Dukes Of September Plan To Heat Up

 Ives CONCERT PARK ON August 19

By John Voket

DANBURY — They may not be regarded individually in the hierarchy of “rock royalty,” but collectively Michael McDonald, Steely Dan’s Donald Fagan and Boz Scaggs have appropriately dubbed themselves the Dukes of September. And they plan to hold court Thursday, August 19 at Danbury’s Ives Concert Park in what was promised to be a two-hour-plus extravaganza of their own tunes, mixed with a number of songs that influenced the three musicians in their formative years.

Fagan, Scaggs and McDonald chatted for about an hour recently with The Newtown Bee and several other publications across the country in a teleconference that revealed not only the mutual admiration the three “Dukes” have for each other, but also the songs each musician hoped to hear their band mate’s perform during the tour.

During the Q&A, Fagan said the trio settled on the intriguing name for their super group after determining the bulk of their shows were going to be played in September, and as subtle reference to the age of the front men.

“We had a little trouble finding a name, actually,” he said. “We actually started out with ‘The Theme from Sea Hunt Rhythm Review,’ but that did not get universal acclaim. The Dukes is a sort of name that harkens back to those ‘50s do-wop bands with royalty names.”

In a subsequent release Fagan said the genesis of the tour occurred in the early ‘90s, when his wife, Libby Titus, was producing little shows in Manhattan restaurants featuring mostly friends that included musicians, comedians and the like.

“This grew into The New York Rock & Soul Revue which toured nationally for two years and produced an album, Live at the Beacon Theater. The 1993 show featured, among others, Mike McDonald, Boz Scaggs and myself,” Fagan said. “The shows were such a blast that we decided to tour together again this year as the mighty Dukes of September.”

Fagen, McDonald and Scaggs are giving fans an unprecedented opportunity to hear them delve deep into their individual classic catalogs of music, along with selected hits and tributes to their influences accompanied by a crack group of top players including Jon Herington (guitar), Freddie Washington (bass), Michael White (drums); Michael Leonhart, Walt Weiskopf and Jay Collins (horns), Jim Beard (organ), plus background singers Carolyn Escoffery and Catherine Russell.

Scaggs said the setlist was refined “out of the hundreds of songs we’ve picked out of the hat. It was fun to see the lists come in.”

“How about Mike McDonald singing ‘Hurt So Bad’ by Little Anthony or doing Ray’s ‘Tell the Truth’ or Donald Fagen doing David Ruffin’s ‘My Whole World Ended’? And I might get to do Mink DeVille’s ‘Cadillac Walk’ or some Curtis Mayfield,” Scaggs said. “What I know for sure is that I’ll have the best seat in the house.”

Fagan said concertgoers may even hear representative material from The Grateful Dead’s “Shakedown Street,” and material from The Beach Boys and The Band.

“We just based it on musical quality, and it gives us a break from the usual material we do every summer,” he said. “It influences spontaneity, so it will be fun. It’s nice to play with other musicians who make each other look good.”

McDonald said Fagen’s music with Steely Dan and partner Walter Becker, as well as the music of bandmate Scaggs figured heavily in memories of his early years in California.

“We all came up in the record business in LA in the ‘70s, and the thought that we’re still working together and we can still tour together — it’s a lot of fun. Over the years we did the Rock and Soul thing and Boz was in on that, and this tour is something like that. It’s like a dream come true ... almost self-indulgent for us. We enjoy playin’ that stuff sometimes more than doing our own stuff.”

McDonald said the band would likely morph its choice of material to find the perfect groove as they practice together for their Danbury opening night.

In focusing on what each member of the Dukes want to play, and then the favorites among each other’s catalog, Scaggs said he was psyched to tackle a number by The Band. McDonald said he was hoping to work in a Ray Charles big band arrangement of a song called “I Got News.”

Fagan said no matter which covers they pick, there is a certain challenge to nailing The Band’s one-of-a kind performance, and that the Dukes version brings something musically unique to the finished product.

In terms of his own catalog, Fagan said fans can expect a few samples from his solo catalog, including his first international solo hit “I.G.Y. (International Geophysical Year).” And he and McDonald agreed that the band cannot completely ignore their most popular material.

“If you want to play some material the audience isn’t used to hearing you play, it’s kind of a tradeoff — there’s going to be a part of the audience who are going to feel cheated somewhat if they don’t hear something they’ve come to hear.”

McDonald said he’ll be happy to play any songs brought to the table, but “you feel a little sheepish if you don’t do ‘What a Fool Believes.’ This band plays it great, but a lot of people will feel shortchanged if you don’t play the hits.”

Tickets for the opening night of The Dukes of September US Tour, featuring Michael McDonald, Boz Scaggs and Donald Fagen at The Ives Concert Park on August 19, are available at www.IvesConcertPark.com.