Funkentelechy vs. the Placebo Syndrome is the sixth studio album by the American funk band Parliament, released on November 28, 1977, on Casablanca Records.
Funkentelechy is a loose concept album set within the P-Funk mythology warning of the dangers of the "Placebo Syndrome", which according to bandleader George Clinton consists of consumerism and disco music, which he saw as a crass commercialized variant of funk. The album spawned the R&B number No. 1 single "Flash Light", which features a prominent synthesizer bass line played on a Minimoog by keyboardist Bernie Worrell. The album became Parliament's fourth consecutive gold album and second platinum album. The song "Sir Nose d'Voidoffunk (Pay Attention â B3M)" quotes the nursery rhymes "Baa, Baa, Black Sheep" and "Three Blind Mice", with lyrics altered to refer to drug use.
The original vinyl release contained a 22â³ÃÂ33â³ poster of the character Sir Nose D'Voidoffunk, as well as an 8-page comic book that explains the album's concept. Both the poster and the comic book were illustrated by Overton Loyd.
The Globe and Mail praised the "superb" backing vocals of the Brides of Funkenstein. The New York Times wrote that "the music is typical P-Funk bouncing disco, lively and toe-tapping, with gabbling spoken and sung vocals on top."
American alternative rock band Urge Overkill named themselves after a lyric in "Funkentelechy".
According to George Clinton, Mallia Franklin also sang on this album with other original Parlet members Debbie Wright and Jeanette Washington but she is not listed on the album's credits.
Horn arrangement by Bernie Worrell and Fred Wesley