Funk Queen Dawn Silva Lights Up SF’s Great American Music Hall

By Genoa Barrow | OBSERVER Senior Staff WriterSAN FRANCISCO – She’s showing her age and that’s a very good thing. Sacramento-based funk singer Dawn Silva made a triumphant return to the stage recently, performing Oct. 12 at the Great American Music Hall.Silva, 70, who sang with some of the funk era’s biggest names, hit the stage with the Brides of Funkenstein. Fans of Parliament-Funkadelic will recognize the name as Silva performed with the female background singers, formed by frontman George Clinton. Classic hit after hit kept the capacity crowd on its feet. Fans didn’t have much choice as the renowned venue was standing room only, but still. They definitely tore the roof off the sucker.The pulse of the music and the musicians’ passion for it was palpable. Silva was also joined on stage by stellar musicians, platinum-selling singer and songwriter Gary Mudbone Cooper, who wrote timeless hits for Bootsy Collins’ Rubber Band, and Blackbyrd McKnight, a guitarist who performed with Parliament-Funkadelic and The Headhunters.The concert is part of Dawn Silva’s efforts to keep funk music alive. Genoa Barrow, OBSERVERSilva started out as a background singer for the iconic Sly Stone. She shares her many adventures in the music industry and...