Mindi Abair and the Boneshakers live, eat and breathe music as a collective — it’s their oxygen. Add to that a balanced mix of diverse musical backgrounds, big personalities and the bond of mutual respect coupled with friendship, and what transpires in the recording studio is sonic magic. It’s that kind of chemistry that the Los Angeles-based band has righteously captured and parlayed into their third studio album, No Good Deed, which is set for release on June 28th on Abair’s Pretty Good For A Girl Records.
Featuring an enthralling array of original material along with some cleverly reworked covers of songs from the Rascals, Etta James and others, No Good Deed is the band’s most multidimensional album to date and reflects the longtime camaraderie between the Boneshakers’ Randy Jacobs (guitar and vocals), Rodney Lee (keys), Ben White (bass, vocals) and Third Richardson (drums, vocals) and lead vocalist and award-winning saxophonist Mindi Abair. Not only does the album showcase the band members’ diverse talents and knack for creating music that is undeniably evocative and irrepressibly energetic; this time they’ve peeled back the layers to reveal more of their respective influences, unleashing unbridled infusions of rock, jazz and blues.
It took only five days to record the album at the legendary EastWest Studios in Hollywood. Acclaimed producer Kevin Shirley (Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith, Joe Bonamassa), who had worked with the band on their first studio record, The EastWest Sessions, returned once again. Going into the studio, the band already knew what they wanted to do, didn’t overthink things, and let creative inspiration and adrenaline lead them — a methodology that’s not new to them.
Today Glide is excited to offer an exclusive premiere of “You Better Run”, one of the heaviest tunes on No Good Deed. Kicking off with a thick and sleazy blues riff, the song is a storm of funky organ, down and dirty electric guitar, explosive drums, and of course Abair’s signature saxophone wailing. The song is actually a tune by blue-eyed soul band The Rascals, but the Boneshakers add their own flair to it by cranking up the speed, the harmonies, and adding plenty of saxophone flourishes to make it completely their own.
Mindi Abair describes the decision to record the tune in her own words:
“There are a few songs that give you that ultimate rock ’n’ roll zen of being lost in a killer guitar riff and the raw intent of a lyric … ‘You Better Run’ is at the top of that list for me. If you’re not playing an air guitar listening to this song, you’re dead inside. We loved The Rascals recording from 1964 …. just full-on wall to wall sing it like you mean it rock. The first song we put in our live set from our new album… THIS ONE!”
LISTEN:
No Good Deed is set for release on June 28th. Check out tour dates below and visit mindiabair.com for more music and info.
Tour dates:
Thurs., May 30 SARATOGA, CA Montalvo Arts Center
Thurs., June 6 ALEXANDRIA, VA The Birchmere
Fri., June 7 ANNAPOLIS, MD Rams Head Tavern
Sat., June 8 HAVRE DE GRACE, MD Havre de Grace Jazz & Blues Festival
Fri., June 14 DENVER, CO Soiled Dove
Sat., June 15 SALT LAKE CITY, UT Utah Blues Festival
Tues., June 18 GAS CITY, IN Gas City Concerts In The Park
Sat., Aug. 3 MAMMOTH LAKES, CA Bluesapalooza Mammoth Festival of Beers
Sat., Aug 10 LEXINGTON, KY. Kentucky Horse Park
Thurs., Aug 15 VALPARAISO, IN Memorial Opera House
Fri., Aug 16 CHICAGO, IL City Winery Chicago
Sat., Aug 17 ANN ARBOR, MI Ann Arbor Blues Fest
Fri., Aug 30 FT WORTH, TX Music Fest at South Fork Ranch
Sat., Oct 19 AKRON, OH Tangier – Cabaret Room
Sat., Oct 26 to Nov 2 MEXICAN RIVIERA Legendary Rhythm and Blues Cruise
Fri.-Sun., Nov 15-17 PUNTA GORDA, FL Mindi Abair’s Punta Gorda Wine + Music Festival
Sat., Nov 23 READING, PA Reading Blues Festival
Photo credit: Greg Allen
