"Anatomy of a Band" by John Johnson

Anyone who’s visited the literary part of blackbookscafe.com and read “From Rags to riches” knows that I love to write mysteries.  One of my favorites is an old Alfred Hitchcock movie called “Anatomy of a Murder”, where lawyers piece together the reasons and events that led up to a particular crime.  Well, some very good friends & acquaintances of mine have banded together for over a year and have become the “Inner Corner Band”.  This article is my ‘congratulations’ to them in celebration of what was probably a milestone for them as a collective group.  It took place at Club Five on Saturday June 26^th, as they played with the DC dj/musician team of T-Kolai(Taha and Kolai). 

It’s February 2003 and we’ve have 2 days of snow.  DJ Pope & blackbookscafe.com have gotten together to throw a little CD release party @ Midtown Records.  The same party where me and DJ Karizma met.  Anyway, we called it off and then back on again.  It was a terrible day.  When it finally came time to meet at the store, it was a pretty good and intimate turnout.  A few local artists, dj’s, etc showed up,  including a quiet college student that reminded me of Satoshi Tomeii from the Frankie Knuckles “Tears” & “And I Loved You” fame.  I ask DJ Pope who it was and he told me that he use to listen to the “Underground Experience” show when it was on WEAA radio and that he studied music at Towson State.  I like to meet everyone I could so I say what’s up and introduce myself.  I was surprised at how much he enjoyed soulful sounding music and all kinds of sounds in general.  He told me that he played congas, drums, etc.  Eventually I would invite him to come and play at what would be the very first Soul Fiesta March 2003 following the Winter Music Conference.  It was at the Latin Palace and his name was Jason Din.  “Din”, as he told me, is how he likes to spell his last name because it means a loud, continuous, rattling or clanging sound.  Many months after that it seemed like wherever I went, Jason was playing along with the dj.

It’s March 2003 and I was at my first Winter Music conference.  Blackbookscafe.com was a little over 4 months old.  I went to the conference expecting a lot and got more than that.  It was like a pilgrimage to a “House music” Mecca.  Especially after I saw the Masters At Work/Blaze live show with the Elements of Life band @ the Opium Garden.  The hotel I stayed in had many from the Baltimore area.  I know of Henry Da Man, Carolyn Victorian, DJ Pope & Sabrina, DJ Oji & Stacey, Sheila Ford, and someone that has been in the scene for a long time in Baltimore.  Although I’ve been around for a while I didn’t remember his face and I know he didn’t remember mine.  But this was one of the coolest dudes I’ve met in a longtime.  The kind of brotha’ you like on your initial greeting.  Mad funny as he kind of reminded me of the actor/comedian Anthony Thomas from “Big Mama’s House”, “Barber Shop”, etc.  This is how our first meeting went…Me and Henry Da Man go to visit this brotha’ which was right in the next hotel room.  When we get there he says “man somebody next door was jamming.  They were playing Una and all that….”  We said man we’re next door that was us.  Henry had bought a boom box in Miami.  That was the beginning of a good relationship with my friend David Greenwood.  But you can call him David or Stevie or Esteban.(lol).  When we got back to Baltimore David would come to the first Soul Fiesta with Carolyn Victorian.  All David appeared to be rockin’ at that time was a loud whistle!  We all know that was the start of an addictive instrument buying spree(LOL).  But he’ll play all of that stuff if he has too.

Throughout this time a few of us were going to hear Karizma in the early months of 2003.  It was just a few of us regulars back then.  A little family.  Me and Jason would meet down there and David Greenwood would come too.  Jason with his conga(s), and David with his whistle.  Occasionally, you would see deejay Cleo Khary with the cowbell.  My friend Tradawn and another house head, Lindell would be in there dancing and screaming to Karizma’s set and the live sounds.  David Greenwood would make little jokes when they were really rockin’……..yeah, yeah, yeah!!  Sometimes, at different parties he'd say "we're in the corner rockin’"….The “Inner Corner Band”.  One day at the Sky Lounge while Jason was playing, this other brotha’ who would always come and get his groove on, left and came back with a djembe’ drum and sat next to Jason.  Things were really rockin’ that night.  This brotha’ was David Gilliam who is also in the Sankofa African Dance Company.

Throughout these months you would see these guys play everywhere for the love of music not just the Sky Lounge or Soul Fiesta.  They developed a compradory and suddenly the Inner Corner Band was no joke.  Eventually they sought more in the music, and would make the short trek to DC for DJ Oji’s “Spiritual Journey” @ the Sanctuary or “Underground” @ club Red together.  At club Red is where DJ Oji told David Greenwood about another percussionist.  Once David met this brotha’ things really took off.  That brotha’s name is Kevin Dames.  (Although they may play at many parties they really get on a spiritual high when they play with DJ Oji).   Just like the other members, Kevin loves to play and is dedicated.  He traveled to this year’s Winter Music Conference, for the weekend only, so that he and David Greenwood could represent at the Balto/DC party in Miami.  He even made the trip from DC to the newest location of the Soul Fiesta in Randallstown(Balto).  The ICB has gotten more and more popular over the last year as House/club heads have seen them all around the clubs in Baltimore as well as DC, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Miami, and NYC.

In their travels they seem to recruit guests who just love the energy of the instruments.  I’ve seen the vocalist Una get down with the ICB, deejay/talent Dushawn, and many other musicians and general House music dancers get in the mix of what David Greenwood spearheaded.  The current dynamics or make up of the Inner Corner Band may change but for now this is the unofficial scenario to the “Anatomy of a Band”.  The Inner Corner Band.  For any bookings see David Greenwood, David Gilliam, or Kevin Dames.  You can also contact David Greenwood @ khemetic24@yahoo.com.