Fred Thomas occupies a very special niche in the history R&B. As James Brown’s principal bassist since 1971 (the“Make if Funky” era), he participated in one the most prolific periods in the Godfather of Soul’s incredible career as a member of Brown’s band, the J.B.’s.
Fred can be heard on hits such as: “Hot Pants”, “Papa Don’t Take No Mess,” “Make it Funky,””Get onthe Good Foot,” “Doing it to Death,” “I’m a Greedy Man,” “I Got Ants in My Pants,””There it Is,” “Stoned tothe Bone,” and instrumental classics like “Pass the Peas” and “Gimme Some More.” His lines heard on songs like Bobby Byrd’s”I Know You Got Soul”, LynCollin’s”Think” have been sampled numerous times.
He’s on the seminal “Live at the Apollo Vol. 3 Revolution of the Mind” and can be seen in “Soul Power” (2008) documentary of James Brown’s 1974 concert in Zaire, and in the many James Brown “Soul Train” appearances.
In his band,Fred Thomas is front and center singing, playing bass and tearing into a mix of blue sand soul classics and the JB hits he recorded on.
Fred Back Then!
Soul Train with James Brown playing “Get on the Good Foot”