The Duke and The King

Simon Felice has come a long way since departing from his brothers band, The Felice Brothers, some two or three years back.

Upon leaving the raspy, dust-kicking folkies, Simon embarked on a new project with a more subdued direction. The Duke and The King was his next port of call. Their debut record, 'Nothing Gold Can Stay', drew blood from The Felice Brothers more mellow moments of dreamy ambience. There were no riotous fiddles waltzing their way through drunken barn dances but there were those hints of acoustic clarity that Simon bought to the band.

Following the first Duke and The King record, their second effort was coined as having funk and gospel roots. Country music, the likes of which Simon made with his brothers, has always been influenced by the church-going realms of gospel and soul, it just transcends differently differently when sung by white boys on washboards and acoustic guitars.

Self recorded in a woodland area north of New York, Simon was joined by Nowell "The Deacon" Haskins and Simi Stone to make an album that would go on to fuse the funkadelic vibes of Sly and The Family Stone with the harmonious properties of CSNY. The results are sublime as Simon and his new band ring out the blues like seasoned professionals.

06 The Duke & The King - Hudson River by CBSIMG