What a night.
Last Saturday, the Normandie Casino in Gardena got a sustained jolt it probably hadn't experienced in thirty years-- earthquakes notwithstanding--when the Bus Boys took the stage and rocked out before an appreciative crowd that included fans who've followed he Boys since their debut in the early 1980s. Head Bus Boy Brian O'Neal played some pyrotechnic keyboards, and his fellow band members lent sizzling guitar, drum and additional vocals to a lineup of tunes that were at once classic and indefinable. Back in the day, the Bus Boys got lots of attention--some of it negative--for being a black band that called itself rock, when rock itself is of course a derivative of black music. But that's always been part of the band's tongue-in-cheek attitude towards itself and its would-be critics. Call their style whatever you want, what people got last Saturday was straight-up blues, r & b, funk, ballads, boogie-woogie, church-aisle dancing, wry humor, a bit of reggae and a lot of social commentary where you didn't expect it. It was a complex and consummate performance that certainly gave rock music something to shoot for.
Entertained as folks were, we were also gathered for a good cause. The show was a benefit for "Freeway City: Portrait of an L.A. Suburb," a documentary Brian O'Neal is executive-producing about his hometown, Gardena. He stumbled into the project when filmmaker Max Votolato recruited him for an interview; the more O'Neal saw of the film, the more he liked it and the more he wanted to be involved. He shares Votalato's affection for and fascination with this modest L.A. freeway city that, despite its singular history of ethnic diversity (and gambling), hardly registers with folks living north of the 105. O'Neal has told me that Gardena was formative for him in many ways, that growing up there gave him a university education that prepared him for much bigger cities and bigger challenges, like the music business. Helping to raise money for the film (and contributing music to it, some of which he previewed on Saturday) is his chance to give something back.
The town certainly taught him well. Launching into one of his last numbers of the night, "There Goes the Neighborhood" (The whites are moving in/They'll bring their next of kin!), O'Neal said he'd very likely be doing this again. Not on Tuesday, either--that's for wannabes, he deadpanned--but on Saturday night.
Subscribe to Cakewalk's feed.
I enjoyed every moment of the show. I went to junior high school with Brian, and followed the group along with all of our friends from Carson, Gardena, and Banning High Schools to every venue including our high school concerts, and performances in the parking lot at the Carson Mall back in the day! It was like a family, and all school reunion, even folks as far back as elementary school. Brian still has that charm and high energy that kept the crowd roaring for more. When can we do it again??? Everyone is on Facebook and My Space raving over the performance. Those who didn't know about the occasion are going crazy....Bring the Bus Boys Back!!!!
Although I've never heard any of the Bus Boy's songs, I can appreciate a band that goes back to its hometown and does something to help out. Glad you had so much fun!
The Bus Boys' are back in town, I saw this show last week and the Bus Boys are as hot as they were if not better than there past builds them to be. They are a future group, never understood why we fans couldn't see more of them before now. I'm glad there back in town and look forward to seeing them take the stage again. With people like Andre 3000 and his group Outkast picking up the slack all these years with a similar funk, rock, soul, mix. It's time to bring the original group who gave us this style in the first place to the forefront of the future. YEAH!