Bernie Worrell dies at 72

Bernie Worrell, keyboardist of Parliament and Funkadelic bands and whose role was very important in the birth and expansion of funk, died at age 72 due to cancer at his home in Everson (Washington State, USA), reported its official account on Facebook. Worrell was a regular sidekick musician George Clinton and his contribution to the keyboards is considered crucial in the development of funk sound over 70s.

Born in 1944 in Long Branch (New Jersey, USA), Worrell said child as a precocious pianist, but his life took a turn when he met George Clinton, the legendary figure of the style known as p-funk. Enlisted in Parliament and Funkadelic bands, Worrell worked on albums like "Maggot Brain" (1971), Funkadelic, and "Mothership Connection" (1975), of Parliament, who benefited from his expertise with keyboards and interest in experimenting with synthesizers.

Always with Clinton, Worrell was essential participant and spectator in the front row funk growth and evolution of black dance music, whose influence and proposals have come down to us through the rap and R & B. In the 80s, the late artist was a regular contributor to the new-wave band Talking Heads, led by David Byrne. With this group appeared, for example, he is playing in the famous documentary "Stop Making Sense" (1984), directed by Jonathan Demme. It was precisely this filmmaker who required him to one of his last public appearances since Worrell had a small role in the film "Ricki" (2015) as a member of the band who played a rock star actress Meryl Streep.