The Kathy Walker Band Web Site
Article Reprint from the August, 2000 BluesNotes
- By Rick Hall
Do ya like that "fat sound" of punchy horns, driving rhythms, and haunting female vocals? Do ya like your Blues mixed with a lot of Soul and funky R&B? Do ya like just great music performed tight, tasty and right there "in the pocket"? Well, if you do, you need look no further than Portland's own top-notch Soulside Blues ensemble, The Kathy Walker Band.
This stellar group, up until the first of the year, was working their way up the ladder under the name of
Mrs. Jones and progressing slowly but surely, making people take notice of them and their outstanding lead singer,
Kathy Walker. In 1997, after they had been together a little over a year, Mrs. Jones was nominated for a
Cascade Blues Association "Muddy Award" for "Best R&B
Act". They continued playing under that name for three more years, sometimes finding confusion over the name they had taken from the "classic"
Billy Paul R&B song titled "Me And Mrs. Jones".
The name kind of set the tone and style of the era of music they were shooting for, however,
people would naturally think Kathy was Mrs. Jones.
The band definitely focused around the gifted, sweet, soul-drenched vocals of Kathy
Walker, so with a few personnel changes in the group, they came to the conclusion
it was time to change their name to The Kathy Walker Band. They did just that officially on the first
day of the year.
The band consists of an outstanding group of musicians supporting Kathy's soulful vocals.
The horn section, so integral to the sound of this band, is lead by Kathy's husband,
Bruce Withycombe on tenor & baritone saxophone. Bruce also handles the booking and business end for the band.
Also on tenor & alto sax is Renato Caranto Jr., the son of CBA
"Muddy Award Hall of Fame" saxophonist, Renato
Caranto. The "down home" funky rhythm section is comprised of Tom Fitch on bass and
Gary Irvine on drums. On keyboards is the deft, Steve
Soloman. And, rounding out the band is the venerable, veteran guitarist, formerly of the local group,
The Countrypolitans, Kenny "The Cooler" Coleman. The group meshes well. They are the perfect band to have behind a singer with the natural talent of
Kathy Walker. The band supplies all of the "bottom end" and punch that this style of Blues needs to be really effective and entertaining, and that they are!
Bruce says, "The band's all really into what we are doing ... We all share the same vision and know where we want to go."
That kind of statement certainly says a whole lot about what this group is all about!
With Kathy now out front more and with the band doing more original material, they have taken a giant leap up the ladder of success releasing their first compact disc which is a self titled recording consisting of 10 solid songs, half of which are the band's own material and the other half fine covers of tunes that were a success for artists like
Betty Wright, Etta James and Aretha Franklin.
The self-produced 40-minute CD is very well done, showcasing Kathy's vocal prowess and the band's ability to make satisfying, infectious music. They played a "killer" set at this year's Waterfront Blues Festival over the Fourth of July weekend. Bruce says, "The sales of the CD rivaled, and, in most cases, surpassed those of the national acts - even though we performed at the early 12:45 time slot."
Kathy shows that she's more than a singer on the new effort by co-writing three of the band's best originals on the recording, including the spunky
"Fat Daddy" and the irresistible, "Big Picture". The only thing wrong with
The Kathy Walker Band's first recording is that it's too short!
But, in show business it is always said you should leave them wanting more. And, it does just that!
Kathy relates, "I think, for the most part, the people who listen to traditional styles of the Blues like to listen to the R&B side once they hear it. They really dig it once they hear and feel it. After all, R&B stands for Rhythm and Blues. Sometimes we get confused!"
If you are wondering where Kathy came from and what her background is, probably her "bio" explains it best. "Born in Texas and raised in Louisiana, Kathy Walker recently relocated to Portland, Oregon via Atlanta., Georgia, where she worked with legendary Stax recording artist William Bell (whose songwriting credits include "Born Under A Bad Sign" and "You Don't Miss Your Water"). Kathy grew up listening to the great soul singers Gladys Knight, Etta James and Chaka Khan, influences that helped her develop her own unique voice. Promoter Tony DeMicoli summed it up most succinctly by describing Kathy as simply "an outstanding, phenomenal singer"... A mother of two beautiful girls, ages one and four, Kathy is often asked "how do you do it?" One listen and you'll find the answer is "because she has no choice". Kathy didn't choose to be a singer, singing chose her."
Kathy's husband, Bruce (Withycombe) relates, "When I first met
Kathy we were at a party and she was singing along with a song. I couldn't believe it! I was blown away by it. She said, 'Oh,
I've really never sung before'. I just couldn't believe this great sound that was coming out of this woman."
That was when they were in Atlanta for a few years. They dabbled in the music scene there in the early and mid-'90s and tried to get her involved in a couple of the established bands. They had some success, but got frustrated because they weren't in control of the direction
Kathy wanted to go. They had decided to move to the West Coast; back to Portland were
Bruce was originally from. That was in early 1995. They pretty much started the band
(Mrs. Jones) just after they had arrived back in town
"Our guitarist, Kenny Coleman, has become our navigator in the current band," states Bruce. He continues, "He's sort of a walking encyclopedia of Soul music history, and he's really into the Mussel Shoals thing and Stax/ Volt Records and everything in Memphis. He keeps us in focus and kinda knows what we want to do. He's got an incredible CD collection of that stuff ... We listen to a lot of that vintage stuff and try to harken back to that sound. Plus, Kathy's voice is perfectly suited for that sound and it's what she likes, so it just works!"
The Kathy Walker Band has come together nicely over the last six to eight months, focusing on the regional and festival circuit.
Bruce has a day job and Kathy is a full-time musician and both are full-time parents. Their music transpires at night and on the weekends and their genuine love for it shows every time they take the stage for a performance.
Upcoming gigs in early August include Thursday evening, August 3rd at Shute Park in Hillsboro, Friday, August 4th at the CI Restaurant & Lounge in Tualatin, Thursday, August 10th for Music On The Green in Sherwood, and on Saturday night, August 12th at Harley's in Lafayette. And, later in the month, they'll perform at the Annual CBA Membership Picnic on August 27th (see here for details). There is a CD Release Party in the works too. You can keep abreast of the band's activities by checking out their web site at http://www.kathywalker.com/, and by checking the BluesNotes Calendar Page for all their listings each month.
The band, in closing, just wanted to thank the CBA for its support and says, "We would very much, like to thank the music fans that come out to hear us. We'd also like to thank them for supporting live music in general. If you don't come out to hear us, please go out and hear somebody and keep live music alive!
The Kathy Walker Band has got a real solid core of people who do go out and see them live. You just might want to consider being one, too. The band is worth hearing any time, any place! Check them out if you haven't already!
(Photos by the CBA Webmaster)
© 2000 Cascade Blues Association