Bionic Funk, a term initially coined by Frank Zappa in the late 1970s, became the banner under which this short-lived outfit from Jacksonville, Florida poured forth its extra smooth strain of jazz-inflected funk. Led by guitarist Michael Ray Fitzgerald, the group started out as a six-piece playing instrumental covers of Bob James, Grover Washington, Gato Barbieri, and Eumir Deodato.

Over time, they slimmed down to four members and explored a more vocal-forward sound before eventually disbanding in 1978. Keep On Pullin’ lives on as the band’s only recording committed to wax. The two-part 7” was cut at Jacksonville’s Warehouse Studio in August 1977 and released on Fitzgerald’s own Brand X Records shortly after. In the decades since, it’s become somewhat of a grail for 45 collectors around the world.

Listen to “Keep on Pullin’ (Part 1 + 2)” on Anthology’s new playlist: That Was Now, This Is Then