King Johnson cooks up meaty funk-blues stew By Woody Mitchell The Charlotte Observer Published: 3/28/01 King Johnson In the blues market, most bands pin their hopes on either a guitar monster or a snappy horn section. When both come in one package - with a funked-out rhythm section to boot - what's not to like? King Johnson, playing at the Double Door Inn tonight, works out of Atlanta but sounds so gumbo-steeped, you immediately think New Orleans. Then, as the breadth of their scope displays itself - from sho-nuf funk to Big Easy R&B to roadhouse blues to jazzy embroidery - you realize this band is something special. Guitarist Oliver Wood (brother of Medeski, Martin & Wood bassist Chris Wood) worked with Tinsley Ellis in the early '90s. Wood and bassist Chris Long founded the band in 1995 as a blues trio built around their soulful vocals and Wood's gritty guitar chops. They soon added New Orleans-schooled drummer Greg Baba and began to develop a sound far beyond the blues-band formula. About three years ago, they added a horn section (trombonist Adam Mewherter and Western N.C. saxman Marcus James) and have maintained that lineup since - no mean feat for a hard-traveling regional band intent on making it to the next level. Getting the blues-based mojo working relies on forging a tight band that sounds loose, attainable only by developing chemistry and consistency through working together - and it's beginning to pay off for KJ. The rhythm section puts on a clinic, rolling out a magic carpet for the horns to pop and the guitar to snarl, often spiraling into jazzy jams - whiffs of the Meters, James Brown, Little Feat, Miles Davis. Every style the band attacks rides a groove supreme. Confidence in that groove motivated the band to record its recent album "Luck So Strange" live in the studio - and it's evident every time the group takes the stage.

ABOUT THE BAND King Johnson Music Type: Jazz, Rock EVENT TIMES Double Door Inn 218 E Independence Blvd Charlotte, NC 28204 (704) 376-1446 Concert Times 3/30 9:00 p.m. Ticket Prices $7 Ticket Info Call 704-376-1446

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