top ten hits on the US Billboard black singles chart, including 1977's "Ffun" (#1), 1978's "Shake and Dance with Me" (#5), 1979's "Chase Me" (#4), 1980s "Got to Be Enough" (#8), and "Too Tight" (#8).
Tensions from within the group built over the 1980s, and the group's last album, Burning Love, was recorded without songwriter and vocalist Felton Pilate.
After leaving Mercury, the band broke up in 1986, but some members of the group reunited alongside touring musicians for concerts in the 1990s.In 1994, Eric "EQ" Young joined Con Funk Shun.
Young, a bass player, is a native of the San Francisco Bay Area and a veteran of the stage and a former Quincy Jones recording artist who has played for Con-Funk-Shun for the past 16 years.
Other alliances include the Dazz Band and Radiance.
Young has toured the US extensively and worked abroad for more than 20 years and recently traveled to Iraq to play for our troops.
“I was born to do this," said Young.
His television credits include HBO, "Soul Train," "Motown Live & Sinbad." He’s also been featured in Japan’s "Bass Magazine" along with idols Larry Graham and Stanley Clark.In May 2008, ConFunkShun celebrated 35 years together with a special anniversary cruise with many of their biggest fans.LegacyCon Funk Shun continues to receive airplay on US soul radio stations that play music of the 1970s and 1980s.
Additionally, their back-beats have been repeatedly sampled by later artists in Hip Hop, R&B, and rap.
Most recently, "Honey Wild", (written by Louis McCall; his wife, Linda Lou McCall; and Danny Thomas), from their 1980 Spirit of Love album was sampled by Lil Wayne for his CD Tha Carter III - Deluxe Edition.
In 1996, Dru Hill covered the song "Love's Train" on their self-titled début album which was produced by Keith Sweat.
Jason Mraz has performed "Ffun" on numerous occasions during his live performances as well.
The song "That's What Love Can Do" by Boykrazy, heavily samples "Too Tight".