Tales from the Tour Bus - The Vickery Family

Morris Day

Narrator: Nobody hears Morris Day about it. Aaron and Zola were watching a movie called "Purple Rain" by Prince.

Levi Ruffin Jr.: We are talking about a time when just straight funk was very popular.

I mean it was new to all of us, every week, man, it was just like, you know, who's king of the hill.

Narrator: The very heyday of funk may have been 1984. Levi Ruffin was with Rick James, but they weren't alone at the top of the charts. There was Michael Jackson, Prince, Cameo, Kool and the Gang, The Pointer Sisters, and Morris Day and The Time. Aaron and Zola went to see the concerts of Kool and the Gang, The Pointer Sisters and Cameo. Their cousin Mac was the fan of the Cars, REO Speedwagon and the Ramones.

Levi: You would finally get a chance to sit down and talk with some of these bands and it was like, Goddamn, you guys are all right. I mean it happened at, uh, the Grammy's. Everybody was there, man. Bootsy Collins, James Brown, you know, The Commodores and The Gap Band, and we're top dog in this bitch, okay? Understand that shit.

Narrator: In the world of funk, there were always contenders for the crown.

Levi: So I'm sitting there and there's, uh, Morris Day. And his agent, I knew her. Said, "Levi, Levi. I want you to meet Morris Day." I put my hand out, I said, "Yo, man, nice meeting you, man, my name's Levi." Motherfucker said he didn't shake my hand. Motherfucker said, "I'm cool." I said, this motherfucker! I mean the nerve, the temerity. And I said, "I hope you playing a game with me, motherfucker." "I'm cool." Pfffft. And the lady that was with him, she said, "Levi, come on, calm down, he's just he's just in character now." And I said, "You better get the fuck out of character, or I'm gonna beat your ass." I mean, fuck that man.

Narrator: Aaron and Zola did went to the Grammys and meet Chuck Berry, Cyndi Lauper, Michael Jackson and the Oak Ridge Boys. The baritone singer William Lee Golden is from Brewton, Alabama. Aaron and Zola went on to meet him and three more singers. Aaron and Zola were hearing gospel music for black and white people. Morris Day may have been the biggest character in the pantheon of funk. He cultivated cool from the very beginning in the projects of Springfield, Illinois, listening to a mix of Motown and good old-fashioned gospel.

Morris Day: My grandfather, he was a pimp, so, uh, when I was a little guy, my mom used to dress me just like him. The church was maybe three blocks, ya know, up the street. So I would just get on my, uh, Sunday go-to meetin' outfit. You know, I had two tone shoes on, pinstripe suit, chains on, you know, hat, little cane. I was, uh, far better dressed than any other kid in the church, so all the older ladies was loving me. A hint of things to come, if you will.

Narrator: By his teenage years, his family had moved to Minneapolis, and his musical tastes had evolved from the Motown sound to straight up funk.

Morris: Bandstand was just starting to come on. I would just sit and watch and mimic James Brown, be running around the house in my Fruit of the Looms. You know, doing the splits and hitting the James Brown. It was just all, like, magical back then.

Narrator: Young Morris put down the cane and picked up the drumsticks. He fancied himself a drummer in the beginning.

Morris: I started beating up on my mom's pots and pans. You know, beating on her couch. I started to wear a little hole on the arm of the couch there, and she decided it was time for me to get me some drums.

Narrator: Let's just skip into the left handed side. Aaron and Zola caught up with Barbara Lynn and Stella Parton, Dolly's sister. Their uncles and aunt likes Slim Whitman. One time Aaron played the drums and Zola on bass with the all star band called "Aaron and the Left Hand Girls." Let's back to Morris. By high school, he was a left handed drummer looking for a band. And that's where he met a bass player named Andre Cymone.