Stars, fans pack arena for James Brown funeral

AUGUSTA, Georgia (Reuters) - Civil rights leaders, entertainers and fans turned out in force on Saturday at a funky funeral for James Brown, whose music and message embodied a generation of revolutionary change for black Americans.

Even singer Michael Jackson made a rare public appearance, entering the funeral to massive applause as Brown's band, The Soul Generals, performed Brown's old hits to an overwhelmingly black crowd of 9,000.

Brown's body lay in an open-topped golden coffin in front of the stage at the James Brown Arena, which was renamed in honor of Augusta's most famous native son in August. He died of congestive heart failure on Christmas Day at the age of 73.

The legendary showman, known as the "Godfather of Soul," was dressed in a black suit and gloves with a ruby red shirt. Jewels sparkled on his lapels and the tips of his shoes.

It was his third costume change in three days, CNN reported, following a private funeral on Friday and a viewing of his body at the Apollo Theater in New York the day before.

Brown's music, with its staccato horns and guitars and his often explosive vocals, brought funk into the mainstream and has influenced pop and dance music since the 1950s. Hip-hop artists revere him, often using his beats in their own songs.

"The whole world changed their beat because of James Brown," civil rights leader Al Sharpton said in a eulogy. "Nobody started lower and ended higher than James Brown did."

In a brief speech Jackson, who wore a black leather jacket, black pants and sunglasses, said he'd watched Brown perform on television as a 6-year-old and was "mesmerized," deciding right then to follow in Brown's fancy footsteps.

"James Brown is my greatest inspiration," said Jackson, who has spent little time in the United States since being acquitted of child molestation charges in 2005.

BLACK AND PROUD

Much of the emphasis at the funeral was on Brown's politics and his passionate advocacy of civil rights, the movement that overturned a brutal system of racial segregation that grew out of slavery and prevailed in southern U.S. states until the 1960s.

Brown's 1968 song "Say It Loud (I'm Black and I'm Proud)" became an anthem for the civil rights and Black Power movements and Brown became a symbol of black achievement.

In a passionate speech, comedian and activist Dick Gregory reminded the audience of the oppressive racial environment of Brown's early life rather than simply focusing on his music.

"We didn't get this (civil rights) out of the goodness of America's heart," he said. "We didn't get this because they sent the Marines in ... We got this because with love and willing to die we said, 'We gonna change it."'

That sentiment was echoed in interviews by many fans.

"James Brown in my opinion is the greatest singer of all time and I am his number one fan," said Jesse Williamson, 59, who said he first saw Brown perform in 1963.

Williamson said his own youth was "a humiliating time (to be black) but as time went on Martin Luther King, James Brown and others made a difference" in overcoming segregation.

Rapper M.C. Hammer and bass player Bootsy Collins also attended the funeral and civil rights leader Jesse Jackson gave a closing address.

Some fans waited from 9 p.m. on Friday for the start of the public viewing of Brown's body and many people crowded outside the packed arena unable to get in.

Brown was born in South Carolina and and began his musical career while a juvenile offender in jail.

He later settled in Augusta, also known for the Master's golf tournament. The city has erected a statue of Brown, who earned a reputation for charitable giving and eating at local restaurants.

Brown's personal life was turbulent and in 1988 he was jailed for three years for drug and weapons charges.

He had 119 hits including "Please, Please, Please," "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag," "It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World" and "Living in America" but his musical influence outweighed his chart success.

Brown, who insisted on being called Mr. Brown, styled himself "the hardest-working man in show business" and performed more than 100 live shows this year. He was due to perform on New Year's Eve in New York's Times Square.