Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band

By Steve Wildsmith
of The Daily Times Staff


For a band that goes by the unwieldy moniker of Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band, one might not expect the sort of professionalism that went into the making of the group's new album.

Sure, the guys (and one girl) can play. Sure, they can lay down a dollop of funk like a ladle full of warm gravy all over a writhing, sweaty crowd hell-bent on dancing the night away. Sure, they deck themselves out in colorful attire and try to turn every show into a party.

But even though the group puts off a spur-of-the-moment, fly-by-the-seat-of-their-pants vibe, the members actually put a good deal of thought into "Now You Know," the CD they'll release this month.

"It's kind of funny, because we actually did a lot of planning when it came to this album," guitarist/bassist John-Paul Miller told The Daily Times this week. "We picked a producer who's local here in Asheville and took him out of the studio he owns and brought him into a brand-new, top-of-the-line studio here in Asheville. We had a lot of pre-production meetings, and we had a local musician who did a lot of recording and owned a production company with George Clinton to give us a lot of advice.

"The reason it's taken us four years to do this album is that we tried at all these different studios to find what we wanted. We're kind of picky, so we just weren't satisfied with what we found. Finally, with Echo Mountain, we found something we really liked."

The Booty Band seized the opportunity, collaborating closely with the album's producer and the recording engineer. Known for its infectious, enthusiastic live shows, Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band wanted to replicate that live feel in the studio as much as possible. At the same time, Miller said, the challenge was in not over-thinking the process, because ultimately, the band's goal is to have fun and encourage others to do the same.

The group formed in 2002, mixing horns, laid-back grooves, colorful costumes and an array of multi-instrumentalists who switch up instrumentation on stage. These days, the band focuses on original material, but knowledgeable show-goers will occasionally hear covers by Galactic, Miles Davis and the Beastie Boys.

"We had three instrumentals, and we were almost tempted to not put them on the album because there's such a live feel to those songs," Miller said. "What we did was to come in and record all of our songs starting with the bass and drums, and then on the instrumental tracks, everybody gathered in the studio to try and give it that live feel. It was sort of strange for a band like us to go into the studio, because we are such a live band.

"But it was a really cool experience, trying to get down and replicate the energy of the live music in a studio setting. It was definitely different for us."

Then again, every performance by the Booty Band is a different one, as fans and followers of the group (they've built a nice crowd at shows in East Tennessee at venues like Barley's Taproom, where they'll perform on Saturday) can attest.

"We're all, I would daresay, interesting people," Miller said. "People say we're cool because when we get done playing, we get out and party with our fans and dress all crazy, because that's just a part of who we are. We like to interact with our fans, because they're our friends, too. With a performance, no matter what's happening — if you've had a bad day or an argument with somebody — once you step out on that stage, everything disappears. Everything goes behind us, and we're completely in touch with our instruments and the audience." - The Daily Times

By A.L. Fox
If I say "Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty", I'm looking to get smacked, right? Not quite. The Booty Band is a groovy funk fusion band based in Asheville, NC. I first saw them from a front row perspective at Asheville's Bele Chere festival in July 2006, and I was instantly hooked. Last week I hung out with Josh Phillips, the bands percussionist/vocalist/guitarist, and he caught me up on all things Booty.

Everybody wants to know how the Booty Band got its name. Here's the official, not-quite-politically correct story behind the name.

Josh: We were walking down the road, trying to think of a name. We'd look at random things, like a dog peeing on a fire hydrant, and say "Hey, we could be the Dog Pissers". Stuff like that. Then we saw this commotion up the road. When we got closer we saw it was outside a Chinese restaurant, and the owner was pushing two people out, a younger woman and and older, really big woman. The younger woman asked why they were being thrown out, and the restaurant owner replied "You eat too much! Yo mama's big fat booty banned!" So we all looked at each other like, "yeah", and that's how we got our name.

It's a funny story, and the band has a reputation as a big party band, but in reality, they work hard and there's a definite serious side to their lyrics. They try to write songs that everyone can relate to, not just the typical chicks and money lyrics you hear everywhere. Josh says "It's all about clarity, about us all being in this together. I want people to hear our songs and go, 'yeah, I understand that', even if they don't quite get the entire song." With seven members in the band (Josh, John-Paul Miller on guitar and bass, Derrick 'D-Roc' Johnson on trombone, Grady Gilbert on guitar, Greg Hollowell on sax, Ric Bennett on drums, and Al-Al Ingram on bass and the occasional trombone), the band combines funk, hip-hop and rock to come up with something unique and amazing. The band members all contribute to the vocals, with Suzanna Baum making a vocal appearance from time to time. They describe their sound as "bounce music", not only because it gets people up and moving, but because they bounce from genre to genre. The band's personal tastes vary from hip-hop to classical to hard rock, and all of that is evidenced in their music. Though sometimes described as a jam band, they feel that their sound differs from most traditional jam bands in that it's much more structured and composed. In their four years as a band, they've come a long way. Josh talks about the early days:

We never stayed in hotels until recently. We'd stand on stage and yell "Who wants to put up a seven-piece funk band for the night?" We always ended up with a place to stay, but we usually stayed up all night and when we did get to sleep, we'd sleep on the floor, or wherever. I kind of had a reputation for sleeping in bathtubs for a while.

That pretty much sums up the relationship the band has with their fans. It isn't so much about separation, with the band up here on stage and the audience down there watching. They involve the fans, getting them to dance and sing along, and even asking them to turn to someone they don't know and give them a hug. At the Bele Chere show, D-Roc jumped into the audience and danced his way through the crowd.The fans at different shows got into the habit of taking their clothes off during a song called "Naked" that JP wrote, and that the band often played while stripped down to their underwear. Josh on why that got them into a bit of trouble once:

We were playing at the Grassroots Festival for the first time, and we started playing the song "Naked". We ended up with a bunch of topless chicks on stage with us, and people in the audience started taking their clothes off. The stage managers went nuts, because it's supposed to be a family show, even though it was like 2:00 in the morning. They told us they couldn't come back, but the fans wrote a bunch of letters and they finally invited us back. We've played it every year since then but one, and we're always the closing act.

The Booty Band loves playing festivals, and they've played a lot of them, including LEAF (Lake Eden Arts Festival), Smilefest, and Wakarusa. They really enjoy being able to camp among their fans and connect with them in person. Much of their music revolves around the theme that we're all in this together, one big world community, which is part of what makes them so popular. And of course, the fact that they can turn any time into a good time helps. Josh remembers one show that didn't go very well, but that ended up with it being a Booty Band Jam regardless:

We had played a show at this hotel, and it didn't go too well. We played three sets with a DJ playing popular music in between. While we were playing, everyone just sat there, and then when the pop music came on they got up and danced. One guy was even yelling "You guys suck!". We were supposed to play two shows, but the manager came up after the first one and said we probably all knew the second show wasn't going to happen. Afterward though, they had an underwear contest to see who could shake it the best. I took first place, Al took second and Greg's brother took third. I think it was because I had hole in my underwear and I had these velcro shoes on that I undid the velcro on really slowly...

Obviously, the Booty Band likes to have a good time. They've been doing a lot of serious, hard work lately too. They're under new management with MTM and they like the feeling of security that it brings, along with the knowledge that someone outside the band has confidence in them. Their first studio CD, Now You Know , will be released on March 9, and available for sale on their website and at their shows. Their promotional tour will kick off on March 17 with a big show at The Orange Peel in Asheville, after which they'll play a series of shows around the country, including at the infamous Tipitina's in New Orleans. This will be their second time playing there and Josh says it's "the ultimate place for a funk band to play". The Booty Band recently won a chance to play on the Jam Cruise alongside many of their heroes, after beating out over 600 other bands who auditioned for the spot. It was a well-deserved honor for a great band who manages to combine social consciousness, a good time and one hell of a funk groove into something no less than awesome. - Associated Content

By: Trevor Thornton, Staff Writer

MUSICREVIEW
Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band
Now You Know
3.5 Stars


After consistently rocking southeastern venues for five years, Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band has released a debut album appropriately titled, Now You Know - as in now you know the formidable funk and diverse effects we can lay down on an album.

Although the Asheville band will always be predominately a live act (its mission statement is to provide "thick thump and boundless energy"), listeners will come to know a band that delivers legitimate old- school funk with a modern twist.

The Booty Band presents an image of pure party, but its songs are not without some gravity.

With a tremendous sense of humor, it addresses the big life questions as a funk band should: with a fire in its gut and tongue in its cheek.

The everyman story of "Bob" ponders existence but is interrupted by pounding, mocking horns and a bouncing beat. "One Day" prescribes funk as a fix-all for "making it through today."

A funky fusion of R&B, rock, jazz and hip hop is what the band categorizes as "bounce music," a phrase coined for the effect on an audience.

The music does bounce, but it also runs, pounds, soars and trips out at times, constantly moving itself and the listener. The Booty Band takes its music seriously without taking itself too seriously.

Now You Know is clearly the product of vision in the studio by seasoned, multitalented musicians. The instrumental "Time Is Now" is the culmination of these talents, with a driving back beat, literally screaming sax and face-melting solos in the old style trade off.

A number of tracks revert to a redundant bounce beat that seems like reheated G-Love and probably sounds much better live, but overall the album is diverse and original. - The Daily Tar Heel

By Free Times Writers

When this Asheville ensemble hits the stage with its colorful costumes and irresistibly funky beats, it’s like someone knocked the party out of a piñata with a bazooka. There hasn’t been a band this over the top in the Carolinas since the heyday of Charleston’s Uncle Mingo over a decade ago. The Booty Band’s self-titled debut is full of funky horns and heavy, early-Chili Peppers grooves on songs such as “Booty Show” and “Funk On Friday,” and there’s a smoky female vocalist to slow things down for a sultry song or two. Local jazzy jam-rockers Almost Jason open. K. Oliver Headliners: 8 p.m., $10 ($8 advance); 796-2333, headlinerscolumbia.com. - Free Times Columbia's Free Weekly

YO MAMA'S BIG FAT BOOTY BAND @ THE REVIVAL TENT
http://www.archive.org/details/ymbfbb2006-06-11.flac16

After a taste of these guys late-night Sat, there was no way I was missing this set, performing in the tent I've come to grow so fond of. Right off the bat, the funk dropped, and it dropped hard! "Respect" demanded our respect, as each and every band member stepped up to showcase their uniquie talents. As most of them are mult-instrumentalists, they're constantly switching it up with each passing song, and even sometimes mid-song. Greg Hollowell and Al Ingram showed their stuffed early on, as the horns dominated the first jam of the set. Robert from Delta Nove joined them on UNL (Miles Davis), and remained for the rest of their set - a welcome addition for sure. "Natural Art" let Josh belt out some serious vocals, taking his place right in line with all the other talented musicians on stage. "Funk on Friday" and "Death Bounce into Mexico" both were funked-up craziness, with "Death Bounce..." registering an 11 out of 10 on the Richter scale. A little Egyptian beat, mixed with some funky jazz, then sprinkled with a little salsa, or was it samba? They had it going on now, and with the tent filling up nicely, the rest was downright nasty. Fatty bass lines ruled "That's Right", as Jon-Paul made himself noticed in addition to everyone else just laying it down. The sound was huge, and getting bigger. "BADUNKADUNK" followed, bringing us to that point where we all want to be. Couldn't seem to stop dancing for a second - they had me, rhyming with reason, making music that did, in fact, make the booty (and all other parts of the body) feel alive, really alive! One listen to "Naked" and you know how it ended - balls to the wall funk, that's how., They sprinkled a little P-Funk towards its conclusion, honoring the ones who did it first!!! So I don't really know what became of Yonder's set, but I have nothing but accolades for The Booty Band, as they came through with one of the surprise sets of the weekend, if not THE surprise set.
- www.101report.com

here is the link to see the booty band live, 7 am, on the Good Morning show... back to you Rosemary.

http://www.wfmynews2.com/news/gms/article.aspx?storyid=63090

- Channel 2 WFMY

So after a quick freshening up at camp, I was making my way down towards the Campground Stage to catch Brothers Past when I heard some funky rhyhmes and nasty beats coming from the Homegrown Stage - ladies and gents, I give you Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band.
YO MAMA'S BIG FAT BOOTY BAND @ THE HOMEGROWN STAGE
http://www.bootyband.com
Setlist: The Time is Now, Hey Man, Self Celebration, Now You Know, Booty Show, Flea Bite, One Day, New Mexico, Unl, Respect
The Booty Band ain't goin' nowhere - they just got here, so make your self comfortable. A 7-piece ensemble of funk, jazz, ska, did I say funk - you know, the kynd that's UNCUT?!? The horn section consistently lays it down, giving the rhythm section plenty of room in which to operate - percussions meshing with funky bass riffs, great vocals, fat backbeats - they got it goin' on people. I even saw the saxman play 2 horns at once - one mouth, 2 horns. Don't try that at home kids, please...Anyway, I only caught 45 minutes of their set because I really did want to see Brothers Past and it looked like The Booty Band was scheduled Sunday in The Revival Tent (opposite Yonder -eeeegh! ), so I could always catch 'em again if I really wanted to. So I'm clear, The Booty Band rocked the Homegrown Stage to its core late-night Saturday - everyone was blown away by the look on their faces, and I was no different. Thanks for that, Booty Band, really, thanks!
- Wakarusa Review

Thursday, March 08, 2007
BY KINSEY LABBERTON


With belly dancing, fire twirling and pole dancing steaming up the Pour House this weekend, it may be difficult to remember that Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band will be on stage promoting its debut album.

The Booty Band brings its Bounce Circus to Charleston Friday and Saturday nights to unveil "Now You Know," a highly anticipated album that comes after four years of solid touring.

The CD release party aims to pay homage to the Greatest Show on Earth, beginning at 8 p.m. with a performance by Charleston's own belly dance troupe, Palmetto Oasis.

The troupe will continue to show off its blend of traditional Middle Eastern and American Tribal Fusion belly dance throughout the night, both on stage and in the crowd. Following Palmetto Oasis will be Asheville, N.C.-based Telepath, a rhythmic hip-hop band with Middle Eastern flavor. The Emberellas, a female dance troupe out of Greensboro, N.C., will deliver a burlesque performance between the Booty Band's sets. While not on stage, the Emberellas will dance with fire and Hula Hoops on the Pour House's porch.

And the pole dancing? That's up to the audience, as the band will supply the pole and the fans supply the dancing.

"The message we try to get across to people at our show is to let down their inhibitions," says guitarist and founding member John Paul Miller.
"Forget what the world is thinking about you. Have fun - make a fool of yourself."

Miller says the Booty Band feeds off the crowd's energy and caters each show to its individual audience. Set lists are practically nonexistent.

"We're not gonna' play a polished show," Miller says of the band's high-energy performances. "We're real. We're in touch with the audience and we'll play to their mood. We've had people get up on stage and dance, or even grab a tambourine and start playing. You just never know what to expect - sometimes we don't even know what to expect."

With a sound reminiscent of a younger Dirty Dozen Brass Band, the Asheville, N.C.-based Booty Band delivers a funk-driven party sound, infused with sparks of soul, reggae, hip hop and Bayou jazz. Band members dubbed their sound "Bounce Music," a term that evolved from watching fans bobbing up and down at their shows.

"Our music makes people dance - it's that simple," Miller says. "When we play, people just seem to bounce up and down."

Uninhibited and energetic Charleston crowds have long been a Booty Band favorite. Miller explains this is one reason the group chose to debut its Bounce Circus at the Pour House.

"Charleston is crazy," Miller says. "Our first out-of-town gig ever was at the Kickin' Chicken (downtown), and people were jumping up and down so hard I had to lean on my amp to keep it from falling over."

That type of energy may explain why the dance pole the band will bring to the Pour House isn't the first one they've owned (Miller says the band's old dance pole "was broken and bent in many places"). It also might explain why it has taken the band four years to steal away from its constant touring to record its first album.

"This has really been a work in progress," Miller says. "We're so used to being a live band, we had to tackle our studio album from a different angle."

The group started this process by asking for help from the fans who've been patiently waiting for the album.

The Booty Band uploaded several of its live recordings onto the band's MySpace site and asked fans to choose which songs they'd like to hear on a studio album.

"It was great, because most of the songs they picked were songs we'd planned to put on the album anyway," Miller says of the fan favorites that augment the band's new material on the album.

Fans will be able to purchase "Now You Know" during both shows at the Pour House this weekend.

That is, of course, if fans can pull themselves away from the hip undulations, fire batons and funky grooves to locate the merchandise table.



If you go

WHO: Yo Mama's Big Fat Booty Band's Bounce Circus and CD re-lease party w/ Telepath.
WHEN: Friday and Saturday nights.
WHERE: The Pour House, 1977 Maybank Hwy.
COST: $8.
TICKETS: At the door or www.etix.com.
INFO: 571- 4343.
- The Post and Courier

By Shawna Kenney,
Star-News Correspondent
Get ready to move - Yo Momma's Big Fat Booty Band is back in town. All seven members of the Asheville group are thrilled about the release of their first national CD, Now You Know.

The band has plenty more to be excited about these days, as they just returned from Jamcruise 5, where they played aboard a cruise ship with the likes of Galactic, The Derek Trucks Band and Perpetual Groove.

"It was an awesome chance to play with great musicians," says Booty Band guitarist J.T. Miller. "Ivan Neville (of the Neville Brothers) played keys with us on one song one night, and the ship also had a jam room open for musicians, where we'd play with everyone until six or seven in the morning."

The band will cover most of the U.S. on this tour promoting their 15-song CD, and has just signed a management agreement with Murphy to Manteo - the company who nurtured Hootie and the Blowfish's career.

Yo Momma's show promises to be "raw and unpredictable," he says. "We switch instruments, offer people a chance to come up and sing or rap, and just want everyone to dance."

They call their eclectic mix of funk, ska, reggae, bluegrass and rock - much in the spirit of musical predecessors such as Parliament-Funkadelic or Fishbone - "bounce music."

Miller explains his band's unusual moniker with a story of the group's members walking down the streets of Boone, where they first formed.

"I wasn't there, but other band members tell me they saw a dog peeing on a fire hydrant, and said, 'Maybe we should be 'The Hydrants.' That was cancelled when they saw a librarian coming out into the street with her hair flying, and someone said, 'We could be the Crazy Librarians.' Then they stumbled upon a family getting kicked out of a Chinese restaurant. The kid was saying 'But it's an all-you-can-eat buffet!' and the owner yelled, 'Your momma's big fat booty - banned!' So that was it. Sometimes things come together for a reason." - Wilmington Star