funk & soul roundup (Larry Graham, Roy Ayers, Bootsy Collins, Roberta Flack, George Clinton, Morris Day & more)

The cover art of Derobert & The Half Truths’ 2010 LP

Nashville 60’s throwbacks De Robert & The Half-Truths will play their first funkin’ NYC show ever at the Dig Deeper event at Southpaw on April 30th with Magic in Threes. Tickets are on sale. Though the band did not exist in the soul/funk heyday, it definitely mirrors the styles of that era much like popular retro-leaning acts like Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings and Lee Fields & The Expressions. Check out a few samples of the band below.

Speaking of Lee Fields, he has some shows coming up too.

In other funky news, funk-jazz vibraphone great Roy Ayers will team with producer/DJ/MC Pete Rock for a show at Highline Ballroom on June 22nd. Tickets are on sale. The show takes place less than two weeks before Ayers celebrates his 70th birthday at the Mainstage at Central Park on July 2nd. The FREE show features a “collective of jazz virtuosos, top MCs, singers, arrangers, and composers called The Jazz Mafia” who have “re-envisioned Ayers’ classic works for this special show” which is one of many free Summerstage events that were recently announced.

BT Express will do it til you’re satisfied, or at least until the endo of their set at Betsey Head Park on June 9th. They’ll be joined by Felix Hernandez Rhythm Revue and the FREE show kicks off at 7PM. The Felix Hernandez Rhythm Revue will also support Harold Melvin’s Blue Notes on July 29th in Queensbridge Park (also FREE, 7PM).

Jazz/funk/afrobeat trumpeter Hugh Masekela will play the Mainstage at Central Park on June 26th, teaming with Freshlyground and Somi for a FREE show. Doors open at 2PM with the show kicking off at 3.

George Clinton & The P-Funk All-Stars will hit BB King’s on May 31st. Tickets are still available. Meanwhile, his former Parliament/Funkadelic bandmate Bootsy Collins will hit the same venue on June 26th as part of the month long Blue Note Jazz Festival. Tickets are still available. Collins released his new LP Tha Funk Capital Of The World on Tuesday (4/25) and will also appear at Bonnaroo 2011.

BB King’s will also host dual-show evenings with Chaka Khan (June 18th, tickets), Morris Day & The Time (July 29th, tickets), and Roberta Flack (June 24th, tickets). Flack will also make a pair of private appearances in NYC in the coming months. She’ll play a show as part of the Tribeca Film Festival on May 1st and the Apollo on May 19th as part of a fundraiser with Lou Reed and many others.

In semi-related news, Morris Day’s former bandmate Prince is currently in the midst of a 21-night show stint at The Forum in Los Angeles with “roughly 85 percent” of the shows being only $25 with service fees. One of Prince’s influences will also play NYC this summer. Larry Graham appears at BB King’s on June 3rd with Funky Nights. Tickets are still available. Last time Larry played there, Prince showed up. Last time Prince played NYC, Larry opened up.

Tour dates and videos below…

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Derobert & The Half-truths – Wake On Up (Dub)

DeRobert & The Half Truths – Fallin’ In Debt

LARRY GRAHAM – 2011 TOUR DATES
June 3rd BB Kings New York City, NY
June 4th Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia, Maryland
July 2nd (TBA) Switzerland
July 6th Imatra Big Band Festival, Finland
July 8th (TBA) Netherlands
July 9th Jazz à Vienne Festival France
July 16th Montreux Jazz Festival Switzerland
July 23rd (TBA) France
August 13th Aarons Amphitheatre Atlanta, Georgia
August 14th Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles, California
August 27th Not Just Jazz 2011 Virginia Beach,VA

CHAKA KHAN – 2011 TOUR DATES
Thu, May 19 Hollywood Walk of Fame Hollywood, CA
Sat, May 28 Spirit Mountain Casino Grand Ronde, OR
Sat, Jun 18 B.B. King Blues Club and Grill New York, NY
Sun, Jun 19 West Oak Lane Jazz And Arts Festival Philadelphia, PA
Fri, Jun 24 Hampton Coliseum Hampton, VA
Sat, Jun 25 Hart Plaza, Detroit Riverfront Detroit, MI
Sat, Jul 9 North Sea Jazz Festival Rotterdam, NL
Fri, Jul 29 Paul Brown Stadium Cincinnati, OH
Wed, Aug 17 Hollywood Bowl Los Angeles, CA
Fri, Sep 9 Palmdale Amphitheater Palmdale, CA

ROBERTA FLACK – 2011 TOUR DATES
May 1 Private Appearance, Tribeca Film Festival, New York, NY
May 7 Wavefest w/Macy Gray, Kem, Opening Act at The Greek Theater, Los Angeles, CA
May 19 Private Fundraiser Appearance, Apollo Theater, New York, NY
June 24 BB King Blues Club & Grill (2 Shows), New York City
July 27 Stamford Downtown’s “Jazz Up July” Series, Stamford, CT
Sept 22 Benefit Concert at Wolf Creek Amphitheater, Atlanta, GA

GEORGE CLINTON & THE P-FUNK ALL-STARS – 2011 TOUR DATES
Apr 26, 2011 Tuesday Tyagarah Tea Tree Farm Tyagarah, NSW
May 27, 2011 Friday Joey Harrison’s Surf Club Ortley Beach, NJ
May 29, 2011 Sunday Rockville Town Center Rockville, MD
May 31, 2011 Tuesday BB kings New York, NY
Jun 18, 2011 Saturday HMV Kentish Town Forum London

BOOTSY COLLINS – 2011 TOUR DATES
Fri 06/03 Los Angeles, CA Club Nokia
Sat 06/04 San Francisco, CA The Fillmore
Mon 06/06 Boulder, CO Boulder Theater
Thu 06/09 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Fri 06/10 Chicago, IL Congress Theater
Sat 06/11 Manchester, TN Bonnaroo Music Festival
Thu 06/16 Houston, TX Warehouse Live
Fri 06/17 Dallas, TX Palladium Ballroom
Sun 06/19 Austin, TX Austin City Limits Live at The Moody Theater
Thu 06/23 Annapolis, MD Rams Head On Stage
Fri 06/24 Pittsburgh, PA Stage AE
Sat 06/25 Glenside, PA Keswick Theatre
Sun 06/26 New York, NY B.B. King Blues Club
Wed 06/29 Worcester, MA The Palladium
Sat 07/09 Vienna, Austria Theatre Antique
Sun 07/10 Rotterdam, Netherlands Ahoy Rotterdam
Sat 07/16 Montreux, Switzerland Miles Davis Hall