Bernard Odum was an US bass guitar player best known for performing in James Brown's

James Brown

James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...

 band in the 1960s.

Odum started playing with Brown in 1956 and became a full-time member of Brown's band in 1958. He worked in the James Brown band until the end of the 1960s, and played on such hits as "Papa's Got A Brand New Bag

Papa's Got a Brand New Bag

"Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" is a song written and recorded by James Brown. It was released as a two-part single in 1965, and is considered seminal in the musical genre of funk.-The hit single:...

" (1965), "I Got You (I Feel Good)

I Got You (I Feel Good)

"I Got You " is a hit song by James Brown. Released as a single in 1965, it was one of Brown's signature songs, and is arguably his most widely-known recording.-Description:...

" (1965), "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" (1966), and "Cold Sweat

Cold Sweat

"Cold Sweat" is a song performed by James Brown and written by his bandleader Alfred "Pee Wee" Ellis. Brown recorded it in May 1967. An edited version of "Cold Sweat" released as a two-part single on King Records was a #1 R&B hit, and reached number seven on the Pop Singles chart...

" (1967).

In 1969, Odum and most of the other musicians in Brown's band walked out on him over a pay dispute and other issues, prompting Brown to create a new backing band, The J.B.'s

The J.B.'s

The J.B.'s were James Brown's band during the first half of the 1970s. On record the J.B.'s were sometimes billed under various alternate names such as The James Brown Soul Train, Maceo and the Macks, A.A.B.B., The First Family and The Last Word...

. In 1970, Odum briefly joined Maceo Parker's

Maceo Parker

Maceo Parker is an American funk and soul jazz saxophonist, best known for his work with James Brown in the 1960s, as well as Parliament-Funkadelic in the 1970s. Parker was a prominent soloist on many of Brown's hit recordings, and a key part of his band, playing alto, tenor and baritone saxophones...

 group, Maceo & All the King's Men, appearing on the album Doin' Their Own Thing.

Bernard Odum played a 1956 Fender Precision Bass

Fender Precision Bass

The Fender Precision Bass is an electric bass.Designed by Leo Fender as a prototype in 1950 and brought to market in 1951, the Precision was the first electric bass to earn widespread attention and use. A revolutionary instrument for the time, the Precision Bass has made an immeasurable impact on...

, strung with flatwound strings

Strings (music)

A string is the vibrating element that produces sound in string instruments, such as the guitar, harp, piano, and members of the violin family. Strings are lengths of a flexible material kept under tension so that they may vibrate freely, but controllably. Strings may be "plain"...

, throughout most of his career. He also played a Vox

Vox (musical equipment)

Vox is a musical equipment manufacturer which is most famous for making the Vox AC30 guitar amplifier, the Vox Continental electric organ, and a series of innovative but commercially unsuccessful electric guitars and bass guitars...

 "teardrop" bass as well as a 120 watt

Watt

The watt is a derived unit of power in the International System of Units , named after the Scottish engineer James Watt . The unit, defined as one joule per second, measures the rate of energy conversion.-Definition:...

 Westminster 1x18 bass combo amp when Brown and his band gained an endorsement from Vox towards the end of 1965.

Odum died of kidney failure

Renal failure

Renal failure or kidney failure describes a medical condition in which the kidneys fail to adequately filter toxins and waste products from the blood...

 at the age of 72 in his hometown of Mobile, Alabama

Mobile, Alabama

Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...

.