James Brown may have always been the hardest working man in show business. He was born into rural poverty in South Carolina and was raised in similar circumstances in Augusta, Georgia. He began working at the age of five, dancing on the streets for spare change, shining shoes, and performing odd jobs. When he was sixteen years old he became entangled in an armed robbery and was sent to reform school. There he met Bobby Byrd, who had done some gospel singing; Byrd's family helped Brown to secure his release, and he joined Byrd's quartet, the Silver Swanees. It did not take long for the Swanees to notice that their new member was clearly going to be their lead singer; the power of Brown's voice and the magnitude of his charisma were undeniable. After seeing a rhythm and blues review show featuring Hank Ballard and Fats Domino, Brown and Byrd decided that they could make far more money singing rhythm and blues than they were singing gospel songs. They changed their name to the Flames and soon landed a contract with the small Federal/King label, based in Cincinnati. The first record of the group now known as James Brown and the Famous Flames, "Please Please Please," was a Top Ten hit on the R&B charts, and the future seemed promising. With the exception of "Try Me" in 1958, their follow-up disks did not do well, as most were derivative imitations of Ballard, Ray Charles, and other chart-topping artists. Brown identified the problem and addressed it with a two-pronged approach: he put Byrd in charge of assembling a top-notch group of multi-instrumentalists who were proficient in a number of styles, and he began experimenting with different combinations of blues, rhythm and blues, gospel, and jazz. Top Ten hits like "Think" (1960) suggested he was on the right track.
By this time Brown and the Flames were famous for their exciting live shows, and Brown wanted to try to capture the energy of his concerts on record. He presented the idea to Syd Nathan at King Records but was turned down; no one had ever released a live album of rhythm and blues, and Nathan wasn't convinced one would sell. Brown personally put up the money to record a 1962 appearance at the Apollo Theatre in New York and released the disc over Nathan's objections. It shot to number two on the Billboard charts; pop radio stations began introducing Brown to a whole new audience and prepared rock and roll for the polyrhythmic, riff-based style that emerged in "I Got You (I Feel Good)" and "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag."
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Hank Ballard, Ray Charles, Roy Brown, Sam Cooke
Must Haves:
 "I Got You (I Feel Good)"
"Cold Sweat"
"Sex Machine"
"Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud)"
Every funk, disco, and hip-hop artist, but particularly George Clinton, Bootsy Collins, Run DMC, Prince, the Ohio Players, Sly and the Family Stone
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