New York born funk legend Jimmy Castor has died at the age of 64 in Nevada.
The cause of death is as-yet-unknown, but Castor’s grandson P.J. Romain said on Twitter that his “grandfather is unresponsive at the hospital,” before breaking the news eight hours later in a tweet that said: “My grandfather Jimmy Castor died today at 2:30 on MLK day.”
Disco musician Nile Rodgers also tweeted his grief, saying: “I can’t stop crying. How do I explain how much his brilliant upbeat music touched my soul? Jimmy Castor RIP.”
Castor is best known for his hit Troglodyte (Cave Man), which was released in 1972 under the name The Jimmy Castor Bunch.
Castor’s songs have been sampled countless times by artists including Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Bentley Rhythm Ace, Bomb The Bass, Coldcut, PNAU, Ice Cube, N.W.A., Ginuine, The Beastie Boys, Kanye West and many many more.
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Check out Jimmy Castor playing Troglodyte (Cave Man) live in 1973 below:
You might also recognise this bad-ass rhythm. It’s Just Begun was sampled by the Ultramagnetic MC’s for their 1988 single Watch Me Now:
