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.
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!!!
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.
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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