About Me
Biography & Reviews
When I first arrived in California in 1966, downtown Los Angeles was a hot bed of soul music. Although the psychedelic machine was churning at maximum capacity along Sunset Strip, the real action was in the clubs adjacent to Hollywood Boulevard - deep into Watts and down Crenshaw Boulevard. The same could be said on the East coast in Greenwich Village where Trudy Heller’s dance clubs reigned supreme. This is where my immersion in Rhythm and Blues took hold.There’s nothing like working six nights a week – five one-hour sets to whip a player into shape. Working with Kent Sprague of Kent & The Kandidates opened the world of Bobby Bland, Little Milton, Lowell Fulson, and ratified the universal popularity of Otis Redding, Wilson Pickett, Sam & Dave among working musicians. Club musicians came together to play the hippest sounds of the day – each new tune and funky beat came under close examination. With Kent behind the kit - the groove rarely ceased. Kent sang with urgency and bottom of the heart soulfulness.When I hit the Village it was the same for The Compliments – whose love for doo-wop and righteous Hammond B-3 took us up and down the East coast – from Maine to Jersey Shores. The set list was much the same.Here we are in 2004 looking back to the late fifties as the magic was beginning to take hold in preparation for the soul explosion.I put the word out the Saturday Nite Fish Fry was looking for fresh but old material and like a breeze from the sunny South, blues archivist Eddy B (Brake) came to the rescue. Eddy had saved near one hundred tracks from a series of radio shows broadcasted in 1990 called Midnite Mammas. The tunes came from the most obscure record labels and performers. Names like Jessie Mae, Annisteen Allen, Mary Ann Fisher, Ann Cole, Sheri Washington, Ella Johnson, appear just below the radar while blues singers Dinah Washington and Big Maybelle remain icons. You can’t even locate most the singers in books or through the Internet, but one thing holds true – the songs were great and voices – young, sexy and dynamic.Without missing a beat, I gave Shakura S’Aida the discs and let her caress a dozen tunes she could easily relate to while I went searching for my own music. The end result is Rhythm & Soul – a blend of ‘Roots’ rhythm & blues, blues and down home originals.The Fry has changed the past year with the addition of bassist Scott Alexander, drummer Davide DiRenzo, and trumpeter William Sperandi. All bands with vision seek longevity – in the end it’s the players that determine the survival and vitality of the music. These guys are amazing! My brothers in crime: alto saxophonist John Johnson, tenor man Bob Brough, baritone sax man Chris Gale, are in a class by themselves. Guitarist Neil Chapman is my main partner in making so much music. Neil never stops learning and loving music. He’s a bona fide ‘Master & Commander’ of the fretboard! With the addition of Shakura over a year ago we’ve found that soulful voice. A charismatic performer, whose warmth, talent and good nature narrows the distance between stage and audience. That’s our band – our music - Rhythm & Soul is our tribute to the last great era of popular American music.Special thanks goes out to my extremely gifted engineer Doug Romanow – wife Kristine - 7 Arts clan – Jesse and Rita King - Jim West and the crew at Fusion 111 Distribution - Standard Broadcasting’s Allan and Gary Slaight – Eddy B (Brake) for big heart and great tunes- the posse at Jazz.Fm 91.1, Lido Chilelli, Pat Taylor, Jacques Emond, Mike Tilka, Chuck Jackson, Everton Paul, Toronto Blues Society, the Indiana King family and all of our many fans.Bill King
