Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

Tonight was an enjoyable evening. There was a light rain, not like 2 weeks ago.

Familiar Faces
The line up was: Mike Muse, Adia, Donnell, Godfather, BJ (on bass), Duane Face, Pooh, Packy, and Bojack. Donnell said, "During the happy hour set, that's when you get your drinks." There were apparently several birthday girls in attendance, and there was a birthday party group at a long table by me, with a three layer tiered round cake. I was feeling really tired during the break after the first set (lack of sleep on my part). However, things brightened when three ladies asked to sit with me at my booth. The girl who sat next to me asked my name and "if I had come to eat dinner here?" I said no, that I was here for the music. She was surprised - she and her friends didn't know that Familiar Faces was the band performing nor did they expect me to be a GoGo fan. They talked about ridiculous it was that as they walked in, a guy handed them a flyer (Passion Sundays - After Hours Band) and said the band on the flyer was much better than this band. DeeDee from The Positive Black Men Coalition came by and handed out flyers for the July 9th event and said hi to me. The girl next to me said, "You know Jordan, he's my buddy." DeeDee said "Yes, he know more about GoGo than a lot of people." (I'm not sure how true that is, but I'm working on it). For some reason, they kept looking outside through the blinds (possibly to see if the rain stopped, but it seemed strange to me). The girl sitting next to me was nice enough to ask before she smoked and pointed her cigarette away from me. Nephew came over and said to me, "I want to be like you when I grow up" (obviously because I had three girls sitting with me). The one girl called Nephew over and he handed her a business card, which she marveled at because it has a picture of five members of Familiar Faces on it.

The three girls left the table after the second set was over.

The third set as usual cranked the most. I believe I heard a guest male rapper, but I can't be sure as there were too many people in the crowd for me to see the stage. The three girls came back and sat at the booth next to me - two of them did the most dancing, the one who had sat next to me and one other, who fell down a few times (maybe drunk). The girl who had sat next to me grinded with me in my lap as I sat sideways in the booth. Late in the third set, I saw GoGo Mickey walk in. They were initially going to finish the set, but Michael Smith of Rare Essence prodded them into doing an extra song. Then they were done - Donnell said, "Fellas, if you haven't got her phone number by now, everything dead." Donnell said, "Keta was having a good time for the first time in a while, Jauhar, I guess she isn't mad at you anymore." Donnell then said, "Michelle, don't talk to her (I believe referring to DeeDee who sat right next to her) "You know you're the other woman. Michelle and I have been having a secret affair for years, that's my confession." The DJ, Supa Dan, kept playing a verse from some tune (I didn't recognize it) referring to Michelle in some way, Donnell said, "Don't bother, with Michelle, everything dead." He then went further, "She hasn't had a real date in years, unless you count this morning, but I just wanted Steak & Eggs". She went to hit him with her shoe. Then he said, "Being with Michelle is like Rayful Edmonds (Rayful Edmonds III was the biggest drug lord in DC in the 80s and is currently serving a life sentence in prison), a lifetime sentence. A man can't be with her for less than four years, she'll lock him in. He'll never see his kids. It will be like Finding Nemo, locked in a fish bowl." During this time, she went after him with one of her shoes, later a microphone stand and then later pushed him, causing him to stumble slightly into a toolbox. Packy laughed hysterically.

As I walked out, the same girl stood right by the exit, she said "You're cute too!" I don't know why I didn't get her name (I did the following week - Samantha?)

Thursday at the Xcalibur
Xcalibur Restaurant & Lounge, 2519 Pennsylvania Av NW, Washington, DC 20500

This is Familiar Faces' new Thursday (weekly) spot. An unusual aspect of their performances at this venue is that men have to be on the guest list: in Donnell's words tonight "to keep out the Riff Raff". This was the first performance where on my way there, I got to see people outside in DC - it was still daylight until shortly before I parked. I ended up getting lost, but once I got my bearings, I parked not too far away. This venue is right over by George Washington University. The restauarant part is on the ground floor, both outside and inside. The performance area is on the second floor. The stage was cramped - the stage and dance floor are about 14 feet wide, with the stage also not being very long.

Familiar Faces
The line up was scaled down: Mike, Adia, Donnell, Pooh, Bojack, Godfather and BJ (on Bass). The dance floor has two plush yellow chairs and a red couch on the opposite side with a number of plush ottomans. During the performance there were spinning multicolored lights. Behind the dance floor was the bar, which was three steps above the dance floor (about 1.5') - there were some dark brown wooden chairs. I arrived shortly before the performance started - Godfather told me "The pasta is really good", but I ended up not eating. The frontline - Mike, Adia and Donnell only had one microphone between them. After starting off with an instrumental, Donnell called up Mike saying "Adia and Mike are getting too comfortable in those recliners." After that song, Godfather started playing the opening to Grover Washington Jr.'s Mr. Magic, so Bojack walked up with his plate of food and started playing along. The performance was sort of a hybrid - they performed the songs from what they call their jazz set, but with Bojack playing, making it have more of a GoGo beat. Also, do to the one front line mic, Adia got more opportunities to sing solo. Also, Donnell's sax lost a little of its aural punch by not being amplified.

I spoke with Jazz during the second set. I also said hello during the performance to DeeDee, Tara (in the audience only, not performing, I noticed she wore black spiked high-heels, so it would have been hard for her to dance), and Ebony. A number of members of their usual crowd were at this performance. After the first set, Donnell said, "They (the neighborhood I guess) don't really want us here, so be quiet when you leave." Late in the second half, someone from the restaurant came up to let them know it was almost time to finish. Donnell called up Adia to sing "Secrets" (actually Alicia Keys' Diary), for this song Godfather and BJ switched instruments - it wasn't until this song that I could tell BJ was playing bass as all but his head and legs were hidden by the congas. They switched back after this song and Donnell told everyone not to drink and drive, of one guy he said, "Don't drive, it's too late for you to not drink." Donnell called Mike back up to the mic, to "End as they began, on a high note." After the song, Mike also went over their schedule and told everyone "Not to drink and drive." No joning tonight! On my way to my car, I ran into a woman who said she had locked her keys in her car - unfortunately, I couldn't be of any use to her. It was a kind of a damper on the way back.

Wednesday at the Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Tonight I brought my Dad's digital camera and my copy of Donald Passman's excellent music industry how-to-guide, All You Need to Know About the Music Business. When I first walked in, the cover-taker (actually Familiar Faces' manager and co-owner Baba Tutu) saw me with the book and said, "You're not going to read that here are you?" I told him "No, I'm just bringing it to give to someone." After I sat down, I saw Duane Face, so I went over and game him the book. Not long after, the (police) Lieutenant (I discovered Clark was his last name tonight) arrived and Donnell teased him by mocking his posture. The Lieutenant immediately went over to Adia and began hitting on her - he makes no secret of his interest in her.

Familiar Faces
The highlight of the first set was intense drumming by Pooh - he even sent a drum stick flying. Donnell did several birthday announcements for Michelle. Donnell mentioned how BJ is sitting in for Doc at bass. I had talked with Donnell last night about FF's members having side projects, so I assumed that's what Doc is doing now, but he was actually on vacation. There was a smaller than usual crowd tonight, not sure why. Unfortunately, I couldn't get the flash to work on the digital camera - I'll need to practice later. The Lieutenant came over and said hello to me, "You're becoming a regular."

The second set's intensity increased over time. Tara not only danced this time, but rapped a little as well. As usual, they closed the set with Prince's Purple Rain, with a really intense solo by Boolah - this was in effect his swan song, as it turned out to be his last show with Familiar Faces.

A woman came over and introduced herself to me as Mama 'Chelle, she told me she was here for her birthday and that she had been reading my online write-ups. I didn't think that hardly anyone including FF had been reading my posts until this week. At the rehearsal, some of the band members did talk about my postings. Donnell's joning was all aimed at the Lieutenant- he said the Lieutenant "Went to the Bahamas and came with 'Stacy Jones' (meaning his loafers) without socks, Crockett & Tubbs, Miami Vice." He also said the Lieutenant got his shirt from "The Land of Lilliput." The Lieutenant said, "Haterade!" The Lieutenant added his name to Familiar Faces' email list and Donnell said to Nephew, "Do we want to the Lieutenant coming to all of our shows?" He also started to talk about an incident when the Lieutenant was drunk, to which the Lieutenant said, "Don't talk about that!" Donnell talked about how Adia would be driving to the next show, and that clearly excited the Lieutenant. Adia didn't know what Donnell was talking about, but she was upset, and the Lieutenant echoed all of her responses to Donnell. After Donnell finished joning, Packy started to perform and played with one of the mics (which was not on).

DeeDee from the Positive Black Men Coalition came out and spoke with me briefly right after I walked out.

Rehearsal in Hyattsville
Private location

Familiar Faces
Present at the rehearsal were Donnell, Duane Face, Pooh, DP, Mike, Adia, Bojack, BJ, Godfather, and Tara. I thought Tara & Duane were now members of Familiar Faces, but Tara is a guest rapper and Duane, who has been practicing with the band since November, was filling in while Doc was in Florida. Tara was learning the Roll Call dance from DP. Since I had seen her dance with the group on Wednesday, but having been in the audience, I asked her if she was now a member of the group. She said, "I guess so" (I have been further informed that she is a guest rapper/dancer for the group).

The practice area has a lot of comforts, including couches, a fridge and bathrooms. Besides working on rehearsing cover tunes, they worked on deciding strategy for performances including costume and song selection. One of the most important things I picked up was how and what Donnell directs within the musical performances.

I also got a chance to speak with them together about what I would like to do (this is first time I could speak with almost all of them without music playing while trying to talk to them).

After the rehearsal was over, I went outside and talked with Duane Face for a while, about GoGo and the music industry in particular. He talked about how weird it was that people mostly hand out flyers at GoGo performances or in cars parked at them - "Basically that you have to go to a GoGo to find out where other GoGos are happening." He told me his favorite group was Northeast Groovers, that "They had a great dynamic, every show was different, they could play the same setlist two nights (in a row) and it would be different - they would be inspired by some little thing and react to it." Unfortunately, they broke up earlier this year, but Duane said that they really broke up in 1998; the reunion had only two or three original members. I told him I would bring a music industry book I had since I have no plans for returning to the cutthroat music industry.

Duane Face told me he didn't know the stories of most of the members of the group, except Donnell, "King of the GoGo Beat, everyone knows his story." A number of the members of FF were still hanging out in the parking lot when I left.

Friday at Club Levels
Club Levels, 1960 Montana Av NE, Washington, DC 20500

Club Levels is named for the fact that the club is actually divided into levels. In fact, the front actually says "Boom Boom Room". They showed me the area that Familiar Faces would perform in. I made the fortunate mistake of arriving rather early, even before Familiar Faces! I say fortunate, because it allowed me to watch all of the instruments be set up, which I hadn't seen before. From the moment I first arrived until FF started performing, the DJ played pre-recorded music - mostly GoGo, which of course I liked, but while the pre-recorded music played, the speaker volume was louder than at any other performance I've been to. This performance/dance area is rather narrow; I would say around 12' wide. The couches were black with matching tables and red ashtrays - the table across from the couch I sat at had a checkerboard, with checker pieces that were shot glasses with red or black circles on them. There also were gray plush backless benches. The drums were the first instruments to be set up, by Packy and a support guy (I believe Jermaine). In the process, Packy lip-synched on the mic to the pre-recorded music, included a Rare Essence song with Donnell on vocals.

As the band members arrived, they encouraged me to check out the free buffet, which was good. Donnell let me know that they would be playing at 12:30 AM. DJ Rico, a large man (over 6' and over 300 pounds), DJed - he wore shorts and a short-sleeved shirt that were black with a green grid pattern, as well as white socks and black sneakers. I got to see him set up as well.

Familiar Faces
They had an altered line up for this performance: there were two keyboards as usual, but besides Godfather, the other keyboard player was Duane "Duane Face" Henderson, playing a Yamaha Motif6 (when I spoke with him on June 22nd, he said this was his first time playing with FF). There was also a third percussionist, and Boolah and Doc weren't present (Doc was on vacation). BJ played the electric bass instead of keyboards: Duane Face was basically filling in for Doc. Since it was 70s night, the front four (Mike, Adia, Donnell, and DP) were more dressed up and all of them wore hats. A number of people in the audience (both male and female) wore afro wigs.

Unlike most of their performances I have been to, they started off using the entire percussion instead of drum kit, while still performing much of their usual neo-soul set - this of course made it funkier! During their performance of Rare Essence's Take Me Out to the GoGo, Donnell spotted Go-Go Mickey in the audience. It turns out this was a pre-arranged, paid appearance, see here. He wore a white basketball jersey with "Rare Essence" and the number 23 printed on the front and "Mickey" and the number 23 on the back. Donnell sent his friend "Fats" to go get Mickey to come up and play with him - "a reunion" in Donnell's words. Go-Go Mickey came in during the song and played with FF for the rest of the night.

After the first set ended, Donnell encouraged people to go to the buffet and also to the back where the 70s costume contest was being conducted ($250 each to the best male and female costumes), but said, "Fats" has already won the male costume. Fats wore a black wide-brimmed hat, a red shirt, and a black full-length coat.

As usual, the last set was the best. This was without a doubt, the crankiest performance I've been to this summer. After they turned the lights on (an obvious sign it was almost time to leave) came the highlight of the night - a furious percussion trio of Pooh, Bojack and Mickey. A girl came up and got me to dance during this trio (she was rather thin, I could feel her ribs when we danced), but we stopped when they started playing at a pace too fast to dance to - eventually BJ and Godfather comped their trio, which finally ended when Bojack walked away with a smile. Then Donnell encouraged them to start a new groove, "One that you had to be 35 to know" - it was what is known as 2001 - actually the opening to Richard Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathustra, which was in the opening to the movie 2001 - together with guitar and keyboards. Then the whole band started to perform again and the lights went out again: they performed one full song, then a fragment and the lights went on again and management said - that's it. The ending was also unusual - other than Donnell kidding Bojack about "David Green and Jungle Boogie" (two prior Rare Essence percussionists), Bojack did the after-performance joning, mostly picking on various people for their unfashionable clothing. I left after he finished. I drove home, but got lost on the way back, missing the transition from NY Av to Mass Av as I did coming home from the Market Lounge.

Rest in Peace to Len Bias, who died on this day eighteen years ago.

Wednesday at Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Familiar Faces
I arrived shortly before 10 PM and just managed to catch Familiar Faces before they started - initially there were only five guys performing - Donnell, DP, BJ, Pooh and Doc - they performed Miles Davis' Tutu. They had a guest keyboard player, Donnell said, "He had just turned 15, they found him in the ball room at Chuck E. Cheese's". I didn't know the name of the tune they performed off the top of my head, but it is the Roots' You Got Me. Later, they performed "Secrets" (Alicia Keys' Diary) on request. The highlight of the first set was Seals & Crofts' Summer Breeze, punctuated by a strong guitar solo by Boolah. Donnell said, "He didn't used to play like that, when I first met him, he played like sh*t."

In the audience again were the police lieutenant Clark (off duty and out of uniform as I have always seen him) and Ebony (I meant to get her name, but it is hard talking to people while FF is peforming), both of whom I met at Takoma Station on May 19th. Kevin, the guest vocalist last week? was also there, as was Brandon, the guy I talked to two weeks ago. Also, during the first set, Donnell was upset that a fan wore a Detroit Pistons jersey (#11 - Isiah Thomas' # - I saw a guy with an Indiana Thomas jersey at Mayo Island), "disrespecting me, don't you know I'm a (Washington) Wizards fan? (Any local sports fan knows that three of the Pistons starting five (Ben Wallace, Rasheed Wallace, and Rip Hamilton) started their NBA careers in Washington before being traded away.)" FF razzed the Lieutenant, mocking his voice saying that's my favorite song (Diary), calling him to come forth and give dancing lessons (I am no great dancer, but his dancing is distinctive and most people I have noticed watching him find it amusing).

The second set, the GoGo set, cranked as usual. During the set, Tara St. John, who had black hair tied back and wearing a pink t-shirt danced in unison with the front line during an instrumental solo. The best tune was the second to last, Family (for the lyrics go here). There was a girl named Imani (I got her name June 26th) with long black hair, glasses, a gold top, and black slacks who smiled a big smile during that song. I had thought she looked familiar, and it just dawned on me: she was one of the bartenders at the Market Lounge on May 17th. As usual, they closed with Prince's Purple Rain. Then Donnell went on joning: (Michael) Jordan came up. Someone said, "He never lost", to which Donnell replied "Nick Anderson (1995 Eastern Conference Finals Orlando vs. Chicago), took the ball away from him, raped him, molested him. Jauhar, don't you talk, your man Allen Iverson chased away his coach, Larry Brown. Now where is Allen Iverson with his coach? At home playing Nintendo since May. 'Practice!'" Donnell also made fun of two girls standing together responded by saying "did you switch outfits, one gets top, and one bottom?" (One of the girls had a white top, black slacks, and the other reversed). Donnell said "Jauhar is running for Mayor, couldn't be any worse than Marion Barry, anything to keep that closet door closed..." Jauhur then said, "Only someone from Duke Ellington (the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, a DC High School) would talk like that, they need to take a class (on joning?) to graduate." Donnell said, "Gaithersburg High, Jauhur was voted "Most Likely To Succeed", Michael Smith, Jauhar Abraham? Michael Smith, middle name was Bartholomew, changing his name..." Jauhar, responded "That while we were playing football and basketball, Donnell was taking ballet and tap dancing, a saxophone on his back and ballet shoes around his neck." Donnell then brought Bojack into it, saying "Bojack wore EEBs?" Bojack responded by going over to take the mic, Donnell told the sound man to cut off the mic.

After that, I was about to leave, but Adia told me to wait, she went to get their other album (A live 2-CD performance March 31st, 2004 at Takoma Station) to sell to me. Even though PA Palace and Showplace both sell copies (and PA Palace also sells another April 1-CD performance), I prefer to buy directly from the band. The other band members joked about what I was paid Adia for. While I waited, members of FF and their significant others told stories about funny incidents involving Rare Essence members in the past.

When I did walk out, I talked to Godfather; he gave me some suggestions - video & still camera. He also suggested I go with FF to talk with Tom (Goldfogle) & Becky of Liaison.

Rare Essence at Club U
Club U (inside Frank D. Reeves Municipal Center), 2000 14th Street NW Suite 10, Washington, DC 20009

Even though Familiar Faces was performing on Saturday night on the Odyssey, sponsored by the Positive Black Men Coalition, I decided to check out Rare Essence, to see how the band is now that the core of 911/Familiar Faces is gone from it. Unfortunately, I made 2 tactical errors: I decided to take the Metro instead of driving (Club U is only a little over a block from the U Street-Cardoza station) which meant I could not stay for the whole show, and I arrived too early. I called Club U at 9 PM to ask when they would open doors for the show, they said 10. So I arrived a little after 10:30, guessing that RE would start performing some time around 11 PM. I was not the only one taking the Metro there, as I followed two girls from the Metro straight to Club U. I had a few Cokes while waiting for Rare Essence to start up and the bartender correctly figured I had never been there: she kept waving to me, but I figured she was trying to signal someone else, until the guy next to me (wearing a t-shirt with the word "Brooklyn" printed on it) tapped me on the shoulder and pointed to her. She told me about the free buffet, where I got some chicken wings (whole wings, not like a wing place). I was not the only one who didn't already know about the free buffet, because a guy asked me if "The grub was free?" I told him where to get it. I also noticed that they sold roses (the Market Lounge and Mad Chef Cafe sell Polaroid pictures taken on site with a background of Moet Champagne bottles).

Rare Essence
Rare Essence didn't start performing until after 12:30, by which time I had been long bored with waiting (given that I didn't know anyone there). Before they started performing, the MC said he saw a lot of women violating the dress code; they should go to the bathroom and look in the mirror, that at the half, he would pick out the women dressed horribly and say "Unh". They started up with Take Me Out to the Go-Go, mellow at first. I liked the first set, but don't like Club U's set up - there isn't enough open space - like the bars when I was an undergrad at College Park, people are pushing through to move around the entire time and there is little space between people - I hate that! I was directly behind the soundboard for the first set, a girl I later learned is named Lisa was there. The DJ booth, next to the sound board, acts as an obstacle for the right stage speaker, therefore I couldn't hear the band they way I should where I was (I didn't want to be on the dance floor directly, since I couldn't see the band from there). I saw Familiar Faces' sound man, Jazz, come in during the first set and said Hi to him. People dance in a number of ways at the GoGos I have been to, but normally they don't dance frantically. Tonight was an exception: there was a guy in blue jeans with a black t-shirt and black baseball cap who was intentionally dancing as spastically as he could.

I moved after the first set ended, so that I was out of the way. During the break, the same guy in the "Brooklyn" t-shirt asked me to "Smack the ass of one of the three girls by me, to get their attention for him." Instead, I tapped the shoulder of the closest one and got her attention - he was clearly disappointed and said so. The girl next to her clearly knew him. A couple of minutes later, another girl tried to get to his female friend, but he told her not to and me to block her - I told her, he's just trying to get me in trouble. A few minutes later, she and I grinded briefly. Then I saw the friend (the one he wanted the attention of) giving a guy a hand job on the outside (with his pants on) (it certainly shocked me).

The second set started up, and I remained where I was. The music cranked more and the sound improved. Mid-way through the set, the girl I grinded with motioned for me to grind with one of her friends, who wore a pink shirt with the words, "Heavy Metal Lover" printed on it. Of all the performances I've been to, this is the only venue that has lights on during the entire performance. Unfortunately, I told her I had to go, as even though I was having a good time and the music cranked, I couldn't afford to miss the last train at the Metro stop. Even the most casual observer would have noticed that the women dressed more scantily than at the other GoGos I've been to.

I left shortly after 2:30 AM, when the second set was still going. Even so, I only beat the last train by 9 minutes. In a way, the evening was symmetrical - I noticed a girl in my train car on the Red line on the way home who had been in my car on the way down. When I got to Bethesda, the station closed when the last passengers got off the train - the station attendant locked the gate when I was part way up the escalator.

RE's line up is similar in composition to Familiar Faces', but they had a trombone, and the single keyboard player had three keyboards.

Club U closed in February 2005, so this will remain my only visit there.

Friday Night at the Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

Familiar Faces
Due to the heavy rain, I arrived a little late, but early enough to get there before Familiar Faces started peforming. Donnell again teased his friend "Big Don Pimp." There were three sets, the first one neo-soul - punctuated by Boolah's kickin' guitar solo in Seals & Crofts' Summer Breeze. Mike Muse complained about "Not getting any mail today because of the Anti-Christ" (it was a federal holiday for Reagan's funeral). A girl asked me to dance, but I begged off because one of my teeth ached, but over time as I got into the music, I ignored the pain. She came by later and got me to dance, unfortunately, she obviously didn't like my dancing 'cause she left shortly to dance with some other guy. The second set had a guest male vocalist and another percussionist subbing for Packy. Another guest sang a few words in Rare Essence's Take Me Out To the Go-Go. The third set as usual, cranked the most of the sets - there was a guest rapper. Unfortunately, several minutes after the performance ended, a couple of fights broke out.

I think all of the guest performances I have witnessed emphasize the communal nature of the performances. It is about having a good time, especially with friends. Friends are recognized beyond the shout-outs during the performance: the band members greet and talk with the friends during breaks.

Note: Another posting on this performance

Thursday at Cranberries
Cranberries, 5740 Silver Hill Rd, Suitland, MD 20747

I arrived at Cranberries a little after 8 PM. Cranberries is an African-American owned upscale restaurant (entrees range from $10.49-$21.49) and bar. I sat in the no-smoking section, where Familiar Faces was set up. They perform at Cranberries every other week and do not perform GoGo there - not all of Familiar Faces was present for that reason.

Familiar Faces
The line up was Mike Muse, D-Floyd, Doc, Pooh, Godfather, and BJ. They peformed the neo-soul and jazz covers (I don't believe there were any originals) that they normally feature in their Jazz sets. I believe I arrived before they started performing. Some of the waitress had an unusual hair style - their black hair was partially dyed red, mostly in their single pony tail - it was vaguely reminiscent of a rooster (at least to me it was). They performed three sets - the restaurant was pretty packed during the first two sets.

At the beginning of the second set, they tried to get a friend, nicknamed "Luigi of the Super Mario Bros." to play on Godfather's keyboard, but after warming up, he decided not to. Mike Muse did offer congratulations to the large wedding party present and noted the passing of Ray Charles.

The last set, as usual, cranked the most. Also, during the set, Mike Muse spoke out about politics in the world today including the current president "Not liking people of my color." "Little Big Harold" sat in on trumpet for a little while, with and without a Harmon mute. At the end, Donnell joned as usual - talking about how they alternate Thursdays with "Little Big Harold", who replied, that's "Mr. Little Big Harold." Donnell also talked about how Jauhar had been wrong about the Lakers that he didn't know about Mr. Miracle (Kobe). Jauhar called him after he thought the Pistons had won, but then after the Lakers won, Donnell called him three minutes later, he never answered, even though Donnell called him one hundred times.

Wednesday at the Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Familiar Faces
Boolah & Bojack weren't present for the first set, but Familiar Faces still held its own. Pooh's drumming and the vocals by Sweet Adia & Mike really hit the beat in the first set. Donnell invited a guest vocalist named Kevin to sing, he was nervous at first and got Donnell to start for him, but he was good once he got warmed up. Donnell insisted he was "Fifteen, just taken to Chuck E. Cheese's." At one point, Kobe Bryant was being shown on ESPN on the TV. Donnell said "That's the most talented basketball player on the planet, Jelly Bean's boy, Kobe. Kobe could take Michael (Jordan) at twenty-five." To this, Mike Muse responded, "Sorry, he forgot his medication today. Maybe Mike Tyson, but not Michael Jordan. Back in the day you were saying the same about Michael towards Dr. J, whose jock will you be on next?" More joning went on back and forth. Donnell went over various announcement of future shows, including a splash party - "This time we'll keep it wholesome. (PA Palace sells X-rated videos of some GoGo pool parties).

At the intermission, I spoke with those members of Familiar Faces that I didn't know the names of. The second set was what really cranked. Ebony was back, I couldn't get her name (until June 24th)- she was wore a Celtics cap that matched her green shirt. She again briefly rapped (during the second set). After they finished performing, Donnell again went on about various people, teasing Cookie (a bleach-blonde) and Michelle, "Last year she couldn't go to pool parties, she was a couple of Reeces Pieces away from..." - Michelle hit him playfully with her purse.

As I walked out, Godfather asked me how I liked the show and suggested I videotape one of their performances.

Non-GoGo: Antibalas at the Black Cat
Instead of attending Familiar Faces' performance at the Safari Steakhouse, I went with my friend Joe to see Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra.
Black Cat 1811 14th St NW, Washington, DC

As the name implies, they are an Afrobeat band. I had missed seeing them when they came by UNC in December, plus this was a record release party for their album to be released on June 8th, Who Is This America?. I counted 13 members of the band (1 trombone player, 2 saxophone players, 2 trumpet players, 2 guitar players, 1 bass player, 1 keyboardist, 2 drummers (drum kit & congas), 1 percussionist, and the lead vocalist/percussionist). They played 2 sets. They made a lot of political statements (which annoyed Joe), but surprisingly they never mentioned their new album. Their first song (don't remember the title), was really laid back, but the 2nd song "Security" and 3rd song really cranked. Joe said they reminded him of the Groove Collective and that "now he knows where the Dead Heads have gone..." (of which Joe is one). Another song in the 2nd set, led by one of the Sax players, really cranked as well. There was a nice girl (a tall curly brunette wearing a white shirt and black slacks) who in a friendly way encouraged me and other guys to dance more rigorously. The only real negative was twice being behind people dancing really vigorously who kept backing up, forcing me to keep backing up. I just listened to the album, which I copped at the performance - it's really good. I like their CDs, but those 3 crankin' tunes aside, I was bored at times - the other songs really didn't hold my attention. Their recordings sustain me more because I am doing other things while listening.

Wednesday at Howard University
The Moorland-Spring Research Center, Howard University, Washington, DC 20059

Today was a productive and fun day. I went down to Howard University and visited the Founders Library's Moorland-Spring Research Center. While I was there, I perused Sia Robinson's 1990 Masters Thesis in Human Communication Studies "A Qualitative Analysis of the Nature and Meaning of Go-Go Music". It should be a good reference tool for shaping my own thesis.

I thought about how people have discussed that due to internet downloading of music, that eventually albums will only be used as promotions for attending concert performances. That's pretty much what PA tapes/CDs are for GoGo bands right now because they don't get royalties on them, just an up-front fee for a copy of the master.

Wednesday at Takoma Station
In the evening, I went to see Familiar Faces at Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Familiar Faces
As usual, they started off with their Jazz set, but even that cranked, particularly their rendition of Grover Washington, Jr.'s Mr. Magic - the tune that is supposed to have set the beat for GoGo. Another guy in the audience, Brandon, asked me for details on the band. Donnell razzed GoGo Mickey in the audience, talking about a band he used to belong to, the now-defunct Reality Band (I have some of their PA's, they crank). He said they only played at one place, "The Bus Stop", that any place beyond The Black Hole is Silver Spring. He said GoGo Mickey was only allowed off the porch on Saturdays. He also picked on "Big Pimp Don", saying I know your name is really Donald, to which Don pulled out his license.

As usual, the GoGo set cranked, with GoGo Mickey sitting in for a few songs. They closed with Prince's Purple Rain, with a heavy guitar solo at the end by Clarence "Boolah" Roper, but Donnell picked on his use of effect pedals - "Jimi Hendrix, one pedal, etc." I had looked over the pedals during a break - there are a lot of them in Boolah's set-up.

Sunday: JYB & BYB at the Mad Chef
Mad Chef Cafe, 7929 Central Ave, Capitol Heights, MD 20743

I heard about this upcoming show with the Junkyard Band and the Backyard Band on the PA Palace Board.



Even though Familiar Faces was also performing that night (together with EU and Y2K Band), I decided I wanted to see JYB and BYB together, both because they were major groups and I wanted to compare them to Familiar Faces. Junkyard Band had unveiled a new sound, which they call ASJ (Another Side of Junk), since I went down to UNC. This was my first eighteen and over club rather than the usual twenty-one and over (some people call them "kiddie cabarets").

I arrived at 10 PM, the stated start time. When I went up and asked if they were open yet, the guy must have thought I was a 'Bama, 'cause he said we're closed for eating. I said "I'm here to see Junkyard and Backyard." He said, "My bad." Then he said no, they weren't open yet. I ended up waiting quite a while (over 30 minutes), before they started letting people in. When it was my turn to be carded, this guy also thought I was a 'Bama - he asked me if I knew what was going on and who I was a fan of. The weapon search was tighter than at the airport: belts off, a frisking (by the same first guy I talked to, wearing rubber gloves), a metal detecting wand, taking our shoes off, and our feet frisked. The security guy even threw away (literally, he threw it into the grass) the pen in my pocket as a potential weapon. I went and sat at the table in the middle. One of the fans took it upon himself to ask me if I had ever heard the bands performed - I told him I had seen BYB, not JYB - he was nice about it. They started off with a DJ playing Hip Hop.

Junkyard apparently had some technical problems, delaying their start. They started off with ASJ, and then switched to the GoGo beat. The only people from JYB I could see were the talkers because they sat on speakers way above the crowd - that was because the crowd was so large and it was so dark. I liked JYB's set, but when BYB performed everyone (including me), got more into it.

During the break, some women intentionally came up specifically to dance with me. The fan who had talked with me earlier came up with three women who briefly danced with me. They asked me if I was a manager, and one of them insisted I was a reporter despite my protestes. The heat generated by all of us (the entire crowd that is) dancing caused us all to sweat profusely. It ended shortly before 3 AM when 2 women started fighting. Walking to my car, a girl shouted to me, "You was partying!" I am not good with remembering song titles, but others who attended have posted them here.

It was during this performance that I decided to create this blog.

The JYB performance from this date is available for purchase from various GoGo vendors - I have a copy and enjoy it.

Friday at Safari Steakhouse
Safari Steakhouse, 9430 Annapolis Road Lanham MD 20706

I had a big headache on Thursday, so I missed their performance at Cranberries. This was a convenient drive shortly off the beltway, although I had to stop for gas. I arrived plenty early, and got a table facing the middle of the bandstand. This was another event to celebrate Donnell's birthday.

Familiar Faces
Milton "Go-Go Mickey" Freeman sat in on congas for a stretch, and Donnell told a story of how Footz (Quentin Davidson, the late drummer for Rare Essence) brought Go-Go Mickey to Rare Essence from the now-defunct Ayre Rayde (in Donnell's words, "A bunch of Maryland dudes") to replace Jungle Boogie. Donnell had some more humorous talks; including chiding one of the guys for not coming to the Takoma Station performances because his woman wouldn't let him. He said his friend could borrow his book, called "How to handle it." This was another great performance, lasting until 2:45 AM. There were three sets, with a DJ playing music in between.

Wednesday at Takoma Station
Howard University Library, 500 Howard Place, NW, Washington, DC 20059

I wasn't feeling well on Friday, so I missed the performance at Safari Steakhouse. I had a busy day - I went down to Howard University's Founders Library to try to look at the thesis, but the archives section was closing. I did manage to confirm that they did have the thesis. I think spent time reading Raymond Chandler's "Farewell, My Lovely" to pass the time. At 8 PM, I went over to the Black Cat's box office to get advance tickets for the June 4th Antibalas Afrobeat Orchestra show. I took the Metro back, but only got as far as Chinatown-Gallery Place. Red Line trains weren't coming to the station due to some problem, so I left and walked all the way to Metro Center. I caught the next train to Bethesda. I went to my car, changed clothes, and drove over by Takoma Station - it had been a very long day.

Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Familiar Faces
Fortunately, I arrived before Familiar Faces started. This time I sat right by the stage (last time I was at the bar). This performance cranked the most of the three so far. Again there were guest vocalists, "Reggae Rae" (Ras Lidj), of whom Donnell said, "I don't what he said, but it sounded good." Ebony said hello when she saw me, and she rapped with the band during one cranking jam. Again, Donnell had humorous speeches. I picked up an advance ticket for Friday's performance. I made a point of going up and saying hello to Adia, as she had chided me on the TMOTTGOGO.com bulletin board for not doing so on last Wednesday. Donnell teased Adia about one of the pictures on the website from her birthday where her mouth was open. He said she asked Nephew to take it down, he refused, then she put up some embarrassing pictures of him, and he took it down right away.

Note: Another fans' response to that performance.

Wednesday at Takoma Station
Takoma Station, 6914 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012

Familiar Faces
This was an easy drive and I parked in a residential area nearby. Again, I arrived early (9:30 PM) to get a cheaper cover. I had a cheeseburger dinner and watched Game 7 of the Minnesota-Sacramento series. This crowd was more dressed up than Monday's. A number of people, including one woman in particular named Ebony, were really routing for Minnesota. One guy (Lt. Clark) who came in was immediately friendly to me - he wore an orange collared shirt, and bought me a drink (soda, I don't drink alcohol). He was one of the few people who really danced. The sets in this performance were not as separated as Monday's. This performance was supposed to be for Donnell Floyd's birthday (he said it was actually Monday). Jazz, their sound man, came up to me and said I looked familiar. I told him I was at the Market Lounge on Monday, but he said that's not it, "Am I a musician?" I said no - don't I wish I were! One of the songs they performed for him was Seals & Crofts' Summer Breeze, with Tony Sharpe (a former vocalist for 911) sitting in. For me, the highlight of the evening was their performance of Simon & Garfunkel's Mrs. Robinson to the GoGo beat. I waited after, so I could talk to Donnell Floyd (I got his cell number so we could talk further about my project). I caught that the music is not the only enjoyable part of the performance - Donnell's talks (particularly after the music ends) are very humorous. He said that the guy in the orange shirt, whom he identified as a police lieutenant (Lt. Clark) was GoGo Nate. I read this post on the PA Palace discussion board later that GoGo Nate was a humorous rapper who apparently now sells PA tapes for $5 over by Dunbar High School. The performance was over before 1 AM, and I drove home. The bassist looked familiar to me, and so I looked on the web and recognized him as the leader of Physical Wunders, which I assumed obviously had broken up if he was with FF. However, he subsequently told me after reading this on the blog that it was not true, see for more details.

Monday at Market Lounge: Making contact with FF
Market Lounge, 1309 5th Street NE, Washington, DC 20002

10 PM was the stated start time for Familiar Faces' performance (opening for EU), but I drove early in order to get a chance to talk with the band and to have a cheaper cover. On the way, I noticed that another GoGo venue, Bud's Restaurant and Nightclub was a block away from the Market Lounge. Both Familiar Faces and EU performed at the 9:30 Club concert, so I had seen them before, but this was different. As per the instructed dress code instructions, I wore a collared shirt, slacks, and formal shoes. As I expected, I was the only white person there. Doc was the first band member there. He sat at the bar. When I went to the bar, the bartender (Imani), served me a Coke in the can. I talked with Donnell Floyd, the leader of Familiar Faces. He agreed to work with me on my thesis, and introduced me to Mike Muse and Mark "Godfather" Lawson.

Familiar Faces
Familiar Faces performed two sets - the first set was basically neo-soul (a happy hour set he called it) - no one really danced to that one. Donnell's adult son, Donnell Jr., was in the audience. The second set was straight-out GoGo - they really cranked. I danced as did most people. However, my dancing was interrupted by me getting hit on by a couple of girls, which was unexpected, they asked me questions like whether I had any children. I talked with the girls for a while and danced with one of them including grinding. Later, another girl went to dance with me, and then walked quickly away, as if she had been dared to "dance with the white boy." They guy sitting at the table in front of mine told me I shouldn't take that from her. Donnell announced during the performance that this would be their last performance at the Market Lounge that "They were getting kicked out."

EU
EU performed a couple of neo-soul songs and then straight-out GoGo the rest of the way. The performance ended shortly before 2 AM. Overall, I really enjoyed the performances and wished I had gone to GoGos alone earlier.

The only negative of the night was getting lost on the way home, as I missed the correct turns on more than one circle.

Introduction

Feel free to email me if you have any comments.

Since I don't take copious notes when I go, I will be editing entries as I go as I recall or learn new things. when I first started this blog, I didn't take notes at all.

Although I have graduated from the University of Maryland with an accounting degree, I have always been interested in history, literature, and music. Actually much of what I have learned comes from University libraries, not classes (the music library at Hornbake was one of my favorite spots at the University of Maryland, it has since moved and is now the performing arts library). I keep my alumni association membership active so that I can check out books from University of Maryland libraries. I am the third child with 2 older brothers who had no musical talents, so my parents did not even bother to have me learn an instrument. Thus I can only appreciate music. Every one in my family has had at least some interest in Classical music. The things I like in Classical music are the same as what I like in Funk music: I like a lot of sound, based in rhythm.

Since most of my friends don't listen to the music I listen to, my interest in the Funk came in a round about way. One of my fraternity brothers, Christopher, won free tickets to an Earth, Wind & Fire concert. He took another fraternity brother that I am closer to, Tung, to the concert. Tung instantly became a big EWF fan and he introduced me to R&B. I started buying more and more R&B and finally, when I bought the Best of Bar-Kays (Mercury) Volumes 1 and 2, I wanted to find more of this particular sound. Chris was also a fan of Blaxploitation movies, he had Shaft (I remember watching it when I was 12: it was where I first heard the term "get laid." I had to ask my dad what it meant). He said that the only one who was a bigger badass was Superfly, so I rented that as well. I really liked the Funk soundtrack music to both of those movies, Superfly is my favorite soundtrack of all time. I have the All-Music Guide to Rock and I looked under the styles in it, one of which was Funk. I had earlier bought the Funk Essentials from PolyGram (and together with the Best of Bar-Kays) I knew that this was the style I was looking for. So I was at the music library at the University of Maryland and I looked in the computer under Funk, and found Rickey Vincent's book, Funk: the Music, the People and the Rhythm of the One. And believe you me I used the list of bands in front as a buying guide. It was the book that really inspired me to start reading more and it was where I first heard of DC GoGo. In it, Rickey mentions Mumbo Jumbo by Ishmael Reed as being a novel about the spread of Funk culture across Western civilization. I read that book too and found it to be an excellent metaphor for my own experience. Funk, including GoGo, is my favorite style of music now.

My interest in Blaxploitation movies is intertwined with Funk music, especially since the music in many of those movies is kicking. Just like when I looked up Rickey Vincent's book, I was at the UMBC library one day and I looked up Blaxploitation. There I found Darius James' book, That's Blaxploitation!. After having seen clips of Dolemite, in The Great White Hype, I was at Best Buy one day and saw the Dolemite collection on VHS for $36, which I purchased. After having watched the movies, I saw that in Darius' critique of Rudy's movies mentioned that they follow the Toast tradition. Toasts are Black oral folk (rhymed and typically laced with obscenities) poetry about the Life: mostly pimping, pushing and hustling. Later, while surfing the worldwide web, I found a page devoted to Iceberg Slim, formerly located at http://www.fringeware.com/subcult/Iceberg_Slim.html, now since revised and moved here. (Iceberg Slim's name was also used by a local rapper who appeared on Trouble Funk's Don't Touch That Stereo, I've met him and seen him perform). It mentioned the book The Life: The Lore & Folk Poetry of the Black Hustler (by Dennis Wepman, Ronald Newman and Murray Binderman) as being a book of toasts. I've since also become a fan of novels by Iceberg Slim, Donald Goines, and Chester Himes.

I realized that I wanted to work in music and that just listening to CDs was not enough for me. I had no friends around who had my interests (the few fraternity brothers with similar interested had moved to various places after they graduated). So I decided to go to California for a vacation, that way I could check out LA (so I would know what it was like before I thought about moving there) and visit Rickey Vincent. So when I was at the library at San Francisco State when I was waiting to see RV, I read The Life. The book right next to it on the shelf was Get Your Ass in the Water and Swim Like Me by Bruce Jackson, which is another book devoted to Toasts. RV gave me the email address for a Funk discussion group, formerly accessible at funky-music@ai.mit.edu, now here, and talking to that group has gotten me closer to Funk than anything else has. I became so enamored with Funk that I decided I wanted on to work with Funk in the music business. On Rickey's advice, I decided I would specifically try to get a job with Rhino Entertainment, the reissue company. While I worked at Rhino in master use licensing, Kip Lornell contacted me. Kip is a professor at George Washington University. He was co-writing the first book on GoGo (The Beat: Go-Go's Fusion of Funk and Hip-Hop). It was possible that Rhino would release the CD that would accompany the book. After working at Rhino, and transferring to a sister company, Warner Special Products, I left and moved back East because I hated living in Los Angeles.

I'll admit I have a sense of pride about GoGo, given that I am from the Vanilla Suburbs of Chocolate City. I have built up a collection of about 150 commercial and PA CDs (PA = Public Address system, i.e. PA tapes & CDs are copies of soundboard recordings of performances) - honestly, there is only one of them that I haven't liked. I really enjoy the music, it is my favorite genre of music - the polyrhythmic beat really cranks and it is about the only music I dance to. I view it as carrying on the torch for Funk - it is the most vibrant musical tradition going on within Funk, with a number of bands performing weekly in the DC area. I decided to create a web page of links on GoGo to further educate myself on GoGo.

However, not too many of my friends are GoGo fans, and I was unable to convince them to go with me to GoGo clubs. Also, prior to this Summer, I did not want to go alone - I don't like going to concerts by myself. The first GoGo concert I've been to was on August 31st, 2001 at the 9:30 Club, which is normally a rock venue and had a mixed crowd.

I went with my friend Joe, and managed to meet Kip Lornell in person (I recognized him from his picture on the back cover). This performance, which featured EU, Backyard Band, 911 and Chuck Brown with guests, was released as a commercial DVD - Put Your Hands Up! The Tribute Concert to Chuck Brown. 911's performance in particular was the greatest performance I've ever been to. The GoGo performances I've been to and heard recordings of are better than the old school Funk bands still on tour in that have a tendency to do a fair number acapella sing-a-longs of their hit songs. The concert DVD was the first DVD I ever bought.

It took me a while to find myself before I realized I wanted to seek out a career related to folklore. Kip Lornell (together with Simon Bronner) has given me a lot of career guidance. I decided to attend the Masters program in Folklore at the University of North Carolina because of its fieldwork focus and my family in the area. In the Spring 2004 semester, I took a class on Ethnography (a form of observation and collaboration used in order to gain understanding) where I followed the hardcore fans of Cool John Ferguson, an extremely talented multi-genre guitar player. I was not able to understand the spiritual meaning of the music for the fans from my observation and personal experience alone. This lack of understanding lead me to the conclusion that I had to do my thesis on a subject I was really into. I immediately knew that was GoGo. In order not to spread myself thin, I wanted to work with one or both of my two favorite GoGo bands: Trouble Funk and 911 (formed in 2001, consisting largely of veterans of Rare Essence, including still-present members (of 911/Familiar Faces) Donnell Floyd, DP, Bojack, Godfather, BJ, and no-longer members (of 911/Familiar Faces) Darrell "Blue Eye" Arrington and Darrin "X" Frazier, (further Mike Muse went from Rare Essence to another RE-spin-off band called Touch of Essence (which pre-dated 911) to 911/Familiar Faces) as well as most prominently, 2 vocalists from Northeast Groovers: Chris "Rah" Black and Dave "32" Ellis). I contacted a number of people to ask for information and picked up more PA CDs to listen to the distinctions in the sound of the current and older GoGo bands (and of course, because I enjoy the music). Even before coming back up to the DC area, I discovered that Trouble Funk was not currently performing, so my goal was to work with 911. Shortly after the semester ended, I read this post on the PA Palace Bulletin Board that 911 was now called Familiar Faces. On the Take Me Out to the GoGo bulletin board, I found out that a member of the band, Adia Doores, was a poster on the board. I contacted her and discussed my plans with her. She was positive about it and sent me a link to the band's website, which has their entire performance schedule on it.

Familiar Faces
Line up from May 17, 2004 on:

• Lead vocals (male)
  • Mike "Dickie" Muse (-March 12, 2006)
  • Sean "Kal-el" Gross (guitar & percussion as well) (January 25, 2006 - January 1, 2008)
  • Frank "Scooby" Marshall (guitar as well) (Special Guest (January 2, 2008-December 28, 2008)
  • Marquis "Quise" Melvin (January 2, 2008-)
• Lead vocals (female)
  • Adia Doores (-April 9, 2005)
  • Halima Peru (April 13, 2005-January 1, 2008)
  • Damila Adams (January 2, 2008-)
• Backup vocals (male)
  • James Lawson (Godfather's nephew) (December 2004-January 2006)
• Backup vocals (female)
  • TJ (November-December 2006)
• Rapper
  • John "Stinky Dink" Bowman (December 31, 2008-)
• Lead talker, rapper, & Saxophone
  • Donnell "D-Floyd" Floyd
• Vocals & Trumpet
  • Derek "DP" Paige
• Vocals & Trombone
  • Mike "Hardstep" Taylor (April 2007-)
• Each of the members of the frontline tends to play a snare-less tambourine when not singing or playing another instrument.
• Lead guitar
  • Clarence "Boolah" Roper (-June 23rd, 2004)
  • Dwayne Lee (June 26, 2004-January 1, 2008)
  • Wendell Bacon (January 2, 2008-)
• Bass
  • Kenny "Doc" Hughes (-January 1, 2008)
  • Sean Geason (January 2, 2008-)
• First Keyboard
  • Byron "BJ" Jackson (-June 14, 2005)
  • Lorenzo Johnson (June 15, 2005-)
• Second keyboard
  • Mark "Godfather" Lawson
• Drum Kit
  • Duane "Pooh" Payne (-Fall 2004)
  • Jammin' Jeff Warren (Fall 2004-April 12, 2005, January 14, 2007-)
  • Larry "Stomp Dog" Atwater (also Roland SPD-S Sampling Pad) (April 13, 2005-January 13, 2007, filled in (some days per week) June 17, 2007-January 1, 2008)
  • Dwayne Thomas (filled in (some days per week) January or February 2007-June 2007)
• Lead percussion (congas, bongos, timbales, roto-toms, cowbell)
  • Eric "Bojack" Butcher
  • Sam "Smoke" Dews (Fall 2004-)
• Second percussion
  • Vonzae "Packy" Jenkins (He is actually their equipment set-up man)
  • Charlie Allen (-2007)
  • Jacques Vaughn (January 19, 2005-August 9, 2007)
• The cowbell is played by being struck by a drumstick, not rung.

The original personnel for 911 (per a conversation with Donnell on July 5, 2005) was:
Vocals & Saxophone - Donnell "D-Floyd" Floyd
Vocals & Trumpet - Derek "DP" Paige
Vocals - Dave "32" Ellis
Vocals - Fatima Washington
Groove Talker - Bryan "B-Man" Baucum
Guitar - Joel Freeman
Bass - Bobby "B-Smoot" Smoot
Keyboards (Roland XP-60) - Mark "Godfather" Lawson
Sample Boards - Darrin "X" Frazier
Keyboards - Paul "Rootie" Baltimore
Drums - Darryl "Blue Eye" Arrington
Percussion (Congas, Bongos, Timbales, Roto-Toms, Cowbell) - Eric "Bojack" Butcher

For comparison, here is the personnel for the 911 album Blueprint released on June 26, 2001:
Current members - Donnell, DP, Bojack, and Godfather, plus
Vocals - Dave "32" Ellis
Vocals - Chris "Rah" Black (both Rah and 32 left for the Northeast Groovers reunion)
Drums - Darryl "Blue Eye" Arrington
Sample Boards - Darrin "X" Frazier
Keyboards - Paul "Rootie" Baltimore
Bass - Bobby "B-Smoot" Smoot
Guitar - Joel Freeman
Vocals - Tony Richardson
Vocals - Fatima Washington
Percussion - Charlie Allen

The Chuck Brown tribute concert on August 31st, 2001 had virtually the same personnel, except:
BJ on Bass instead of Bobby Smoot
Tony Richardson and Fatima Washington subtracted
Tony Sharpe on Vocals (he is now with Whop-N-Em) You can read about his leaving 911 here.
Boolah on Guitar instead of Joel Freeman

According to the old 911 site, archived on December 27, 2001, the line up was:
Vocals - Tony Sharpe
Vocals - Dave "32" Ellis Sr.
Groove Talker - Bryan "B-Man" Baucum
Saxophone & Vocals - Donnell Floyd
Trumpet - Derek Paige
Guitar - Clarence "Boolah" Roper
Bass - Bobby "B-Smoot" Smoot
Keyboards - Mark "Godfather" Lawson
Keyboards - Darrin "Mr. X" Frazier
Keyboards - Paul "Rootie" Baltimore
Percussion - Eric "Bojack" Butcher
Percussion - Charles "Charlie" Allen

Their discography:
As 911

Blueprint
Put Your Hands Up! The Tribute Concert to Chuck Brown (available on CD or DVD)
A compilation (I found it listed as May 7th 2003 Cada Vez on PA Palace).
November 4th 2001 Tradewinds
May 5th 2002 Metro
August 3rd 2002 Metro
April 27th 2003 Tradewinds
October 30th 2003 Club U

As Familiar Faces

March 31st 2004 Takoma Station (2 CDs)
July 14th 2004 Takoma Station
Evolution (out November 23, 2004)
April 27, 2005 Takoma Station
October 15, 2005 Tradewinds (2 CDs)
March 10, 2006 Icon (2 CDs)
October 9, 2005 Fur (DVD)
July 8, 2006 Tradewinds (2 CDs)
November 22, 2006 Capital Hill Hyatt Regency (DVD)
March 17, 2007 Cranberries (2 CDs)
July 13, 2007 Mirrors (2 CDs)
June 11, 2008 Club Elite (2 CDs)
June 28, 2008 Capital Hill Hyatt Regency (DVD)
November 12, 2008 Club Elite (2 CDs)

I re-read The Beat in its entirety. One of the insights that I understood more in reading it this time was the description of the United House of Prayer for All People's trombone shout bands, since I had worked on an abortive group project with a Durham, NC church of the denomination in the Fall 2003 semester. I also plan to look at an existing thesis on GoGo written in 1990 at Howard University (Sia Robinson's "A Qualitative Analysis of the Nature and Meaning of Go-Go Music"). I do not have a specific thesis hypothesis at this time, but I am fascinated with the current trend in GoGo - having separate neo-soul and GoGo sets with current popular songs being covered (which is not a new trend in GoGo, but the amount of covers being done has increased) and most bands having female singers as well as male.

I decided to create this blog to document my GoGo attendances. Although the fact that I am a Caucasian often being the sole non-African American at these performances does not mean much to me, I still thought it is significant enough to document when I am treated differently because of that.