Song by Song: "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" Quiz

Answer: Jimmy Nolen

Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" number 34 on its 2021 list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The magazine reported the song was "a bone" James Brown threw to the King label upon learning King was "nearly bankrupt." It was the first of Brown's songs on which Jimmy Nolen played guitar. Nolen was born on April 3, 1934 and was known for his distinctive "chicken scratch" guitar style (Rolling Stone refers to it as "ice-chipper scratch.") In 2009, Mojo magazine ranked him the twelfth greatest guitarist of all time.

Answer: 1965

The single was released in June of 1965 with "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag Part II" on the B-side. Rolling Stone magazine ranked it the number 34 greatest song of all time on its 2021 list. It was recorded at Arthur Smith Studios in Charlotte, North Carolina and was both written and produced by James Brown himself.

Answer: Best Rhythm & Blues Recording

The song peaked at number one on the U.S. Billboard R&B charts and was the first song to win Brown a Grammy, in the category of Best Rhythm & Blues Recording. That year, Herb Alpert won for "Record of the Year" for "A Taste of Honey" and Frank Sinatra won Best Male Vocal Performance for "It Was a Very Good Year." Meanwhile, Tom Jones was declared Best New Artist.

Answer: true

Though James Brown had already had a number one R&B hit ( "Try Me" in 1958), "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" was the first James Brown song to enter the overall U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It peaked at number eight. He would go on to have more top-ten Hot 100 hits, including "Living in America," "I Got the Feelin'," "Cold Sweat (Part 1)," and "It's a Man's Man's Man's World."

Answer: One's characteristic way of doing things

As used in this song, to have a "brand new bag" means to have a new interest or a new way of doing things. Brown sings of an old man ready to venture out onto the dance club floor because he's got a "brand new bag," a whole new characteristic way of acting. He's not too outdated to join the young ladies at the club.

This song was sped up by a half step for release as a single in 1965, but the original version is available on the "Star Time" box set released in 1991.

Answer: swing

James Brown released an instrumental version of this song as the B-side of his 1965 single "Try Me." The Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band covered the song on their 1968 album titled "Together." In 1970, James Brown included a big band version of "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" on his "Soul on Top" album. This version had a jazz arrangement and was performed with Louie Bellson's Orchestra.

Answer: drag

Live performances of "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" are included on five different James Brown albums, including "Live at the Apollo 1995." The Fabulous Echoes covered this song in 1965 on their album "Lovin' Feeling," while in 1999 the Sugarman 3 covered it on "Sugar's Boogaloo."

Answer: clean

"Line" is a term that describes the outline of a dancer's body while performing steps or poses. "Clean" choreography is defined as movement with perfect legibility, and to have a line that is pretty clean suggests the singer is a good dancer.

The Residents included a German version of "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" on their 1974 album "Third Reich N Roll," and the song was covered in Arabic by the Moroccan musician Faddoul in 1971.

Answer: Mashed Potatoes

James Brown was the first to popularize "the mashed potato" at his concerts beginning in 1959. The dance is similar to the twist. American R&B singer Dee Dee Sharp had a song called "Mashed Potato Time" and the dance is mentioned in the lyrics of "Do You Love Me," which was written by Berry Gordy, Jr. and popularized by The Contours in 1962, at which point the "mashed potato" became an international dance craze. To perform this dance move, one steps backward with one foot and tilts the heel of that foot inward and places it just behind the other foot.

Then he uses the weight on the ball of the starting foot to swivel the heel outward. He repeats the process with the other foot, and on and on...

Answer: The hustle

The hustle was popularized in 1975, after this song came out.

"Oh papa, he's doing the jerk." The jerk was a 1960s dance fad similar to the monkey, where the dancer moves his or her arms and hands as if conducting music.

"He's doing the twist, just like this." The twist was a dance craze that began in 1959 and remained popular throughout the 60s. It was popularized by Chubby Checker in his song, "The Twist," which was released in 1960.

"He's doing the fly every day and every night." The fly was another dance move popularized by Chubby Checker in the 1960s.

James Brown also mentions "the Boomerang" in his song.