Local soul all-stars Marc & the Casuals salute girl groups at Great American
San Francisco's all-star R&B revue Marc & the Casuals pay tribute to girl groups with this dance party at the Great American Music Hall Friday night.
Ably setting backsides in motion for the past decade, the group has earned a solid reputation as one of San Francisco's premiere party-starting outfit. Led by session veteran and keyboard/trumpet player Marc Capelle, his core wrecking crew of Bay Area luminaries has featured such talented musicians as guitarist Bart Davenport (a solo artist who has also fronted Honeycut and the Loved Ones) and his Persephone's Bees partner guitarist Tom Ayers, drummer Todd Roper (Chuck Prophet, Cake), and onetime Dwarves bass player Pete Straus.
Augmented by a full horn section and additional auxiliary players -- among them Capelle's own son Evan on percussion -- the group backs a rotating who's who of local guest vocalists through marathon sets that range from deep soul and funk covers to revamped rock classics.
While the performances of this live R&B jukebox have become more rare in recent years as Capelle focused on his soundtrack-focused project the Red Room Orchestra -- which not surprisingly features many of the same players -- Marc & the Casuals still re-emerge for shows periodically.
The group served as the house band for the Make-Out Room's annual Holiday Craptacular fundraising food drive in 2018 and 2019. During the pandemic shutdown, Capelle appeared regularly at the Chapel's attached restaurant Curio, leading small groups featuring his main foil Ayers on guitar at the spot's outdoor patio.
For this special show paying tribute to girl groups of the '60s, Marc & the Casuals provide hard-grooving support for a line-up of singers that will include Meryl Press (Citay, Hope Sandoval), Karina Denike (Dance Hall Crashers, NOFX, The Cottontails), Lydia Walker (who leads her own band Lydia and the Projects as well as singing with This Train Don't Stop and the Big Blu Soul Revue) and Adrianne DeLanda (Extra Classic). The band will feature Ayres, Straus, longtime RRO collaborator Alyson Baker (Dirty Ghosts) on guitar and powerhouse drummer Michael Urbano (Todd Rundgren, John Hiatt, Smash Mouth, Cake).
For this show at the Great American Music Hall Friday night, Capelle and company are joined by rock n' soul heroes Harold Ray and East Side Dynamite. Fronted by kinetic singer Jason Morgan -- who previously wielded the mic with similarly minded punk/R&B crew Harold Ray Live in Concert and early Bob Seger tribute band Total BS, in addition to frequently appearing with Capelle's bands -- the group features a number of seasoned scene veterans and Mission District ringers including drummer Tom Galbraith (Mensclub, Field Trip, Portable Madness), his trombone-playing brother Jim (also in Field Trip) and guitarist Brian Mello (The Morning Line, The Bellyachers and current hard rock/metal cover band Thunderbleed aka Blind Vengeance).
The band delivers sweaty, swaggering takes on '60s soul classics and raw rock chestnuts that have been regularly filling dance floors on both sides of the Bay for a number of years. The group has been a regular go-to support act for a number of local performers including Marc and the Casuals (who Morgan frequently sings with) and Kelley Stoltz. Morgan also recently filled the sizeable shoes of the late Flamin' Groovies singer and solo artist Roy Loney, fronting a reunited version of Loney's band the Phantom Movers that featured three of the late '70s band's surviving members. DJ Lead Teddy spins R&B classics and obscure dance-floor fillers before and between sets by the live band.
Marc & the Casuals with Harold Ray and East Side Dynamite
Friday, April 11, 7 p.m. $25
Great American Music Hall
