Album of the Day

Built around Dayton, Ohio's Troutman brothers, Zapp made a strong enough impression on Bootsy Collins and George Clinton that they pointed the funk quintet to Warner Bros.; ZAPP was released on the label in 1980. Co-produced by Collins (who also contributes guitar work) and recorded at Parliament-Funkadelic stronghold United Sound Systems in Detroit, the collection has a strong P-Funk flavor with an emphasis on spacey jams, but singer-songwriter Roger Troutman's vocoder-enhanced delivery gives those jams a personality all their own. Among the fine originals here are “Be Alright” and Top 10 R&B hit “More Bounce to the Ounce,” both of which would be sampled by a host of rap greats years later. A classic of 1980s electro-funk, the Gold-certified ZAPP will still get a dancefloor bouncing.