Does anyone know who is playing lead guitar on One Nation Under A Groove long version and who is playing lead on the instrumental version, and if so how do you know? Some articles say it’s Gary and others Mike.
Thank you
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There’s only Garry playing guitar on the original (and Bobby Lewis on banjo) so I’ll go with Garry as most likely; it doesn’t sound much like Mike Hampton. Not flashy or shreddy enough to be Kid Funkadelic for me.
The lead guitar avatar on The One Nation instrumental is Mike Hampton. Garry on rhythm and the original along with Bobby Lewis on banjo
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Thank you. Mr B, do you know how the instrumental came about? Such a hot tune and nothing ever said or written about it. Any tid bits would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time
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It was the time of 12" dance remixes; and One Nation, being the biggest hit in P-Funk history, was deserving of an extended instrumental. The new Dance chart had just debuted on Billboard, and One Nation was either the first or one of the very first Pfunk songs to make that particular chart. The instrumental was a fitting piece for said market.
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Thank you, Mr B. You are doing great things for us in the nation. We all appreciate your presence on this forum.
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I’d bet my funk on it being Michael soloing. That does not sound like Mike to you?
Mike was my first guess. But I wanted to be sure and as I wrote, some say Mike, some say Gary. I just really enjoy that instrumental. I’m not sure why there isnt much written or talked about the guitar work. Or
even played live.
The Soulful Detroit forum has this old thread from many years ago:
https://soulfuldetroit.com/archives/3838/1926.html?1050897749
with some comments by Jim Vitti about the recording & instrumentation of the song (about halfway down in the thread). Bobby Lewis even jumps in for a couple of comments. 
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I don’t think Gary is playing on this it’s just Bobby and Mike
Gary is definitely playing rhythm on it. Junie commented at one point that it was in fact Gary who came up with the A and B section chords and basically led the band through the rhythm track. Hence, Gary’s co-writing credit…
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I already knew Gary co-wrote the music with Junie but all I hear is banjo
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Have to admit I never realised there was banjo in this !
Which bits are banjo? All the bits I assumed were guitar?
Are you talking about the original or just the instrumental version?
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@FunkLord admittedly, it’s hard to distinguish between Bobby’s banjo and Gary’s neck/blend pickup strat. There is quite a bit of sonic overlap. The 12 inch and instrumental versions are a different mix, and Gary’s part is much more audible on them. GC has always said the album version is actually sourced directly from his cassette copy of the rough mix.
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