CLONES OF FUNK
At McKenzie's - Baltimore, MD (5/28/04)
Clones of Funk lead men, Wesley Beann and Scrape!!!
After a long while of setting up their equipment and
soundchecking, the Clones of Funk hit the stage at 10:15pm. "Gamin' on
Ya" was the first song and it was a tight jam, featuring the majestic
horns of Mike and Jerry Queene! After about 8 minutes, the funky duo Wesley
Beann and Scrape arrived to add their funky, funky vocals to the mix.....YES,
them boys can blow with the best! "Aqua Boogie" and "Theme From
The Black Hole" were great, the latter featuring some super-thumpin' bass
riffing by Terre "He's So Scary" Holland and some spicy keyboardisms
by Gene McBride!! "Red Hot Momma" (which incorporated "Undisco
Kidd") was great because it featured a hellified guitar solo by Rolanzo!!
"Tear The Roof Off The Sucka" got everyone off their asses and
jamming, singing "We want the funk, give up the funk!" "Maggot
Brain" actually featured some saxophone playing by Mike.....it was pretty
good. Rolanzo's rendition of the Eddie Hazel guitar riffing was okay....it
paled in comparison to what other great guitarists have done (including MIKE
MCHENRY, Mike "Kidd Funkadelic" Hampton and Andre Lassalle). The first set was over at
11:45pm. The Clones brought Alan, a guest guitarist, to the stage and
he added some funky rhythm guitar riffs to (I believe it was...) "P-Funk
(Wants to Get Funked Up)". "Flashlight" was a long, super-funky
extravaganza that featured the horny horn stylings of Jerry Queene and Mike.
"Cosmic Slop" featured some good drumming by Mark Brown, but the best
part was probably the powerful guitar solo by Rolanzo.....and the rumblin' bass
of Terre!! "Up For the Down Stroke/I Can Move You (If You Let Me)"
featured the funky vocal stylings of Wesley and Scrape doing various P-Funk
lines from "All Sons of Bitches" ("Gonna get down with
ya.......funkin' at street level"), "Pinocchio Theory"
("Somebody been funkin' with my funk....."), "Funk Express
Card" ("You can't get in without your funk card, baby"), and
other songs. "One Nation Under a Groove" was done with a different
arrangement, but it was still funky. They were about to do my favorite (just
for me), "Hit It and Quit It", but decided to go with another song
(DAMN!!!)....."Unfunky UFO"!! "Unfunky UFO" featured some
of the funkiest guitar riffs ever heard!! The second set was over at 1:35am.
Guest guitarist Alan with Scrape!!
The second Clones of Funk set started around
12:10am with the band doing a PRINCE song....."Purple Rain", an
edited version of the song featuring Gene McBride on lead vocals, trying 2 do a
halfway vocal impression of the Purple 1!! That was followed by "P-Funk
(Wants to Get Funked Up)" and "Mothership Connection".....the
fans ate the funk up with a big spoon!!!
PERSONNEL:
1. Wesley Beann - lead vocals, percussion
2. Scrape - lead vocals, percussion
3. Terre Holland - bass
4. Rolanzo - lead guitar, rhythm guitar
5. Mark Brown - drums
6. Gene McBride - keyboards, lead vocals, backing vocals
7. Mike - trumpet, percussion, vocals
8. Jerry Queene - saxophone
9. Alan - (guest on rhythm guitar)
Click here for pictures of the Clones
of Funk
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