DeWayne “Blackbyrd” McKnight has played with a who’s who of the jazz, funk, and fusion scenes. From being a member of The Headhunters to serving as Herbie Hancock’s sideman, and yes, even having a brief tenure as the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ guitarist, McKnight has cemented his position as a true guitar veteran.
It’s his role in George Clinton’s Parliament-Funkadelic, however, that truly shaped the trajectory of his career and transformed him into a funk all-star.
“I was walking home one day and heard a guitar playing. Back then, I would knock on the door whenever I heard a guitar playing,” he recalls in the latest Guitar World issue. “The guy playing the guitar came to the door and invited me in. We became friends from that day on.”
The guitarist turned out to be Ronald “Brem” Brembry, who became a key part of McKnight’s journey to landing the highly coveted (and career-changing) P-Funk gig.
“On one occasion, Brem took me to his friend’s house for a jam. His name was Archie Ivy, who also played bass, and we jammed for a good while. I later found out that he was the president of Parliament-Funkadelic, which was my favorite group.
“He told me that in about a year, Mr. Clinton would be forming a new band, and he would set up an audition for me. I never forgot what he told me.”
Fast-forward a year to September 1978, and McKnight finally got the call Ivy had promised, but the conversation didn’t unfold as one would have expected.
“It went something like this: ‘What are you still doing at home? You’re supposed to be on a flight going to Detroit to audition with the Brides [of Funkenstein]. You missed your flight. How soon can you get to the airport?’
“Needless to say, there was no flight booked for me. No wonder I was still at home. That was my introduction to P-Funk.”
McKnight embraced what he calls the collective’s ethos of “organized chaos”. He promptly caught the red-eye to Michigan, where he was scheduled to meet some of his future band members at Detroit’s Balmar Hotel.
“The next day, I auditioned for the Brides of Funkenstein and was hired. In late September ’78, the Brides set off to open for the P-Funk Anti-Tour. After the Brides dissolved, I became a member of P-Funk in late ’79.”
What followed was a four-decade-plus tenure with Clinton’s game-changing music collective, and an even-longer career playing with an enviable list of talent.
“When I started, I set out to accomplish three things: play with Herbie Hancock, play with Parliament-Funkadelic, and play with Miles Davis,” he admitted in a 2022 Guitar World interview.
“I did all those things. I might have only got to play with Miles live in the ’80s – I didn’t get to make music with him – but I did it, and that’s enough for me.
“As for the rest, I’ve made music that speaks to my soul. I’ve created cool sounds with George Clinton – the most fun cat to work in the studio with that I’ve ever met – and I’ve still got my music to work on.”
For more from DeWayne “Blackbyrd” McKnight, plus new interviews with Pat Travers and Frank Marino, pick up issue 583 of Guitar World at Magazines Direct.
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