Setlist
Tour Dates
01/03/15 Madison, WI Majestic Theater
06/24/15 Rochester International Jazz Festival 06/25/15 Rochester International Jazz Festival 06/28/15 Saratoga Performing Arts Center 08/31/15 Saint Paul, MN MN State Fairgrounds 09/01/15 Saint Paul, MN MN State Fairgrounds Read More
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James Brown said, “Santa’s got a brand new bag…”
…and Minneapolis was left an early, funky Christmas present in the form of Sonny Knight and The Lakers playing four shows over two nights at the Dakota Jazz Club, to record an upcoming live album.
The band was back in town after touring almost non-stop since the April debut of I’m Still Here (Secret Stash Records) and made plans to mix and record the shows live to tape, to capture the “lighting in a bottle” that has come to be quickly associated with Knight and The Lakers’ in-concert performances.
The story goes, if you need a refresher, is that the 66 yr. old Knight recorded his first single with band The Cymbals, in 1965 on New Teenage Records when he was just 17. A stint in the Army, some time spent in the Bay Area, a brief outing with local funk band Haze, and miscellaneous jobs followed, before local group The Valdons were resurrected in 2012 for the initial Secret Stash compilation album, then followed by The Lakers – an overnight success that only took 50 years.
Knight’s seven piece backing band are no musical slouches either, as The Lakers (Guitar: Blair Krivanek; Bass: Casey O'Brien; Drums: Eric Foss; Organ: Sam Harvey-Carson; Tenor Sax: Cole Pulice; Trumpet: Bryan Highhill; Trombone: Tony Beaderstadt) keep a tight but loose lid on the funk and soul as Knight does his thing on stage.
Drummer Foss is the backbone of the band, as well as a co-founder of the label, and from what we saw at the first night’s late show, guitarist Krivanek was the unassuming secret weapon; standing almost stationery in the near shadows, but moving deftly from funky rhythm guitar to wailing blues riffs.
The group’s 75 min. late show set was well received by a mostly older crowd, that was most receptive to the band’s Dap Kings-like tip of the hat to the classic Stax and Atlantic Soul records of the 60’s and 70’s.
As has become tradition with soul revues, The Lakers began the evening with an introductory instrumental to get the party started, followed by Knight’s entrance for local hit, ‘Juicy Lucy’ followed by ‘Get Up and Dance’ with Knight announcing, “I need a lot of noise!”
The three piece horn section was clearly having a good time up front, with trumpeter Highhill often engaging Knight in call-and-response and the brass instruments moving up-and-down and side-to-side in unison. Tempo only slowed momentarily with the bluesy ‘In the Pines’, before being recharged with a driving and sped up organ-anchored cover of The Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper’.
“This is my ‘have-some-fun’ song”, Knight announced, getting loose again as guitarist Krivanek laid down a speedily strummed rhythm, accented by Harvey-Carson’s nimble organ playing. Not only socking it to the audience, Knight directing The Lakers had them “hit it” as many as 20 times, making people jump out of their seats in time to the beat as the Dakota was slowly transformed by the funk emanating into a backwoods juke joint.
After the upbeat boogaloo of ‘Caveman’, complete with Knight grunting and shambling in character, the band left briefly before re-emerging for an instrumental number which then segued into Knight’s anthem of resilience and album’s title track, ‘I’m Still Here’ (instead of ‘Sugar Man’ as on the setlist).
‘Hey Girl’ ended the night triumphantly, with Knight pointing to females all over the club during the chorus and sax player Pulice getting a funky solo mid-song.
“Thank you for coming out—you made a big difference in our lives”, Knight said just before leaving the stage. As a funky early Christmas wish being granted, most in the club thought the feeling was mutual.
Sonny Knight at Dakota Jazz Club (Sign)
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The band was back in town after touring almost non-stop since the April debut of I’m Still Here (Secret Stash Records) and made plans to mix and record the shows live to tape, to capture the “lighting in a bottle” that has come to be quickly associated with Knight and The Lakers’ in-concert performances.
The story goes, if you need a refresher, is that the 66 yr. old Knight recorded his first single with band The Cymbals, in 1965 on New Teenage Records when he was just 17. A stint in the Army, some time spent in the Bay Area, a brief outing with local funk band Haze, and miscellaneous jobs followed, before local group The Valdons were resurrected in 2012 for the initial Secret Stash compilation album, then followed by The Lakers – an overnight success that only took 50 years.
The Lakers
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Drummer Foss is the backbone of the band, as well as a co-founder of the label, and from what we saw at the first night’s late show, guitarist Krivanek was the unassuming secret weapon; standing almost stationery in the near shadows, but moving deftly from funky rhythm guitar to wailing blues riffs.
The group’s 75 min. late show set was well received by a mostly older crowd, that was most receptive to the band’s Dap Kings-like tip of the hat to the classic Stax and Atlantic Soul records of the 60’s and 70’s.
As has become tradition with soul revues, The Lakers began the evening with an introductory instrumental to get the party started, followed by Knight’s entrance for local hit, ‘Juicy Lucy’ followed by ‘Get Up and Dance’ with Knight announcing, “I need a lot of noise!”
Sonny Knight & the Lakers
|
“This is my ‘have-some-fun’ song”, Knight announced, getting loose again as guitarist Krivanek laid down a speedily strummed rhythm, accented by Harvey-Carson’s nimble organ playing. Not only socking it to the audience, Knight directing The Lakers had them “hit it” as many as 20 times, making people jump out of their seats in time to the beat as the Dakota was slowly transformed by the funk emanating into a backwoods juke joint.
Setlist
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‘Hey Girl’ ended the night triumphantly, with Knight pointing to females all over the club during the chorus and sax player Pulice getting a funky solo mid-song.
“Thank you for coming out—you made a big difference in our lives”, Knight said just before leaving the stage. As a funky early Christmas wish being granted, most in the club thought the feeling was mutual.
Sonny Knight and The Lakers at Dakota Jazz Club, Minneapolis (18 Dec 2014 late show) |