Brick: The Pioneers of Jazz-Funk and Disco

Brick is an American band from Atlanta, Georgia, celebrated for their innovative fusion of jazz, funk, and disco in the 1970s. Their signature sound, built on live horns and danceable rhythms, achieved mainstream success with the 1976 platinum single "Dazz."

Early career

The band was formed in Atlanta in 1972, originally under the name "Brick Wall." The core founding members included vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Jimmy Brown and drummer Regi Hargis. They honed their craft on the local club circuit, developing a unique instrumental approach that would later be dubbed "dazz music."

Their early independent releases caught the attention of the Bang Records label, which signed the group and streamlined their name to simply "Brick." This partnership set the stage for their national breakthrough, leveraging the label's distribution to reach a wider audience during the peak of the disco era.

Breakthrough

Brick's major breakthrough arrived in 1976 with the release of their debut album, Good High, on Bang Records. The album's lead single, "Dazz," became a crossover phenomenon, topping the Billboard R&B chart and climbing to number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100. The infectious instrumental track was certified platinum by the RIAA for sales exceeding one million copies.

Key tracks

Dazz — This platinum-certified instrumental defined their "dazz" sound and became their biggest pop and R&B chart hit.

Dusic — Another major instrumental hit from the Good High album that solidified their reputation for catchy, horn-driven grooves.

Ain't Gonna Hurt Nobody — A smooth, vocal-led single from their 1978 album Stoneheart that showcased their versatility beyond instrumentals.

Following this explosive success, Brick continued to release albums throughout the late 1970s, including Stoneheart (1977) and Waiting on You (1979). Their music remained a staple on R&B and disco playlists, though they never quite replicated the massive chart impact of "Dazz." The band's influence persisted, as their recordings became heavily sampled by hip-hop producers in the following decades. Their work has been interpolated by artists like Blackstreet and sampled by N.W.A., linking their 1970s funk to later genres.

Artists exploring similar grooves from the same era include Kool And The Gang for their vibrant brass sections and party anthems. Earth Wind And Fire shared a commitment to sophisticated musicality within dance music. For the instrumental funk side, The Bar-Kays offer a comparable high-energy, horn-led approach. The jazz-funk fusion is also evident in the work of The Crusaders, who blended genres in a similarly inventive manner.

Brick's classic tracks remain in heavy rotation on specialty radio formats, particularly on classic soul and funk stations, 70s disco channels, and online radio streams dedicated to vintage dance music. Their enduring hits are frequently featured in curated playlists that celebrate the foundational sounds of funk and disco.

You can experience the pioneering jazz-funk sound of Brick on radio stations featured on our website. Listeners can discover their iconic music, including the timeless hit "Dazz," through the classic R&B and funk radio stations available on onairium.com.