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Twenty years is a long time, especially in the life of a band. But despite lineup changes, relocation and countless road mishaps, Yo Mama\u2019s Big Fat Booty Band is as strong as ever. The Asheville-based rock\/funk ensemble celebrated its anniversary with a special show, Sep. 16 at Asheville, N.C.\u2019s Salvage Station.<\/p>\n
The Booty Band got its start in Boone, N.C., in the basement of guitarist John-Paul Miller\u2019s place. \u201cThe original concept was to [create] a fun party atmosphere with high-energy, danceable music,\u201d Miller says. From its earliest days, the Booty Band\u2019s lineup was a constantly shifting roster of top-flight musicians. \u201cAs of right now,\u201d Miller says, \u201cI\u2019m the only original member left.\u201d But across two decades of changes, the group\u2019s vision has remained consistent.<\/p>\n
While covers have always figured into the Booty Band\u2019s set list, Miller says that from the very beginning the group was writing original material. And when they did play the music of other artists, the group showcased its versatility and inventiveness by recasting songs into their own style. \u201cWe’ve covered everything from Fela Kuti to Rage Against the Machine,\u201d he says. \u201cWe’ve had full-on throwback \u201880s and \u201890s hip hop sets where we did anything from Snoop Dogg to Jay-Z. But everything we do, we put our own spin on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
The group relocated to Asheville in 2006. Miller says that the band\u2019s early sound reflected the songwriting skills of founding member Josh Phillips; when he left, the band went through a brief period he describes as \u201cfloating around.\u201d That changed in 2009 when dynamic keyboardist Mary Frances and drummer Lee Allen \u2013 both of whom sing \u2013 joined the Booty Band. With Frances and Allen on board, the group established its trademark sound. \u201cAnd that’s when we really started touring heavily,\u201d Miller says, \u201cgoing back and forth across the country.\u201d<\/p>\n
And the Booty Band\u2019s trademark party vibe provides opportunities for guests and collaborations, both onstage and in the studio. \u201cSome of the members of Dirty Dozen Brass Band have come on stage with us to perform their songs, done in our [style],\u201d Miller says. And before his passing, Parliament-Funkadelic keyboardist Bernie Worrell joined the Booty Band onstage on Aspen, Colorado for their version of his song, \u201cA Joyful Process.\u201d <\/p>\n
Along the way, The Booty Band has created a formidable catalog of recorded music. In addition to several live albums, the group has released four studio efforts under its own name \u2013 2015\u2019s Funk Life<\/i> is the most recent \u2013 and has played on nearly every recording by kid-hop sensation Secret Agent 23 Skidoo. \u201cHe gave us the opportunity to write and record on a Grammy Award-winning album,\u201d Miller says. <\/p>\n
At the height of its touring days, Yo Mama\u2019s Big Fat Booty band was on the road 200 days a year, playing 150-170 shows annually. \u201cWe made a lot of good friends,\u201d Miller says. \u201cAnd we played in every state except Hawaii, plus Jamaica.\u201d<\/p>\n
These days, the group stays closer to Asheville, the city which all the band members call home. \u201cAfter a while, the band needed a little bit of a break,\u201d Miller says. \u201cSo we decided to step back from full-time touring.\u201d<\/p>\n
Miller admits that the Booty Band\u2019s most daunting challenge is its size. \u201cA lot of bands are just three or four people,\u201d he notes. For most of its two decades, Yo Mama\u2019s Big Fat Booty Band has featured seven musicians. Touring required an additional three-person crew. \u201cTraveling with ten people on the road, it\u2019s hard to even find places large enough for the whole band to stay the night,\u201d he says. The Booty Band has received offers to play in Europe, but the costs involved in bringing a large band overseas made it impossible.<\/p>\n
As far as most of the other challenges the group has faced, Miller and his band mates laugh them off; they make for good stories, he says. \u201cWe’ve been stuck on top of mountains and behind avalanches,\u201d he says. \u201cWe’ve had our bus engine catch on fire.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some problems, he admits, were of the band\u2019s own making. Some 15 years ago, the group was booked to play a set at the Jimmy V Classic, \u201ca prestigious, black-tie event in Pinehurst, N.C.,\u201d Miller recalls. \u201cNot only were we late, but when we started playing, our singer decided we should perform a song that had the most swear words of any song that we played.\u201d After three songs, the band was told to stop.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey paid us and told us to leave,\u201d he says with a laugh. \u201cIt was the most money per minute we ever made!\u201d The experience marked the implementation of what the Booty Band calls the Jimmy V rule. \u201cWe\u2019ve cleaned up a lot since then,\u201d Miller says. <\/p>\n
In recent times, the lineup of Yo Mama\u2019s Big Fat Booty Band has stabilized. That, plus the fact the drummer Allen is a recording engineer \u2013 means that at long last, some new Booty Band music may be on the way. \u201cNobody wants to force a record out,\u201d Miller observes. \u201cBecause that never produces good results. But everybody [in the group] has been talking about recording some new music. When bands get their own studio, that\u2019s when they start getting experimental and really have fun with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
As the band approached its 20-year anniversary, they scheduled a hometown gig that represents an opportunity to look backward and forward at once. \u201cWe’re doing a total throwback set of early material,\u201d Miller told me ahead of the show. That set was slated to feature the current group augmented by four members from the band\u2019s original lineup: Phillips, sax player Greg Hollowell, guitarist Grady Gilbert and vocalist Suzanna Baum. \u201cWe\u2019ve curated a list of songs that were everybody’s favorite songs back in the early 2000s,\u201d Miller said. \u201cSongs that we haven’t played in a long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
And of course the current Booty Band lineup \u2013 Miller, Frances and Allen plus Derrick Johnson (trombone), Jonathan Cole (saxophone), Ben Bjorlie on bass and trumpeter Alex Bradley \u2013 was scheduled to on hand to celebrate 20 years of deep-groove funkiness. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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