Down to the bone. Official site of the funk, soul, jazz band.

Soul Brother Records:

Great new album from the British contemporary Jazz Funk outfit, 'Supercharged' is the funkiest set for a while. The title song is a full on Funk instrumental on which the horn section excel, as is the slower 'Funkin Around'. 'Parkside Shuffle' is a mellower summer like groover (hints of Ramsey Lewis). Hil St Soul adds her soulful voice to the Incognito like 'Smile To Shine wicked b-line! Roy Ayers adds scat and vibes to the Jazz Funk stunner 'Electric Vibes', 'Space Dust', 'Make It Funky and 'Hip City' are fine instrumentals that fuse Jazz and Funk.

Giant Step:

Led by Stuart Wade, Down To The Bone's music has been irresistible from the start and following on from their recent Best Of album, Supercharged - Down to the Bone's seventh original album - the band pulls off the uncanny feat of simultaneously beefing up its sonic palette, while retaining its raw intensity. In lesser hands, the addition of the three horns (here, billed as the D.C. Horns) to support Paul "Shilts" Weimar's scalding tenor saxophone riffs and melodies would extinguish the group's energetic groove. But the rhythmic engine of drummer Adam Riley, alternating bassists Richard Sadler and Julian Crampton, and guitarist Tony Remy keeps the fire burning.

Supercharged packs a punch from beginning to end. While echoes of Sly & the Family Stone, Maceo Parker, Tower of Power, Cold Blood, Booker T. & the MGs, and the Average White Band permeate the disc, Down To The Bone remains true to its signature sound with all-out funk grooves. Corrina Greyson and returning collaborator, Hil St. Soul lend their voices on the contagious, mid-tempo groove "Smile to Shine" and the more aggressive romp, "Shake It Up." The one track that demands immediate attention is "Electric Vibes," featuring legendary vibraphonist Roy Ayers, whom Wade says that it was a lifetime dream to finally collaborate with. "Ayers is linked with practically every funk movement in the U.K. since the '70s," Wade claims. On Supercharged, Wade takes the group's powerful sound to a funkier destination with an expanded roster of talented musicians at the helm.

Tomorrow Jazz:

Down to the Bone has the perfect summer soundtrack with their fun and funky new release Supercharged. True to the title, this release is a pumped-up, constant jam that won’t let your body remain idle. It needs a warning label – “Product contains powerful horns (props to Shilts and the D.C. Horns), percolating bass, mean guitar by Tony Remy, and relentless energy – may leave you exhausted after play!”

Supercharged sounds like it should be listened to in the sunshine, preferably driving down the highway with the top down. It conjures up summer imagery, especially on two of my favorite tracks. “Parkside Shuffle” is a nice, sweet tune, reminiscent of a walk in the park, that builds into an unbelievably infectious melody around the two-minute mark. Hil St. Soul adds a strong vocal effort to the uplifting “Smile to Shine.” A flavorful bass line and welcome trumpet and trombone solos at the end only make a great song better.

Maybe I’m not looking hard enough, but it’s rare to hear this kind of music released and receiving mass distribution in the States. Buy this release when it comes out on June 18. Not only will you get music you’ll enjoy all season/year long but maybe enough copies will sell to justify more funky soulful jazz recordings.

Ronald Jackson Jazzreview.com:

This album should have come with a warning: Contains high octane energy & unbridled funk. Contents may be prone to ignite upon removing CD wrapper!  Stuart Wade and this master funk crew from across the Atlantic just don’t know the word “miss,” do they?  With a Midas aura, everything they touch turns in a golden dance hit!  This latest inferno is another example.  One point of delight for me is the fact that sensational saxman Shilts Wiemar is reunited here with brilliant keyboardist Neil Angilley on tracks 3 and 9, and that Angilley honky tonk funk rebounds with a vengeance.  Of course, that’s to take absolutely nothing away from the honky tonky funky keys of Neil Cowley.  In fact, the entire DTTB gang sets out to pour over us their traditional kind of major funk that brings on the sweatfest.  This is the type of tight, precise, controlled (but not too controlled), artistic brilliance that raises the bar for smooth and acid jazz alike.

Work this one out in the gym or on the dance floor.  It doesn’t matter.  In either case, you’re bound to burn calories and take to the showers afterward!  They’ve even ushered in one of the original kings of fusion, Roy Ayers, on track 6, “Electric Vibes” (what else?) for some cool vibe work to add another dimension.

 The bass lines throughout this album, always a catalyst for motion in this group, take on a life of their own, in time with the crazily antsy drums.  Guest vocals by Hil St. Soul on track 5, “Smile to Shine,” and Corinna Greyson on track 8, appropriately titled “Shake It Up,” only send the album further into the far reaches of the galaxy. 

As has become typical for DTTB, each tune is around five to six minutes long.  Still, I want to know: Guys, can you release a dance mix of this entire album with double the playing time??  I just didn’t wanna stop dancing!  Ah, Dr. Feelgood, I’ll have a dose of whatever they’re having!

Urban Network:

If you're looking for the right instrumental album to play for your next weekend afternoon backyard throw down, look no further. This is an old school, all live instruments party on plastic. We're talking clavinets, wah wah guitars, drums and percussion, boogie down bass and, of course, Down to the Bone's patented trombone heavy horn section. Among the fattest of the grooves are "Funkin' Around," "Cosmic Fuzz" and "Greedy Fingers." Roy Ayers even sits in on the appropriately titled "Electric Vibes." And there are a couple of smooth vocals to boot from Hil St. Soul and Corrina Greyson. 11 tracks in all, Supercharged is the answer to your summer sun soundtrack quandaries.