The Bay Area is as much a hotbed of funk, soul, and blues music as rap, rock, and everything in between. Legend has it that John Lee Hooker was a partial owner of the Boom Boom Room, a legendary funk, blues, and jazz club on Fillmore Street. He never supported the club financially, though he "invested" in it by lending the club his name and likeness shortly after cutting a track with blues musician and native Californian Bonnie Raitt, “I’m in the Mood” (not to be confused with “In the Mood,” the song by Glenn Miller) for his 1989 album The Healer.Flash forward some years later, and history is repeating itself in some ways, with a band called The California Honeydrops playing the Boom Boom Room. They’re a funk/soul/rock group fronted by the son of Polish refugees, Lech Wierzynski, whose parents grew up listening to old American records from the 40s and 50s. Following in the footsteps of John Lee Hooker, the group has also cut a track with Bonnie Raitt. “Call It Home” is a smooth, sensuous song, with a guitar part evoking a hot summer day, an organ that sends you to the front pew and a brass section that feels like something straight out of The Blues Brothers (of which, lol, John Lee Hooker and his electrified Delta blues music was a very important part).The band got their start busking in San Francisco subway stations in 2007, and by 2016 were opening for Bonnie Raitt (who calls them one of her favorite bands in the press release for this song). Call It Home Vol 1 & 2 are their 7th and 8th (or just 7th release depending on how you see it) release on Tubtone Records. The project is out April 6, and you can snag a little taste of it below with their first single from the record below.Catch them on tour:
March 29–April 2—Byron Bay, Australia—Bluesfest
April 11—San Diego, CA—Belly Up
April 12—Los Angeles, CA—Teragram Ballroom
April 13 & 14—Las Vegas, CA—Bender Jamboree
April 19—Dallas, TX—Gas Monkey
April 20—Waco, TX—Brazos Nights
April 21—Lockhart, TX—Old Settler’s Festival
April 22—Houston, TX—The Studio
April 24—Nashville, TN—High Watt
April 25—Memphis, TN—Growlers
April 27—New Orleans, LA—House of Blues
April 28—Birmingham, AL—Zydeco
April 29—Asheville, NC—Salvage Station
April 30—Raleigh, NC—Lincoln Theatre
May 2—Richmond, VA—Capitol Ale House
May 3—New York, NY—Bowery Ballroom
May 4—Brooklyn, NY—Music Hall of Williamsburg
May 5—Washington DC—The Hamilton
May 8—Ann Arbor, MI—The Ark
May 9—Madison, WI—High Noon Saloon
May 10—St Louis, MO—Atomic Cowboy
May 11—Chicago, IL—Concord Hall
May 12—Minneapolis, MN—Cedar Cultural Center
May 17—Sacramento, CA—Harlow’s
May 19—San Francisco, CA—The Fillmore
May 20—Dana Point, CA—Doheney Blues Festival
May 24 & 25—Cumberland, MD—DelFest
May 27—Bradley, CA—Lightning In A Bottle
July 6 & 7—Quincy, CA—High Sierra Music Festival
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March 29–April 2—Byron Bay, Australia—Bluesfest
April 11—San Diego, CA—Belly Up
April 12—Los Angeles, CA—Teragram Ballroom
April 13 & 14—Las Vegas, CA—Bender Jamboree
April 19—Dallas, TX—Gas Monkey
April 20—Waco, TX—Brazos Nights
April 21—Lockhart, TX—Old Settler’s Festival
April 22—Houston, TX—The Studio
April 24—Nashville, TN—High Watt
April 25—Memphis, TN—Growlers
April 27—New Orleans, LA—House of Blues
April 28—Birmingham, AL—Zydeco
April 29—Asheville, NC—Salvage Station
April 30—Raleigh, NC—Lincoln Theatre
May 2—Richmond, VA—Capitol Ale House
May 3—New York, NY—Bowery Ballroom
May 4—Brooklyn, NY—Music Hall of Williamsburg
May 5—Washington DC—The Hamilton
May 8—Ann Arbor, MI—The Ark
May 9—Madison, WI—High Noon Saloon
May 10—St Louis, MO—Atomic Cowboy
May 11—Chicago, IL—Concord Hall
May 12—Minneapolis, MN—Cedar Cultural Center
May 17—Sacramento, CA—Harlow’s
May 19—San Francisco, CA—The Fillmore
May 20—Dana Point, CA—Doheney Blues Festival
May 24 & 25—Cumberland, MD—DelFest
May 27—Bradley, CA—Lightning In A Bottle
July 6 & 7—Quincy, CA—High Sierra Music Festival