Little Feat and Bonnie Raitt Team For ‘Long Distance Call’
I’ve always loved Little Feat, and this new incarnation of the band is bringing some serious heat, cred and new blood to their enduring legacy,” says Bonnie Raitt, a longtime friend of Little Feat.
With her warm and deeply soulful vocals, Raitt duets with the band’s Sam Clayton on a cover of Muddy Waters’ “Long Distance Call.” It’s the newly released third single from the band’s new album Sam’s Place (Hot Tomato Productions/MRI) out this Friday, May 17.
“Long Distance Call” Feat. Bonnie Raitt
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Sam’s Place marks the legendary band’s first new studio album in 12 years; first-ever blues album; and the first one to feature linchpin conga player Clayton on lead vocals on every song.
“Every Feat fan loves us some Sam,” adds Raitt. “I’m so glad he’s now gotten a chance to step out front and center and put his spin on these wonderful blues songs. I loved singing ‘Long Distance Call’ with him, always one of my favorites, and Scott slayed on slide. Know you’ll enjoy hanging out with us at Sam’s Place!”
“Long Distance Call,” which also features Michael “Bull” LoBue on harmonica, follows the first two tracks/videos from Sam’s Place “You’ll Be Mine,” a cover of the Willie Dixon-written chestnut popularized by Howlin’ Wolf and “Can’t Be Satisfied,” a rollicking interpretation of the classic Muddy Waters-written gem.
The members of Little Feat 2024 are: Bill Payne, Keyboards and Vocals; Sam Clayton, Percussion and Vocals; Fred Tackett, Guitars and Vocals, Kenny Gradney, Bass; Scott Sharrard, Guitars and Vocals; and Tony Leone, drums and vocals. Their individual musical chops and collective chemistry light up the nine-track Sam’s Place, which was waxed at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, TN (August 2023), except for “Got My Mojo Working (Live),” recorded live at the Boulder Theatre in Boulder, CO (December 17, 2022). This is the first Little Feat album recorded with new members Sharrard and Leone.
Little Feat emerged from the pandemic with their sense of humor, chops, and collective joy in playing intact—and their creativity has been renewed with the joyously blues-soaked Sam’s Place. The idea for the album started with Bill, but the whole band jumped in. They started working on songs at sound checks. Sam, Scott and Fred wrote a new song, “Milk Man.” Visiting backstage at a FEAT show, Bonnie Raitt suggested the Howlin’ Wolf tune “You Will Be Mine.” Scott suggested “Why People Like That,” a Bobby Charles tune. Sam chose the Willy Dixon-penned “Don’t Go No Further,” a deep Muddy track. And they included a live version of “Got My Mojo Working.”
Scott had recorded in Memphis, and they eventually found their way to the second Phillips (the first was Sun Studios, where Elvis began his career) studio there, complete with Jerry Lee Lewis’s piano, which Bill noted “practically played itself.” FEAT’s a rock band, but as Scott observed, at the end “the blues is home,” and they basically recorded it live in the studio, in the tradition. Their playing is at an all-time high, and Bill thought their musical conversation was “flawless.”
Sam was a happy vocalist. His own “Milk Man,” a song about his nephew, has lyrics from his wife, Joni. The duet with Bonnie on “Long Distance Call,” he humbly admitted, was classic. “We go good together, man.” “Last Night” was done in memory of Sam’s very good friend, the late Ed Bradley of Sixty Minutes. And “Why People Like That” was particularly satisfying. “I just like the way the slide sounds and everything. I knew Scott is a great slide player too, plus he is a great lead guitarist. And I know we would put our touch to it, the Little Feat touch. So we just sort of did it. Scott just adds a lot to it and he answers to what I’m singing.”
Sam’s Place scratches a deep itch. Sam added, “I’m very happy because I was never expecting anything like that. I mean, I have wanted to, but I just wasn’t expecting it to come to fruition. It was a long wait, but it’s satisfying.”
Little Feat will be busy this summer on the road. From touring with the Tedeschi Trucks Band to headline shows with The Wood Brothers, Los Lobos, Marc Broussard, Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel, The Steel Wheels, and Rob Ickes & Trey Hensley, there will be plenty of chances to boogie with the band. For their Baltimore, MD show on June 14, Little Feat will perform their classic 1973 album, Feats Don’t Fail Me Now, in its entirety. Tickets are available HERE.
For more information and tour dates and ticket links, go HERE.
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