The legendary drummer, singer, songwriter, and producer comes with a pleasant surprise to all. James Gadson released Dance On Through, a solo EP. The five-song, self-penned release finds the eternally youthful 85-year-old drummer going deep with crisp funk beats and a soulful and mesmerizing voice.
Produced by Jerry Stucker and mixed by Michael Frondelli, Dance On Through was recorded at The Village Studios, EastWest Studios, Redstar Recording in Los Angeles, and Rancho Rivera in San Francisco. Musicians include Gadson on drums and vocals (naturally), Neil Larsen on organ, Ron Romero on guitar, Reggie McBride on upright bass, Stucker on electric bass, Karl Perazzo on congas, and Bill Summers on percussion.
As a teen, James Gadson took to the drums with the influence of his father Harold, who was a drummer in the legendary Kansas City scene.
James eventually went to L.A. and joined the iconic 60’s funky soul group, Dyke & the Blazers, where he laid down drums on “Let a woman be a Woman” which later would be sampled by the Bomb Squad for Public Enemy’s “Welcome to the Terrodome.” After Dyke’s tragic murder and still, in L.A., he and other members of the Blazers would end up forming The Watts 103rd Street Band and with the help of Bill Cosby hooked a record deal with Warner Bros. He wrote and sang some songs like the beautiful “Dance a Kiss & a Song”.
He played on the popular 103rd Street cuts like “Express Yourself,” which was sampled by Dre for NWA’s “Express Yourself”. This was just the beginning of Gadson’s stupendous career, which next found him in the mix with Bill Withers producing, writing, and playing on the successful Still Bill LP, which featured “Use Me,” “Lean on Me,” and the funky “Kissing my Love,” which has been sampled to no end. The Jungle Brothers cut up his drums live for “Straight Out the Jungle.”
From there he became one the most sought out studio drummers, playing on 300 gold records at last count, though you would never suspect it from his ever-humble disposition.
James Gadson owns such an enormous collection of session credits that it’s nearly impossible to condense the list for easy reading. In addition to his irrefutable status as one of the most recorded R&B drummers of all time, Gadson is a renowned drum educator with a popular video course, Funk R&B Drumming, and Innovative Percussion has honored him with his signature Groovesicle drumsticks. James Gadson’s Dance On Through will be a landmark piece of music loved by all music enthusiasts alike!