1977's P-FUNK EARTH TOUR is an essential document of Parliament at the height of their collective power, stripping down and reworking their sleek and powerful grooves into entirely new shapes. With a set list that comes primarily from 1975's MOTHERSHIP CONNECTION and the follow-up CLONES OF DOCTOR FUNKENSTEIN, and a lineup drawn from both Parliament and Funkadelic--both psychedelic soul guitarist Eddie Hazel and Fred Wesley's gutbucket Horny Horns are on hand--Worrell and company simply burn throughout. From the loose, wobbly jazz of the opening "P-Funk (Wants To Get Funked Up)" through to a blinding fusion of the apocalyptic "Tear the Roof Off the Sucker (Give Up the Funk)" and the crowd-participation "Get Off Your Ass and Jam," this is absolutely as good as funk gets.

Parliament: Garry Shider, Glen Goins (vocals, guitar); George Clinton, Calvin Simon, Fuzzy Haskins, Raymond Davis, Grady Thomas, Debbie Wright, Jeanette Washington (vocals); Michael Hampton, Eddie Hazel (guitar); Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Rick Gardner, Richard Griffith (horns); Bernie Worrell (keyboards, synthesizers); Cordell Mosson, William "Bootsy" Collins (bass); Jerome Brailey (drums, percussion); Lynn Mabry, Dawn Silva, Gary "Mudbone" Cooper (background vocals).