From about the time of World War 2 up through the 70’s, Oakland, CA, was as much a music hotbed as Chicago or Memphis. The West Coast style of blues and jazz featured velvety vocals, and horns instead of harmonica or slide guitar. That whole scene in West Oakland, particularly around 7th Street, is long gone, but it left a lasting imprint you can still hear today across a wide range of music. One of the poster children of that imprint is the Bay Area’s The California Honeydrops. Featuring front man Lech Wierzynski on trumpet, guitar, and vocals, the ostensibly 5-piece band frequently swells to twice that on stage, with 15 musicians credited on their newest album, Soft Spot.
Make no mistake about it, this is a party band, and the record does a great job of reflecting that. I Miss You Baby (part 2) gives you the sense that the engineer just hit record while the band was singing and dancing for the sheer joy of it between takes. Gonna Be Alright is a doo-wop soul number written about a recently passed friend, where Wierzynski croons, “you can make it better, no matter the weather.” Also in the personal inspiration vein is Honey And Butter, written for Lech’s grandmother’s 100th birthday, and you really feel the love. Sneaking’ Into Heaven is unadulterated 70’s funk.
Although still musically upbeat, some of the tunes have a little more somber lyrical direction. Lil Bit Of Love features saxophone instead of trumpet in an ode to how love got people through the worst of the pandemic. Takin’ My Time has an inertia-inducing fat bass line encouraging you to take a step back and just chill. Nothing At All is a slower ballad about over-reaching and the unintended consequences that can come out of that.
It’s impossible to just sit through The California Honeydrops live show. They’re clearly having fun up on stage, and in a festival setting they struggle to keep the set to the allotted time. The joy they’re feeling is infectious, and amazingly they’ve captured that atmosphere on Soft Spot. Pick any song on the record and you’ll hear what I mean.
About the author: I've actually driven from Tehatchapee to Tonopah. And I've seen Dallas from a DC-9 at night.