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 King Johnson, Merl Saunders to By Michael Stutz
Merl Saunders has been playing his unique style of music for more than four decades. Not quite jazz and not really funk, blues, folk or new age, Saunders’ musical taste is too eclectic for classification. “The opportunity fell into our laps a couple months ago,” King Johnson guitarist/vocalist Oliver Wood said. “What Merl does is tour by region and sometimes — he’s from the West Coast — when he tours this far away from home he often times hires a regional band, or regional musicians to back him up...for us it was a good opportunity to play with a seasoned and well respected player like Merl.” King Johnson was formed in 1995 by Oliver Wood and bassist/vocalist Chris Long. It began as a blues duo, named after some of blues’ most notable players, King for B.B., Albert and Freddie and Johnson for Robert, Tommy and Blind Willie. They soon picked up a drummer when Greg Baba joined the group, who brought with him a Creole approach to rhythm. The trio’s first release, Cats and Dogs, was well received, and brought them to the attention of both blues fans and critics. A few years later, the band added a new element to their increasingly varied sound in the form of a horn section. In 1998, Adam Mewherter joined, playing trombone and tuba, with Marcus James on saxophone and clarinet. This new incarnation brought them into the world of funk, jazz and R&B. “Adam and Marcus add a different layer to the music,” Wood said. “They play so well together, it’s almost like they're one person.” This transition in their playing is evident in King Johnson’s self-titled 1998 release. The album documents the band’s shift from a blues act to a funky, improvisational band. The metamorphosis gelled more in last years’ Luck So Strange. The songs reveal a band of musicians who are completely in tune with each other. “Our goal when we write a song is just to sound like us,” Wood said, “not that we aren’t influenced by other people, but every time we write a song we try to add a few touches. Even when we are done we try to add a few things.” King Johnson, like most audience oriented groups, is a band that has to be experienced in order to understand its music. “For the kind of music that we do is pretty funky and I think it really lends itself to dancing. The energy level definitely goes up when people are dancing and at that point they are really participating in the music to the point where all the energy is kind of shared...whereas just sitting and watching, that’s one thing, I mean, you’re getting something, but you’re not getting that same level of energy.” For those who want more than the funky stew that King Johnson offers, the show tonight should be an interesting musical party. With Saunder’s virtuosity and high energy complimented by King Johnson’s swanky beats, there shouldn’t be a still hip in the house.
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