An interview with Little Feat founding member/keyboardist Bill Payne was part of the June 28 edition of Greasy Tracks which will also featured the group’s latest release, Strike Up The Band (Hot Tomato Records).
Here’s the archive, while a playlist is here.
There was also be a spotlight on The Blackberries, a powerhouse female backing vocal group active in the 1970s,
Strike Up The Band follows Sam’s Place which was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 2024. It’s also their first studio album of original material since Rooster Rag in 2012.
Contributing to Feat’s traditional sound of New Orleans funk colliding with blues-rock fusion are guest appearances by Larkin Poe, Molly Tuttle, Kristen Rogers, Larry Campbell and Teresa Williams. Memphis horn men Art Edmaiston (sax) and Marc Franklin (trumpet) add some tasty brass to a handful of tracks.
In addition to talking about the new album, the current tour — which includes a return to Europe in July and a planned live album recording during “Feat Fest,” a three-night run at Bearsville Theater in Woodstock, N.Y. — Payne shares insight on Carnival Ghosts, a memoir he’s set to to deliver next spring.
Formed in 1969 by Clydie King, Venetta Fields and Sherlie Matthews, The Blackberries trace their roots to the Ike & Tina Turner Revue, Ray Charles and Motown. During their decade-plus together, they were first-choice backing vocalists in the studio and on the road for numerous artists, ranging from Humble Pie to Pink Floyd.