American artist and singer Gary 'Mudbone' Cooper or 'Muddy' as he is affectionately known, sings with such energy and presence that he was tagged the 'baby James Brown', opening shows and performances for the likes of Stevie Wonder, the Funkadelics and many others. He sang professionally with James Brown's former bassist William 'Bootsy' Collins, together forming 'Bootsy's Rubber Band'. Muddy co-wrote 'Rather Be With You', the song that landed them their first record deal.
Muddy describes himself as a 'chameleon-like' singer whereby his voice moves, changes and adapts to the nature of the music. This description is apt when listening to the people Mudbone has worked with: Prince, Herbie Hancock, James Brown, Sly Stone, Larry Graham, Lauren Hill, Dr Dre, Ice Cube, Bill Laswell, Bernie Worrell, Keith Richards, Lenny Kravitz, and the Red Hot Chilli Peppers to name but a few.
