onehomes, August 8, 2012
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Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest Update: Nov. 10, 2022
This is Part I of a four part pancocojams series about the African American term "chocolate city".
This post showcases a YouTube sound file of the Parliament's 1975 Funk record "Chocolate City". Information about the Parliaments and their "Chocolate City" album & single is included in this post. Lyrics for the parliaments' record "Chocolate City" are also included in this pancocojams post along with some explanations of some of those lyrics.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/11/youtube-commenters-write-about-which.html for Part II of this pancocojams series. That post showcases a sound file of the Parliament's Funk 1975 record "Chocolate City" and presents selected comments from two YouTube discussion threads for that record. Most of these selected comments refer to United States cities that were considered "chocolate cities" in the mid1970s and/or are considered to be "chocolate cities" now (in the 2020s).
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/11/united-states-top-chocolate-cities.html for Part III of this pancocojams series. That post presents the percentages of Black people in 67 cities in the United States that have a population of over 100,000 people. (according to the United States Census Bureau, 2020 census). These cities can be considered "chocolate cities" based on an expanded definition of that term which began around the mid 20th century as a nickname for Washington, D.C.
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2022/11/how-washington-dc-childrens-foot.html for Part IV of this pancocojams post. That post presents an example of a foot stomping cheer called "Chocolate City" which my daughter Tazi Hughes collected at a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania summer camp in 1992 from a Washington D. C. girl who was visiting her cousin in Pittsburgh.
The content of this post is presented for socio-cultural, linguistic, historical, and entertainment purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to the Parliaments for their musical legacy and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE PARLIAMENTS AND THEIR CHOCOLATE CITY ALBUM & SINGLE
Excerpt #1
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Parliaments
"The Parliaments were an American vocal quintet from Plainfield, New Jersey, United States. Originally formed in the back room of a barbershop in 1956, the quintet was named after the cigarette brand. The Parliaments initially performed doo-wop music; after some early personnel changes their lineup solidified with George Clinton, Ray Davis, Fuzzy Haskins, Calvin Simon, and Grady Thomas. Clinton was group leader and manager, and part owner of the barbershop where the group convened to entertain customers. The group later changed its style, evolving into the bands Parliament and Funkadelic, which found success in the 1970s.
[...]
In 1967 the Parliaments released "(I Wanna)
Testify" on Revilot and finally achieved a hit single, with the song
reaching No. 3 R&B and No. 20 Pop on the Billboard charts. In reality,
Clinton was the only member of the Parliaments to appear in the song, as the
other members were unable to travel to Detroit for the recording session
(session singers and musicians rounded out the recording). To capitalize on the
single's success, Clinton put together a backing band for a tour, expanding the
Parliaments to the five singers plus five backing musicians.
After the success of "(I Wanna) Testify", Clinton
became embroiled in a contractual dispute surrounding the bankruptcy of Revilot
Records and temporarily lost the rights to the name "The
Parliaments." In order to continue recording for other labels, Clinton
renamed the entire ensemble Funkadelic (a name coined by bassist Billy Bass
Nelson). Clinton positioned Funkadelic as a funk-rock band featuring the five
backing musicians with the five Parliaments singers as uncredited guests. When
Revilot declared bankruptcy the Parliaments were sold to Atlantic Records, and
Clinton abandoned doo-wop to avoid working for Atlantic. Even with Funkadelic
operating as a recording and touring entity, in 1970 Clinton relaunched the
Parliaments as a new R&B-based funk band, now known as Parliament. The
lineup still consisted of the five original singers plus the five backing
musicians, with the two acts signed to different labels and marketed as
performing different types of funk."...
****
Excerpt #2
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_City_(album)
"Chocolate City is the third album by the funk band
Parliament, released in 1975. It was a "tribute to Washington
D.C.",[9] where the group had been particularly popular. The album's cover
includes images of the United States Capitol, the Washington Monument, and the
Lincoln Memorial in the form of a chocolate medallion, as well as sticker
labeled "Washington DC". The album was very popular in the capitol
city, selling 150,000 copies alone there."...
****
Excerpt #3
From https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chocolate_City_(song)
"Chocolate City" is a song by the funk band Parliament,
the lead track of their 1975 album of the same name. It was also released as a
two-part single, the first from the album.
Background
The song's largely spoken vocals (delivered by George
Clinton) express pride in "Chocolate Cities", that is, cities with a
majority black population. The song also reflects on the solidarity of
African-American society at the time. The singer playfully hypothesizes what it
would be like if there were an African American in the White House"...
****
Excerpt #4
From https://www.nyu.edu/washington-dc/academics/special-programs/welcome-to-chocolate-city.html#:~:tex New York University/Washington, D.C.
"The District of Columbia became the first majority Black
major city in the United States in 1957. Over time, as the Black population
grew, it subsequently became known as the nation’s “Chocolate City,” a name
conferred by a popular funk song shortly after the passage of the District of
Columbia’s Home Rule Act in 1973 and proudly embraced by Washingtonians.* While
the city’s Black population today is now less than 45% partly as a result of
economic policies and gentrification, the history and legacy of DC’s central
Black culture, power, and identity remain significant forces. These
co-curricular offerings, in conjunction with other webinars and programs
constructed throughout the semester, will provide a contextual historical
illustration of Washington, DC and the roots of Chocolate City today that
continue to bolster the Black power movement."
-snip-
This is the preface to several virtual webinars such as Welcome to Chocolate City , Sept. 4, 2020 https://www.nyu.edu/washington-dc/academics/special-programs/welcome-to-chocolate-city/welcome-to-chocolate-city.html and The Future of Chocolate City, March 23, 2021 https://www.nyu.edu/washington-dc/academics/special-programs/welcome-to-chocolate-city/the-future-of-chocolate-city.html
-snip-
*This statement is confusing. If it means that the members of the Parliaments band were the first people to call Washington, D.C. 'Chocolate City", then I believe that statement is probably false. If this statement means that the Parliaments greatly help popularize Washington, D. C.'s nickname "Chocolate City" then I believe that statement is true.
****
LYRICS - CHOCOLATE CITY
(The Parliaments; produced by George Clinton, )
[Verse 1]
Uh, what's happening CC?
They still call it the White House
But that's a temporary condition, too
Can you dig it, CC?
To each his reach
And if I don't cop, it ain't mine to have
But I'll be reachin' for ya
Cause I love ya, CC
Right on
There's a lot of chocolate cities, around
We've got Newark, we've got Gary
Somebody told me we got L.A.
And we're working on Atlanta
But you're the capital, CC
[Refrain]
Gainin' on ya
Get down
Gainin' on ya
Movin' in and on ya
Gainin' on ya
Can't you feel my breath, heh
Gainin' on ya
All up around your neck, heh heh
[Verse 2]
Hey, CC
They say you're jivin' game, it can't be changed
But on the positive side
You're my piece of the rock
And I love you, CC
Can you dig it?
Hey, uh, we didn't get our forty acres and a mule
But we did get you, CC, heh, yeah
Gainin' on ya
Movin' in and around ya
God bless CC and it's vanilla suburbs
[Refrain]
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
What's happening, blood?
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
[Verse 3]
Yeah
What's happening, black?
Brother black, blood even
Yeah-ahh, just funnin'
Gettin' down
Ah, blood to blood
Ah, players to ladies
The last percentage count was eighty
You don't need the bullet when you got the ballot
Are you up for the downstroke, CC?
Chocolate City
Are you with me out there?
And when they come to march on ya
Tell 'em to make sure they got their James Brown pass
And don't be surprised if Ali is in the White House
Reverend Ike, Secretary of the Treasure
Richard Pryor, Minister of Education
Stevie Wonder, Secretary of fine arts
And Miss Aretha Franklin, the First Lady
Are you out there, CC?
A chocolate city is no dream
It's my piece of the rock and I dig you, CC
God bless Chocolate City and it's
(gainin' on ya!) vanilla suburbs
Can y'all get to that?
[Refrain]
Gainin' on ya
Easin' in
Gainin' on ya!
In yo' stuff
Gainin' on ya
Huh, can't get enough
Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya
Be mo' funk, be mo' funk
Gainin' on ya
Can we funk you too?
Gainin' on ya
Right on, Chocolate City
[Outro]
Yeah, get deep
Real deep
Heh
Be mo' funk
Mmmph, heh
Get deep
Bad
Unh, heh
Just got New York, I'm told
online source: https://genius.com/Parliament-chocolate-city-lyrics
****
PANCOCOJAMS EDITOR'S NOTES: SOME EXPLANATIONS OF SOME OF THE LYRICS FOR THE PARLIAMENTS' SONG "CHOCOLATE CITY"
In the Parliament's Funk song "Chocolate City", the term "chocolate city" refers to cities in the United States that have a majority Black population.
Most of the song refers to a (fictional) political race that takes place between a Black team and a White team of runners and/or swimmers*. The Black team is represented by the song's rapper and the group of singers/rappers backing him. The goal is for the Black team to catch up with the White team that is in the lead. The Black team's challenge is to move cities into the majority Black column (i.e. to make them "chocolate cities".)
The White team wants actual cities in the United States to remain majority White cities. However, the Black team is working to turn actual cities in the United State to be majority Black (i.e. "chocolate cities").
In certain portions of the song the Black team leader braggingly addresses the White team that is in the lead, for instance in the lines
" Gainin' on ya
Gainin' on ya!
In yo' stuff"
-end of quote-
"Gainin on ya" means "catching up with you".
*I wrote that the fictional race in this song (or portions of this race) may be about swimmers because of the line "Are you up for the downstroke, CC?" (The "downstroke" is a swimming movement). However, are you up to the downstroke" may just be a witty way of saying "Are you down with that?" meaning "Are you in agreeance with what I just said?
**
An alternative interpretation is given in https://www.udiscovermusic.com/stories/parliament-chocolate-city-album/ Chocolate City’: How Parliament Built A True Funk Classic
From the title track to the final fade, ‘Chocolate City’ kicks ass and provided the foundations for George Clinton and Parliament’s next funk masterpiece.
by Ian McCann, April 8, 2022
..."Just so you get the message, “Chocolate City” the song begins proceedings in its own unique way. This is funk without relying on drums or beats, particularly; the tune snakes through the state of underground black America, 1975, laying claim to Washington, DC, on the basis of population breakdown, but treating it like the results of the ballot unfolding on an election night: “We just got New York, I’m told,” “Don’t be surprised if Muhammad Ali is in the White House,” and the name of that building is “just a temporary condition.” They don’t call it DC, they call it CC."...
-snip-
I added italics to highlight this sentence.
.
**
The song doesn't lists all of the United States cities in 1975 that were majority Black, and some of the cities that are mentioned in that song actually didn't have a majority Black population in the 1970s - LA (Los Angeles, California) and New York City, New York.
**
"vanilla
suburbs": "Cc's vanilla suburbs are the suburbs (surrounding communities) of Washington D. C. which whose populations [in 1975] were predominately White.
**
"They still call it the White House/ But that's a temporary condition, too": I believe that this alludes to the "plan" to rename the White House "the Black House" when Black people are the official leaders and administrators of the federal government.
**
"The last percentage count was eighty": This line refers to the percentage of Black people in Washington. D. C. when this Parliament record was composed and first performed. Although that may not have been the exact percentage of that population in 1975, there's no doubt that the majority of people living in D.C. at that time were Black.
"You don't need the bullet when you got the ballot": We don't need to use weaponry to take over the government since we can do that by moving to a particular city and voting there.
**
James Brown pass = a fictional permit to hold demonstrations (marches) in a chocolate city; The pass is named after the actual R&B singer James Brown, one of whose nicknames was "The Godfather of Soul".
**
"we didn't get our forty acres and a mule" - a promise that was said to have been made to enslaved Black people who were freed at the end of the US Civil War that wasn't honored."
**
"What's happening, black?" - "What's happening" was a commonly used African American Vernacular English way of greeting someone in the 1970s. In this song the question "What's happening" may also have its concurrent literal meaning.
**
"Blood", "Black", "Brother Black" : colloquial referents for Black people (and not referents for the Bloods gang.)
**
Can you dig it?: 1970s African American Vernacular English way of saying: Do you understand?/ Do you agree?
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This concludes Part I of this pancocojams series.
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