Sammy Rae & The Friends: “Kick it to Me” (2018)
Describing the music of Sammy Rae & The Friends is difficult. Enjoying it–especially in a live setting–is definitely not.
No single genre title neatly contains the breadth of this band’s sounds, which seem to draw from jazz, pop, soul, funk, classic rock and world music.
Not many bands can cover ABBA and the Doobie Brothers with equal dexterity, but that’s just for starters.
Lead vocalist and songwriter Samantha Rae Bowers is clearly a student of great female pop voices. Stratospheric Ella Fitzgerald-style scat and improvised vocals lace her dynamic performances. Themes of queer and female empowerment are central to her songs, but not presented in terms a general audience will likely find to be preachy or off-putting. It all just feels good.
Few bands bring such consistently positive and life-affirming messages to record or performance.
The Friends are a well-honed gigging band, skilled at presenting themselves and their songs to an audience. The bass is funky. Intermingled tenor and alto sax make things pop. The lead guitar is more than adept across a setlist that bounces lightly across styles, rather than settling into a single groove or feel.
If you’re a band with one sound and a samey setlist, you do not want to open for Sammy Rae and company. (We won’t name names here.)
The seven-piece has a big footprint on the concert stage, and Sammy Rae says Bruce Springsteen was her inspiration for utilizing each member fully and letting each do their thing and share the shine of the spotlight. The camaraderie is not only evident; it’s a band hallmark and a major part of their audience appeal.
The live experience aside, Sammy Rae & The Friends’ studio recordings add a layer of polish and backup harmonies, offering the definitive listening experience.
That said, “Kick it to Me” is an example of a song worth hearing in both the studio version presented here and in concert, where improvised lyrics make for a different song from one show to the next.
Every Moment Has A Song 