A band that was inspired by Karl Denson follows his show on Friday, Feb. 7 at the after-party band in the Crystal Bay Casino Red Room.
Mojo Green’s guitarist and band leader Tim Bain was primarily a fan of grunge and punk rock before he went to see Denson and the Greyboy Allstars in 1996 at Humpty’s in Tahoe City.
“Going to see his shows was a huge eye opener,” Bain said. “It was my first exposure to that kind of dance-party vibe in a nightclub…. He has that energy to command the whole room’s attention and energy.”
A San Diego native, Denson often performs with Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe at Lake Tahoe. The band’s guitarist is D.J. Williams.
“He’s a bad ass,” Bain said. “He’s super talented. I’ve seen him with Karl now a number of times and I’ve always been impressed with his style and the technical aspect of his playing.”
2013 was a breakout year for Mojo Green, which released an acclaimed record, “Funk in Public.” It went from an instrumental band to having a lead singer, Jenes Carter. The final addition was drummer Frank “Fletch” Fletcher, a veteran player who has been with bands on both sides of the lake.
Mojo Green is booked for some big shows, including the Burnal Equinox March 1 in Nevada City and the Sierra Nevada Brewery in Chico on April 21.
“I am not sure if we are going to go into the studio in spring,” Bain said. “Our main goal is writing new material as a band. It’s a balance of if you are going to be prepared to do live shows or are you going to focus on writing new material. We’ve kind of done a balance of both.”
At a recent Red Room show, trombonist Big Sam Williams of Big Sam’s Funky Nation sat in for a song. Bain hopes Denson might do the same.
“He’s been an influence on all the players in the band,” Bain said. “If there was a chance of him getting up we would be absolutely honored.”
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe with special guest Robert Walter
When: 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday, Feb. 7-8
Where: Crystal Bay Casino Crown Room
Tickets: $25 in advance or $30 at the door
Red Room after-party: Mojo Green on Friday, Jelly Bread on Saturday
Big Sam joins Mojo Green in the Red Room after-party. That’s Jenes Carter on the left and Kevin “Mr.” Thomas on the left.
ABOUT Tim Parsons
Tim Parsons is the editor of Tahoe Onstage who first moved to Lake Tahoe in 1992. Before starting Tahoe Onstage in 2013, he worked for 29 years at newspapers, including the Tahoe Daily Tribune, Eureka Times-Standard and Contra Costa Times. He was the recipient of the 2011 Keeping the Blues Alive award for Journalism.
