Womad

Little Feat

LA boogie kings, still thriving after four decades

It was back in 1969 when Frank Zappa suggested that multi-instrumentalist and former Mother Of Invention Lowell George form his own band. Now, almost 40 years on (and almost 30 years after George's death), Little Feat continue to be one of the hardest-working bands in show business, their continued popularity confirmed by the release this year of Join The Band, a collection of re-recorded Feat classics with guest performances by the likes of Dave Matthews, Emmylou Harris, Vince Gill, Bob Seger and Brooks & Dunn. With such a genre-heavy celebrity fan demographic, you could be forgiven for thinking that Little Feat are, predominantly, a country band, but their wildly eclectic sound has, over the years, embraced blues, R&B, rock & roll, funk and jazz in a flourish of virtuoso musicianship and surreal humour. It's this off-the-wall sensibility that marked them out in the thriving '70s California scene through classic albums like Sailin' Shoes and Dixie Chicken, ensuring their legacy as one of the great American bands.

www.littlefeat.net

Biog by Rob Williams