Amp Fiddler, Funk Musician With Allstar Collaborations, Dies Aged 65
Joseph Fiedler, the funk musician known as Amp Fiedler who was known for his solo work and collaborations with musicians across generations, has died at the age of 65.
“The funk, soul and electronic music musician, producer, Afro-futurist and lighthouse for many in Detroit has passed away at the age of 65,” a statement on social media said. “And a noble fight against cancer. He is wonderfully peaceful and strong now. He relaxes."
Born and raised in Detroit, the violinist began playing keyboards and creating demos of his own works. One of them made it to Parliament - Funkadelic's George Clinton, who invited Fiedler to work with him in 1984. The violinist toured with the band for more than ten years and performed with the band on Prince's song "We Can Funk." He also played on sessions with Warren Zevon and Was (He Wasn't) in the 1980s.
In the 1990s, the violinist played on early demos for neo-soul singer Maxwell and contributed to his double-platinum debut album, Urban Hang Suite. He appeared on Seal's second album (with the hit Kiss From A Rose), Primal Scream's Give Out But Don't Give Up and Charles and Eddie's international hit "Did I Lie to You?"
By collaborating with the Detroit house producer Moodymann, he broke new ground in his style. “Many of us in Detroit did something for each other,” Fidler said later. “We give so much to each other without much expectation or ego.”
Another great Detroiter Fiedler went up against was young J Dilla. Vidler taught the hip-hop producer how to use the MPC sampler, which became an important part of his work, and introduced him to A Tribe Called Quest's Q-Tip, thereby exposing his work to a wider audience. . Dilla and Fiedler were also creative partners, with the producer writing several songs on Fiedler's most commercially successful solo album, Amp Fiedler's 2004 debut Waltz of a Ghetto Fly (the album was released under Mr. Fiedler's name in 1990).
Corinne Bailey Rae was one of the guests on Afro Strut's next album after a long collaboration with Inspiration Information Sly and Robbie. After a break, he returned with Motor City Booty in 2016 and released three more albums, most recently Basementality in 2021.
His connections to the world of dance music remained, contributing to records such as Carl Craig, Model 500, Basement Jax and Scuba. His most recent work is co-writing Omnichord Real Book, the latest album from neo-soul singer Michele Ndegeocello.
Broadcast and brand president Gil Peterson, among others, paid tribute to the violinist, calling him "a Royal Detroiter...a major influence on musicians around the world - he connected generations and worlds...and was a mentor to many."
“Calm down bro,” wrote drummer and director Questlove. Pfunk tour time for all conversations. For all music. Plus of course our partner [Della] is with a person, thanks bro.”
