One of the most important figures in the history of funk and R&B and a direct influence not only on disco, but on today's hip hop culture, George Clinton formed Parliament in the backroom of a barbershop, in 1955. In the late 1960s, legal issues with his record label forced Clinton to change the name of the band to Funkadelic, releasing albums and touring throughout the 1970s with both bands, under essentially the same line-up. With their famously extravagant onstage antics and costumes, Parliament scored their first number one in 1977 with Flash Light, from the platinum album Funkentelechy. Since 1981, Clinton has enjoyed a rewarding solo career, with albums Computer Games in 1982 and most recently, George Clinton and his Gangsters of Love in 2008.