Robert Lusson & Some Cast Of Characters - Free James Brown (3:41)
On September 24, 1988 James Brown went kinda nuts in Augusta, Georgia resulting in a total of 11 charges, including assault and battery with intent to kill, drunken driving, and a host of traffic offenses. According to JET magazine, the incident began when Brown dropped in on an insurance seminar in an office building he owned and demanded to know who had been using his restroom.
Brandishing a shotgun, Brown emphatically made clear his displeasure at the idea of the public using the bathroom in his office building and ordered the seminar attendees outside. One of them called the police and when they arrived, Brown fled in his 1987 Ford pickup truck. The police pursued him into South Carolina, where they shot out the truck's back tires. Despite this, the chase continued for another six miles and back into Georgia at which point Brown, driving on his rims, finally steered his truck into a ditch.
In December 1988, the Godfather Of Soul was sentenced to 6 years in the State Park Correctional Institution near Columbia, South Carolina. The groundswell of love and support from writers, DJs, fans, and his peers came to be known as the "Free James Brown" movement.
Brown was released on February 27, 1991 after serving approximately 26 months.
WOW! I've never heard that before. I did see JB at the Fulton County Stadium, after his release. It was an all day party.
Posted by: Debbie D | September 23, 2009 at 09:45 AM
He must have gotten out "on love" like this vid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9tfNhL_R_rI
Posted by: danomatika | September 23, 2009 at 11:35 AM
I gotta dig out my "Free James Brown" t-shirt that I bought in '88 on the street in Chicago.
Posted by: Pedro | September 23, 2009 at 02:08 PM
A friend of mine had his picture taken with Brown while Brown was being processed to go to jail, and used the picture for his Christmas card that year.
Posted by: Listner Jim | September 23, 2009 at 03:39 PM
This is rich. Anybody remember Foetus' "Free James Brown (So He Can Run Me Down)"? It was featured as the B-side of the WaxTrax! EP noted below:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Butterfly_Potion
Posted by: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=541108464 | September 24, 2009 at 02:33 AM
There's also Pop Will Eat Itself-Not Now James, We're Busy... It samples the Godfather himself as the Poppies describe his exploits on that legendary day. Good stuff!
Posted by: Ernie (Not Bert) | September 24, 2009 at 08:53 AM
I was watching MTV with a friend around the time of JB's incarceration and the video the the Beastie Boys' "Hey Ladies" came on, featuring the text-supported interjection "Free James Brown"... when a friend of mine pursed her lips and said "I should hope so, who'd pay for James Brown?" What can I say, she had no soul.
All you haters, forget it. Leadbelly was pardoned multiple times, why not the Godfather of Soul? Besides, if Foetus or PWEI ended up in the slammer, hardly anyone would notice, let alone give a toss.
Posted by: Mogamboid | September 24, 2009 at 01:50 PM
You forgot to mention the prominent role angel dust, that elixir of the gods, played in this incident. One of the many entertaining results of this whole fiasco was the CD of JB-voiced anti-drug PSAs that has been on the shelves at all three radio stations I've worked at. It is a paradigm example of deep insincerity: "Drugs are bad," JB intones repeatedly, and sounds higher and less believable each time he says it.
Posted by: Dan B | September 30, 2009 at 12:58 AM