'We wanna whoop your ass,' says Handbag, lead vocalist of
The Groove Hogs. 'Musically speaking, of course,' he adds
with a grin. As a 10-piece band that includes five horns and a full rhythm
section complete with a vintage Hammond organ, musical intensity is never in
short demand at their shows. Handbag's comments reflect not only the band's
live attitude, but also reveal what The Groove Hogs have captured on their
CD, No Small Feat.
Formed in the winter of 1994 as a four-piece blues outfit, the band was
initially meant to be a side project. Guitarist Pat Kiel relates, 'A few of
us were working together in a full-time band playing clubs, weddings and
corporate gigs. That got old real fast, so we decided to form The Groove
Hogs as a musical release.' The band wrote some originals and covered
material by Robben Ford,
Delbert McClinton and
Tab Benoit, to name a few.
As the band's ambition grew, so did their size. In early 1996 they added a
four-piece horn section, expanding to eight members. Shortly after, they
added a trombonist to the lineup. The large addition gave the Hogs a means
to expand upon the blues-based music they had been playing. It was also
evident that their new sound was just as appealing to their audience as it
was to the band itself. By this time the local buzz was loud; loud enough
that all members quickly realized this 'part-time project' deserved their
full attention. All other musical projects were disbanded.
The band turned its attention to more songwriting. Of course, putting nine
musicians with varied backgrounds together under one common roof creates the
chance for either mass chaos or great opportunity. Fortunately for the band,
opportunity won out. This is evident on their first recording. The
exploratory collection of music contains an eclectic mix of blues, pop, funk
and Latin influences. Released in 1997, this self titled disc produced two
singles: 'I Want You,' a swinging jump blues track written by trumpet player
Pat Phalen, and the pop ballad 'Dreaming of You,' penned by saxophonist Adam
Plamann.
The spring and summer of 1999 saw The Groove Hogs continuing to tear their
way through a steady diet of live performances. Sharing stages with acts
such as Blues Traveler,
George Thoroughgood, Edgar Winter,
Papa Chubby and
Bryan Lee, their shows became the proving ground for much of the
material that was selected for No Small Feat . It was also at this time that
the band found blues/soul vocalist Ron 'Handbag' Hanson and added him to the
mix. Handbag's whiskey smooth vocal approach solidified the growing focus of
the band to ground itself in the blues-branded rock 'n soul approach they
had found. ~Mark Gallo
