Page 7 - BiTS_05_MAY_2023

Charles Emanuel Sherrell aka 'Sweet
Charles’

March 8, 1943—March 29, 2023

Sweet Charles was an R&B and funk musician (bass,
guitar, keyboards) and singer best know for his long
time work with James Brown.

Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Sherrell began his
career playing drums with fellow Nashville
residents Jimi Hendrix and Billy Cox, practicing
at a club a block from Hendrix's residence.
Sherrell learned to play the guitar by washing
Curtis Mayfield’s Jaguar in exchange for guitar
lessons.

Sherrell soon began teaching himself to play the bass
after buying one from a local pawn shop for $69,
which led him to join Johnny Jones & The King
Kasuals Band, Aretha Franklin's backing group.

Sherrell joined James Brown's band in August 1968,
replacing Tim Drummond after Drummond
contracted hepatitis in Vietnam. He played on some

of Brown's most famous recordings of the late
1960s, including the #1 R&B hits ‘Say It Loud - I'm
Black and I'm Proud’, ‘Mother Popcorn’, and ‘Give It
Up or Turn it Loose’ and more. Brown credited him
with being his first bassist to incorporate playing
techniques such as thumping on the strings that
were later adopted by other players, including
Bootsy Collins.

In the 1970s, Sherrell rejoined Brown and
performed with The J.B.'s. He later played with Al
Green and Maceo & All the King's Men. He played
bass on Beau Dollar's ‘Who Knows’, on Marva Whitney's and Lyn Collins album. He sang on a
few of Maceo Parker's albums. He also released some recordings with the band Past Present &
Future with friends Wade Conklin, Sam Pugh, Ted Hughes, Gail Whitefield, Thomas Smith, and
James Nixon. He also recorded under the name Sweet Charles, including his first solo album,
“Sweet Charles: For Sweet People”, on James Brown's label People Records and the “Sweet
Charles Sherrell Universal Love” album in 2017. Full discography here

A long time sufferer from emphysema, Charles battled the disease for many years until his heart
gave out. Charles Sherrell died on March 29, 2023, at his home in The Netherlands.

Constructed from Wikipedia and other sources