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11/7/2003

Chris Davis

The Bo-Keys have quite the resume. When you listen to Rufus Thomas' "Do the Funky Chicken," that's Bo-Keys keyboardist Ronnie Williams playing the piano. When you listen to Isaac Hayes' Hot Buttered Soul, that's Bo-Keys drummer Willie Hall laying down the beats. Sax player Jim Spake has backed everyone from Ike Turner and Al Green to Jerry Lee Lewis and Screamin' Jay Hawkins. And if the awesome wah-wah guitar at the beginning of Isaac Hayes' "Theme from Shaft" has ever put a grin on your face, you've got the Bo-Keys' effects-obsessed guitar player Skip Pitts to thank for it. The Bo-Keys may have come into existence as an ad-hoc backing band for "Mustang Sally" author Sir Mack Rice, but the group has evolved over time into their own thing. The Royal Sessions, the Bo-Keys' first CD, for Yellow Dog Records, is a rock-solid example of (mostly) instrumental soul in the spirit of Booker T. & the MGs. Their sound is a little more laid-back and a little less urgent than the Stax bands they pay homage to but every bit as funky. Let's call it a cocktail groove. The CD-release party for The Royal Sessions is scheduled for Saturday, November 8th, at 9 p.m. at the Blue Monkey's Midtown location on Madison. Word has it that certifiable soul royalty Carla Thomas will be making a special guest appearance. You can't beat that. -- Chris Davis