Fred Thomas

Fred Thomas is a bassist and singer who anchored James Brown's band, the J.B.'s, as principal bassist from 1971 onward, holding the chair for more than three decades. His playing drives Brown classics including Make It Funky, Hot Pants, and Papa Don't Take No Mess, grooves later sampled widely across hip hop. He came to New York in 1965 and was leading his own band with guitarist Hearlon Cheese Martin when Brown discovered the group at Harlem's Smalls Paradise in 1971 and hired them whole. Since Brown's death in 2006 Thomas has fronted his own group, releasing his first solo singles in 2024, and remains a working fixture on the New York funk and jazz scene.