Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears at the Bluebird Theater

Hittin' harder than Joe Louis

April 6, 2011 - Unlike most modern bands I stumble upon, I can remember where I was the first time I heard Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears. It was a sunny day in the middle of August, 2009 and we were heading up to the mountains for a camping trip. As we riding along in my truck, I was getting flack for being my usual tardy self. But I told everyone to relax, since it was a sunny weekend day, we had plenty of food n' beer and I had some James Brown blasting on the radio! Well, at least it sounded like James Brown. I figured it was an old, obscure tune from the Godfather of Soul that a savvy DJ had dug up. But when the bumper came on the air, I heard that it was NOT James, but "Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears". Thrilled, I said that name aloud several times, so I wouldn't forget.

When I got home a few days later, I used the instant fulfillment of the Fucking Internets to get a copy of "Tell 'em What Your Name Is", the first full-length album from the band. It was definitely my favorite album of the year 2009 (but consider that I bought and listened to maybe 5 albums the entire year) and I soon began to use the tune "Sugarfoot" in place of Redbull or my morning coffee--- it fired me up, but with less calories and didn't have to pee as much.

But it took me awhile to see the band live. They passed through Denver once or twice before, but usually as an opening band. I figured I needed to see a FULL or headlining set from the band before declaring my allegiance to all things Honeybears. I finally had that chance when they rolled into Denver's Bluebird Theater on April 6. And just about a week after my birthday.

The Bluebird is probably the first step for a headlining band in Denver. Sell out the Bluebird, then graduate to either the Ogden or Gothic. Sell those out and you can get booked in the Fillmore. Kick butt there and you're on your way to a Red Rocks or arena show. Thus, it was an encouraging sign that the Bluebird was probably the fullest I've ever seen it for Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears. If it wasn't a sell-out, it was only 6 or 7 tickets away from that mark.

The opening act was a 3/4 Chick Band called Those Darlins. Two chicks on guitar, 1 on bass and a Dude on the drums. They sounded too much like a punk-ish garage band and while they had heavy doses, there was too much screaming prescribed for my tastes. Make that screeching. Within three minutes, I was pining for the lead singer to shut the hell up so I could hear the rest of the band. If I had to pick a band they reminded me of, I'd say maybe the Beavis & Butt-head favorite Jack Off Jill. Or imagine if the (early, pre-Egyptian) Bangles had tried doing a Clash tribute show. I'm sure most writers would say: "a mix of the Ramones and the Donnas with some Reverend Horton Heat thrown in", but I think that's too much of a blanket statement. As it was, they were quickly gone and the Main Event began.

Black Joe Lewis and his crew simply walked out on stage. First, the drummer, followed by Joe and his guitarists. Finally, the brass section strolled to the left side of the stage; consisting of a trumpet, sax and ...holy shit..they had brought the Heavy Artillery-- a bass sax! While a lighted overlay of the band's cover art for their new album "Scandalous" engulfed the stage, they tuned up their instruments while clad in white shirts and black slacks (not unlike the "modern day Blues Brothers" look the Eels had). A relatively low key intro.

Then the music started. In short, Joe Louis and his crew hit us like the boxing legend Joe Lewis. Right across the eyes with some blistering modern funk, soul n' rock. If there were any dissenstors in the crwod, they were quickly won over. The band started off with "Livin' in the Jungle"-- an infectious tune that would have made Steve Cropper and other Stax artists proud. Other tunes included "Booty City", "Big Booty Woman" (maybe both songs are part of planned Boty Trilogy?), "Black Snake" and stuff from their first album, such as "Bobby Booshay" (who's apparently a bad dude).

It wasn't just the music that thrilled the crowd. The brass section would bounce and dance around in time. The bass player, a dude named Bill Stevenson; who looked like the illegitimate child of Jim Halpert and Dwight Schrute; would ocassionally squat down, play while on the floor, or even toss his bass in the air. At one point, Stevenson ventured to the far right of the stage and began playing on the edge of raised staircase.

Even Lewis got into the act. He played his guitar with his teeth and even knelt down to take a hit from someone's joint in the front row. Guitarist Zach Ernst also did some improvising, as he roamed and boogied around the stage. This type of randomness made the band seem spontaneous and like.. gasp...entertainers. Lewis didn't speak to the crowd too much, but did mention feedback from his critics: "people say we're a shitty version of Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings. Naw...we're just shitty!" They're funky, they rock, they entertain and they have a sense of humor. Fuck, this band couldn't be cooler unless they had Flavor Flav on stage!

They had a few slow numbers as well, which displayed their appreciation for old Chess Records. With their sound, these guys would fit in perfectly with either a vintage vinyl shop, or a modern independent record sore (aka: your local"cool music store"). They ended the initial set by wandering off the stage to a loud ovation. Of course, they came out for an encore-- the understated love song titled "Bitch, I Love You". This was followed up by "Sugarfoot". Usually I pine for a certain song until the band plays it, but while I dug hearing "Sugarfoot", I would've been perfectly fine if they skipped it. As it was, it was pure delicious frosting.

With the crowd still wanting more, a second encore took place. This time they did a cover version of "Louie Louie" by the Kingsmen. Well, let's say "Louie Louie" was the basic structure, as they kept jamming and extended it by about 7 or 8 minutes. At that point, I was extremely satisifed.

In short, I'd say Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears have graduated from the Bluebird. I look forward to seeing them, next time, at the Ogden. I liked them before, but now that I've seen 'em live, they're among my favorites. These guys know how to put on a show and are worth the full ticket price (and even the processing fees). Go see 'em!

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