Eclectic Is the Way of McCarty’s Band
By Chris Manson July 17, 2003 Issue

I assumed that since the leader of the Chris McCarty band shares his name last name with a member of the Yardbirds and was playing at the newly reopened Blues Music City Roadhouse in Destin, I was in for an evening of hardcore, 12-bar music. Wrong. This band of talented 20-somethings covers a lot of styles, mixing funk, rock, soul and reggae.

McCarty, the dreadlocked singer/guitarist, is a charismatic performer who writes a lot of his own stuff. Occasionally, he’ll take a break after one of his James Brown-influenced workouts and let the rest of the band do a song. Drummer Gabe Fleet sang the ‘80s hit by the Outfield, Your Love, and he actually made it sound like a real tune.

Phil McCarty, bass player and Chris’ older brother, said the group likes to get songs from unexpected sources. Sometimes Phil will get a charge out of something by Bjork or Sigur Ros and work it up with the rest of the guys, including lead guitarist Greg Riddle and percussionist Julius Tobin. If there’s one adjective that sums up the Chris McCarty band, Phil says it’s…eclectic.

The Gainesville outfit’s warm-up set included three original songs, Cavalry, Flippin’ and Finding Time. All showcased McCarty’s strong voice and relevant lyrics. They opened with the Dave Matthews Band’s Crash and closed with Bubble Toes, originated by neo-folkie Jack Johnson. As solid as his band is, McCarty could probably do a solo acoustic set and blow all the John Mayer wannabes away. But later, when the group did its “energetic, everybody dance” set, I realized that wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.

Riddle introduced McCarty’s original song While She Waits. “This was the first song I heard Chris do, and it made we want to be in a band with him and dedicate my life to making music,” Riddle said. A lot of extended jams were included in Take It Slow, which McCarty prefaced with a warning to young people thinking about getting married. “It takes a long time to get to know someone well,” McCarty said before giving his all.

The mixed crowd—young people, older people—shared the dance floor as the band did an exhausting version of Dave Matthews’ 41. McCarty’s frenzied hopping reminded me of those high-energy shows Terence Trent D’Arby did back in 1988.

“Didn’t he marry Smokey Robinson’s daughter?” McCarty asked. I said I wasn’t sure, but we both agreed on Robinson’s status as one of the all-time songwriting greats.

The band’s energetic performance also included the Barenaked Ladies’ Brian Wilson. It began with McCarty’s strumming and the rest of the band harmonizing. Then the tune exploded into a full-on stomper, propelled by the three-man rhythm section beating the hell out of their instruments. I liked that line “Lying in bed just like Brian Wilson did,” which perfectly captures the mad genius behind the pre-Kokomo Beach Boys. McCarty indicated that he occasionally feels like the title of a Brian Wilson song—I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times. He told me that during high school, he didn’t align himself with any particular clique of students. The popular kids were boring, he said.

A Bob Marley songbook on the kitchen counter of the band’s summer home gives away one of McCarty’s major influences. Phil also mentioned Ben Harper as a favorite performer, and it’s easy to see why. Like the Chris McCarty band, Harper refuses to zero in on one style. If he wants to try something new, he will, whether it gets him airplay or not. “I got a chance to interview Harper five years ago for my school paper. There were, like, 30 people in the place. He was already big in Europe, but not here,” Phil said.

Phil joined his brother after graduating from college with an English literature degree. Many of his droll observations can be found at the band’s official website, www.chrismccartyband.com. He eschews the spotlight, sitting behind his brother and knocking out one killer bass line after another. On the web site, he says, “nobody really cares about the bass player anyway, except other bass players.”

What’s Going Down, the group’s first CD, is a six-song EP of original songs with a nice cover design by Phil. The follow-up was recorded live at one of their memorable shows. Both offer a nice sampling of the band’s acoustic pop rock.

“Everyone here has been really supportive, cheering and buying CDs. You couldn’t ask for anything better. We go to the beach, and the non-African-American members of the band lay out in the sun,” Phil said. Although the band has only toured in the Southeast, he’s gotten email from fans in New York and abroad.

While the Chris McCarty band exhibits many strong points, Phil singled out this quintet’s consistency. “If the turnout’s not great, it doesn’t affect our performance. We have a lot of enthusiasm for what we’re doing,” he said. (Top)

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