Papa Grows Funk
New Orleans, LA

"Just imagine the chops it takes to be voted the funkiest act in the world's funkiest town. Out of the sweat-drenched, hard-partying, all-night mayhem of New Orleans comes Papa Grows Funk, winners of OffBeat magazine's Funkiest Band award for two years running. All the requisite ingredients for an ear-tickling musical gumbo are here: steaming Hammond, chunky guitar, wailing sax, and, of course, a rhythm section heavy enough to keep you anchored to the dance floor. 

Following in the footsteps of the legendary Meters, PGF keeps its music unbelievably tight and its beats syncopated but greases it up with loose, jazzy improvisation."

-Jonathan Zwickel • offBeat • January 2005

Build it and they will come.

Building momentum is exactly what Papa Grows Funk has done since tearing it up at the original Meters after party November 11, 2000 in San Francisco. Seven years later they have sold 25, 000 copies of their four CDs while year round, coast-to-coast, international tours-including Europe and Japan-have locked in a devoted fan base.

Papa Grows Funk's tight grooves re-define the funk-jam band. Tethered by the slinky Hammond B3 and gravel pit vocals of bandleader John "Papa" Gros," the band is a "who's-who" of New Orleans' best musicians. Morphing guitarist June Yamagishi is an original member of Japan's first blues combo, The West Road Blues Band and has inspired two documentaries entitled "June Yamagishi in New Orleans" from his native Japan. Saxophonist Jason "Big Wind" Mingledorff cleanly articulates the knee-dropping funk sustained by bassist Marc Pero and Jeffrey "Jellybean" Alexander who replaced Russell Batiste Jr. on the drums in 2005.

Influenced by The Meters, Dr. John and The Neville Brothers, Papa Grows Funk parcels it out New Orleans-style, paying homage to the tradition through Gros' sparse but rhythmic style offset by Yamagishi's blazing guitar. One is treated to a booty shaking set of Mardi Gras funk, original material, improvised jams and fresh interpretations of New Orleans classics. These five musicians seamlessly shift gears while never losing the essential groove.

This creative force continues to garner press with the release of the band's fourth CD, Mr. Patterson's Hat. Jambands.com debuted Mr. Patterson's Hat at #1 while it held its own for 24 weeks on the Roots Music Report and CMJ Jazz Chart. The CD, a proclamation of post-Katrina New Orleans, is named after a semi-retired auto mechanic who frequents the band's weekly Monday night gigs at the Maple Leaf. "You might think you're throwing down, but if Mr. Patterson ain't dancin', you ain't groovin'," declares John Gros. Suffice it to say, the CD and the band continues to deliver and far exceed expectations, as it will for years to come.

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