Lettuce Kicks Off Vinyl Collectible Series With ‘Monorail 3000’
When it comes to funk music over the past 30 years, very few bands have Breached the level that Lettuce is currently at. Blending together elements of jazz, go-go, psychedelia and hip hop, this act, which was originally conceived at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, have forged a kind of musicality that’s in rarified air. They have the dedicated fan base to back up this fact and once anyone gives their material a listen, they’re bound to be part of that particular community. Coinciding with the announcement of a new seven-inch vinyl collectible series from the band, Lettuce is releasing a new single today (November 20) titled “Monorail 3000”. The song has a heavy influence of James Brown’s material from the late ’60s and early ’70s with the title itself coming from one of Brown’s songs from that era.
The track was originally recorded during the sessions the band had for their 2012 full-length album Fly, which was recorded, mixed and mastered by John Davis at The Bunker Studio in Brooklyn with Scott Hull helping out with the latter. Together Nigel Hall on the Hammond B-3 organ, Adam “Shmeeans” Smirnoff on guitar, Erick “Jesus” Coomes on bass, Adam Dietch on drums & percussion, Ryan Zoidis on saxophone and Eric “Benny” Bloom on trumpet created a groovy jam that’s as laid back as it is cohesive.
“We were on a bus or van and Deitch as recording & writing on his computer,” Zoidis says about how the single came about, “He asked for another honor melody and bassline for the second section and handed me a keyboard.”
“‘Monorail 3000’ is an ode to ‘J.B Monaurail’, one of our favorite James Brown tunes. The mood of the song is cool and steady. All aboard, everyone!” adds Deitch.
Along with the single and vinyl series, Lettuce is going to be embarking on “The Get Up Tour” next year with hip-hop icon and Wu-Tang Clan member GZA and his backing band The Phunky Nomads. All the dates for that expedition and beyond are right here. In the meantime, give “Monorail 3000” a listen and enjoy a wicked cool track.
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