BTR (Bon Temps Roulle')

Bon Temps Roulle' has been added to a wonderful compilation Cd of the best of Detroit blues bands. Please check again for the release date and purchasing info of this great CD. - BTR

From the Detroit based band Bon Temps Roulle’, the keyboard /vocals
and trumpet of Leonard Moon and James O’ Donnell make up the
versatile and exciting BTR2 combo. They’re song stylings run the range
of classic jazz standards to hot upbeat R & B. BTR2 can be seen
performing throughout the Metro area. For booking information contact
Leonard Moon at 313-881-2155.
Please note that with the addition of a world-class drummer the trio
configuration of the group adds the feel and sound of classic trios of
the past and present.
- FYI

LOCAL BAND SPOTLIGHT: Bon Temps Roullé
October 21, 2005
The lowdown: Just last month, Bon Temps Roullé played a raucous opening set for Detroit's latest musical It Girl, Bettye LaVette, and headliner Dr. John on the Campus Martius stage of the Detroit International Jazz Festival.
With solid roots -- its players spring from bands including Was (Not Was), Mitch Ryder's Detroit Wheels, the Chisel Brothers and the Buzztones -- and an infectious spirit, this veteran outfit has become one of Detroit's leading party bands. "The band is a riot," says member Leonard Moon. "If you don't wanna have a good time, don't come see us."
The lineup: You'll hear Moon on keyboards and lead vocals; James O'Donnell, trumpet and vocals; Ron Pangborn, drums; recent addition Nolan Mendenhall on bass and vocals, and the single-named Roscoe on guitar. They play in configurations from duo to full band, and bring on other local players as needed. Pangborn (a local TV producer and composer), Mendenhall (a record producer) and Roscoe (a recording studio owner) are also three-quarters of the local folk-country-rock outfit Grievous Angel, which regularly shares bills with vocalist Jill Jack.
The sound: Despite the band's name (taken from the New Orleans Mardi Gras rally cry "laissez les bon temps roulez," or "let the good times roll"), this isn't a traditional Dixieland outfit, a Cajun band or a zydeco group. "New Orleans music is a tradition and a state of mind," says Moon. "The best way to describe our music is a gumbo." The ingredients are jazz, blues, R&B and soul, and the musical genre in which a song is served up can change from night to night.
The Bon Temps boys do originals (Moon's "Just Can't Live With You") and a hip, intelligent selection of covers. The repertoire includes standards like "Bye Bye Blackbird" and "Willow Weep for Me"; Les McCann's "Compared to What," Bob Dylan's "You Gotta Serve Somebody," the Beatles' "Come Together," "Forty Thousand Headmen" by Traffic, and of course, Earl King's "Come On, Pt. 1" and the traditional "Iko Iko."
"I consider the covers we do to be originals, in how we arrange and present them," says Moon. "And there's always some slipping and sliding in there. To play exactly the same way every night is boring."
On record: Moon says work will begin on a new CD shortly, finally following up 1998's "Swaggy Dog." You can also hear cuts on several local blues compilation CDs.
Where to see Bon Temps Roullé: At 9 p.m. Saturday at Sindbad's at the River, 100 St. Clair St., Detroit. 313-822-7817. Other regular haunts are Memphis Smoke in Royal Oak, Fifth Avenue (various locations) and MotorCity Casino.
By Kim Silarski, Free Press special writer
Copyright © 2005 Detroit Free Press Inc.
- Detroit Free press