How James Brown walked out on a legal dispute to make ‘Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag’
Every up-and-coming artist normally has some kind of deal that went awry in the past. Even though the thought of having a recording contract sounds enticing to anyone looking to make a fortune through music, the fine print always tries to milk them for all their worth as the suits count their millions. While James Brown may have found himself on the wrong side of a bad business deal, he turned his tragedy into triumph and made out with a hit.
During the first few years of his career, Brown had already become known as one of the biggest names in soul music. Giving birth to the idea of groove-flavoured music, every one of Brown’s best songs rarely needed a second chord, using the different rhythms of each instrument locking in with each other as he screamed at the top of his lungs.
Although he may have been able to put down his finest performances on record, it paled in comparison to what he could do when he hit the stage. Delivering one soulful performance after the next, Brown would become known as one of the hardest working men to grace the stage, not feeling satisfied with his show until he had squeezed every ounce of energy from his body when he was finished.
While King Records was happy to pick up Brown as one of their clients, the singer would eventually have discussions about increasing his pay behind the scenes. Since he had already released the classic ‘I Got You (I Feel Good)’, Brown renegotiated his contract, giving him total artistic freedom to do whatever he wanted on record.
Looking to celebrate his new contract, Brown walked out of his business meeting and went to the studio to cut ‘Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag’. Featuring the now-iconic guitar strums that kick off the tune, Brown was singing about his freedom as a free agent, able to spread his wings to whatever style he wanted.
While Brown was proud of all the work he put into the song, King Records wasn’t as thrilled with the version they heard on the radio. While Brown had completely restructured the tune, the essential groove of the piece was actually taken from a song called ‘Out of Sight’, which Brown had leased to Smash Records a few years prior.
This was the same song that prompted a lawsuit from King Records that led to Brown getting a new contract in the first place. While releasing something this blatantly similar may have been a cheeky move on Brown’s side, it didn’t matter once it blew up, becoming one of the biggest singles the soul singer would ever have.
While Brown continued to innovate his sound as the years went on, ‘Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag’ may be one of the most punk rock moves any 1960s artist had ever made. Despite labels wanting to milk as much money out of an artist, Brown took pieces of his songwriting past and beat his label at their own game.
