Provogue (label)
24 February 2014 (released)
03 March 2014
Once you get past the “Wow Joe Bonamassa” thing and start listening to this album you will swiftly see that it is probably the best funk jam to be released in years – I mean hard funk, deep groove and six of the best musicians around stretching out and having a good time.
Indulgent? Probably but you’ll only work that out after you have danced your ass off like a loon for 2 hours.
RCFP are Tal Bergman on drums, Ron DeJesus and Joe Bonamassa on guitars, Renato Neto on keys, Mike Merritt bass and Daniel Sadovnick on percussion. They are not a band – they are a bunch of musicians who get together to party and being musicians they party hard. To quote Bonamassa “I love playing with this group because we all make music for the same reason. Pure Joy” or Mike Merritt “I’ll play with this band anytime, anywhere” or Tal Bergman “This band is fuelled by pure fun” – get the picture?
OK, I’m stretching the point but this is everything they say it is. The two CDs shimmer with the virtuosity on display but while the guys are jamming, taking turns and getting as flash as they like they are always playing together.
Some of the best moments from the original album are featured here: ‘Octopus-e’ gets them working before they rip into ‘Work’ and a lovely ‘New York Song’ and hard edged ‘Spaziastic’ at a hundred miles an hour closes out the first CD.
CD2 takes you on a journey through ‘Ode to Gee’ which just groooooves slow and easy before the supreme funk of ‘Dope on a Rope’. ‘Mr Clean’ will test your hi-fi to the extremes with deep basslines and subtle percussion and the closer, Miles Davis’ ‘One Phone Call’, gives jazz/rock fusion to die for.
The DVD side of the package is well recorded and the visuals are excellent, the joy of the players shining through.
I cannot wait for them to come and play in the UK but in the meantime this is an excellent taste of what New York has been enjoying for a while – I’m jealous as heck.
