Arlester “Dyke” Christian

Born: June 13, 1943, in Buffalo, New York
Died: March 13, 1971, in Phoenix, Arizona
Bands: Dyke & the Blazers, The O’Jays

Dyke grew up in a rough part of Buffalo, New York, and learned to be street wise at an early age. He played bass and sang backing vocals for the O’Jays and in 1965 he found himself stranded with half the band in Phoenix. Not one to stay put, Dyke stepped up to the microphone, hired a few local musicians, and began playing James Brown-style soul as Dyke and the Blazers. Dyke and the Blazers’ 1966 record “Funky Broadway” became a hit (but an even bigger hit for Wilson Pickett who covered it the following year). The band played the legendary Apollo in NYC and James Brown stopped by their dressing room to say hi.

“Funky Broadway” was the first song to have the word funk in the title and after it funk as a musical genre became synonymous with the syncopated rhythm pioneered by Dyke and the Blazers. Arlester Christian was shot several times while sitting in his car in down town Phoenix and died leaving a powerful albeit little known legacy. Listen to old James Brown, then pull out his 1967 “Cold Sweat” single and you’ll hear Dyke’s influence.