June 5, 2014. When a bunch of veteran musician friends get together for the sheer joy of recreating the sounds that inspired them to become musicians in the first place, good things happen. The members of Soul Benefactor first joined to simply play for a party, crafting a set list of funky and soulful classic rock and R&B. It sounded good, and perhaps no one had more fun than the band. They collectively decided that once was not enough.
“Playing together was way too much fun to simply hang it up after only one night of music,” they state on their website.
Seven years later, Soul Benefactor is going strong, playing a smattering of local and regional gigs throughout the summer and fall. They will take to the Jones House porch for the fourth year in a row on Friday, June 6, starting at 5:00 p.m.
“We are excited to have Soul Benefactor open up the season of Summer Concerts at the Jones House,” says Concerts organizer and Town of Boone Cultural Resources Coordinator, Mark Freed. “It will be a festive evening, with First Friday Art Crawl and the start of the season, and these guys will set the tone with danceable sounds everyone knows and loves.”
It is not uncommon to hear the songs of Al Green, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Van Morrison, Bill Withers, The Rolling Stones, The Allman Brothers Band, The Meters, and Joe Cocker all in the same set.
“These guys are all multi-instrumentalists with deep repertoires of soul, blues, funk, and rock,” Freed says. “You will turn your head for a minute and the bass player is now on drums, and the drummer on guitar. It gives them the flexibility to play a really wide range of great music.”
Soul Benefactor includes Aaron Burleson, Chris Hice, Steve Green, Dave Brewer, and the “Horns Du Jour” with Jordan Craig, Beaver Robinette, and Rusty Smith.
Soul Benefactor will perform from 5:00 until 6:30 p.m., when the Jones House will open for the First Friday Art Crawl exhibit opening with works by Trudy Muegel, Rachel Ballard Bigley, and Renea Reed.
And, music fans need not worry, on Art Crawl Fridays, the amplified music on the porch will end a little earlier, but live music will continue throughout the artists’ reception.
The Spice Creek Ramblers will perform an acoustic set, following Soul Benefactor. The Spice Creek Ramblers are a local duo featuring the songwriting of guitar and harmonica player, Nate Harris, and the upright bass playing of Jesse Wood. Honing his skills busking on the streets of Boone, Harris writes songs of life, love and raising a family in the mountains.
The Summer Concerts at the Jones House are produced by the Town of Boone’s Cultural Resources Department. Concerts are free and open to the public, and they take place rain or shine. Patrons are encouraged to bring a chair or blanket.
The 2014 series is sponsored by the Downtown Boone Development Association, Farmer’s Rental & Power, Footsloggers, Mast General Store, Melanie’s, MPrints, and Stick Boone Bread Co.
The Jones House Cultural and Community Center is located at 604 W. King St. in downtown Boone. For more information about the series, including a complete schedule, visit www.joneshousecommunitycenter.org or call 828.268.6280.
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