Feelin’ the funk
The Greasy Beats get down at El Cid
By Bliss 01/03/2008
The Grammys are notoriously out of touch with what’s really happening or cutting-edge in the music world, but Amy Winehouse’s multiple nominations did offer a refreshing signal that academy members are at least somewhat aware of the ongoing renaissance in soul and funk. That lesser-known acts with longer-term potential to revitalize the field such as Ryan Shaw and Bettye LaVette also received noms was a healthy development, to say the least.
On the local level, music lovers are more likely to hear soul and funk faves spun by hip DJs than they are to experience the music performed by a live band. That’s partly due to the music’s requirements: almost by definition, soul and funk demand more expansive instrumentation — horns, extra percussion, often backup singers — than basic drum ’n’ bass or three-guitars-and-drums rock lineups.
But there are bands out there still actively preaching the gospel of James Brown, and the Greasy Beats is one of them. They don’t play out that often, but small wonder: it’s a 10-man band — and that’s before any of the special guests that are a regular feature of their performances hop onstage to join in the jam.
The other hurdle to more local gigs is simply logistics. Jazzbo bandleader and tenor/alto saxophonist Joel Bowers, who also plays with Connie Price & the Keystones, another LA-based funk outfit, is a well-seasoned sideman who’s worked with marquee acts such as Alicia Keys and Nikka Costa. His similarly well-credentialed bandmates likewise, between them, juggle gigs playing behind the likes of Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, Joss Stone, Cut Chemist, Marc Broussard and Nelly Furtado. Wrangling musicians with that many conflicting schedules is a full-time headache.
Last year the Greasy Beats carved out enough time from their day gigs to record and release “Lowdown Express,” a five-track EP of hard-kicking Brown- and Meters-style funk and old-school soul that squeezes the saucy instrumental “Chicken Lickin’ Strut” between the more insistent beats of the title track and tailor-made dance invitations like “Funky Walk.” When they make the time to hit the stage live with tunes like these, the benefit is not only some smoking-hot grooves, but also the promise of starry surprises. Audiences at past shows have been treated to spontaneous jams with special guests, including the Black Eyed Peas, Stanton Moore, members of Robert Walter’s Congress, Breakestra and Grey Boy All-Stars.
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