James Brown

St. James Encyclopedia of Pop Culture, Jan 29, 2002 by Willie Collins

In the midst of his travails during the 1970s, Brown turned to religion and also sought the legal help of William Kunstler. He broke with Polydor Records and began to play in rock clubs in New York. He appeared in several films, including the role of a gospel-singing preacher in The Blues Brothers (1980), a part in Dr. Detroit (1983), and a cameo appearance in Rocky IV (1985), in which he sang "Living in America." It reached number four on the pop charts, his first hit in more than a decade.

Even after these triumphs, Brown again began encountering trouble with the law. In December, 1988 he was dealt two concurrent six-year prison sentences for resisting arrest and traffic violations during an incident in Atlanta in September of that year, when he had brandished a shotgun in a dispute over the use of his private bathroom in his office. After a high-speed police chase and charges of driving under the influence of drugs, he was arrested and convicted only aggravated assault and failing to stop for a police car. As he explained to Jesse Jackson, "I aggravated them and they assaulted me." He was paroled in 1991, after appeals by Jackson, Little Richard, Rev. Al Sharpton, and others. Brown continued to tour and record in the 1990s. He appeared at New York's Paramount Theater in March, 1992, with his new band, the Soul Generals and his female backup group, the Bittersweets. In 1994, his name again appeared on the crime-blotter pages in an incident involving the assault of his wife, Adrienne. Four years later, in 1998, he was charged with possession of marijuana and unlawful use of a firearm.

In the 1990s, Brown became a vocal supporter of the campaign to suppress X-rated lyrics in rap songs by asking rap artists not to include samples of his songs in such works. It was estimated by one critic that 3,000 house and hip-hop records have made use of his original music since the 1980s. In 1987, Brown was one of the first ten charter members elected to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and in 1992, he was honored at the American Music Awards ceremonies with an Award of Merit for his lifetime contribution to the genre.