* En anglais uniquement
Led by vocalist/songwriter/musician
Stefanie Seskin, New Jersey's
Blue Number Nine is an interracial soul/funk outfit with a strong ‘70s influence.
Seskin isn't necessarily an R&B purist where
Blue Number Nine is concerned; there are, at times, traces of rock, pop, and jazz in their work. But soul/funk is the primary direction of
Blue Number Nine -- who have sometimes been compared to the equally ‘70s-minded
Brand New Heavies -- and
Seskin obviously gets a lot of inspiration from an era in which
Rufus & Chaka Khan,
Labelle (
Patti LaBelle's ‘70s vocal trio with
Nona Hendryx and
Sarah Dash),
Maze & Frankie Beverly, and
the Average White Band reigned supreme on the R&B charts.
Seskin's funk isn't the gutbucket, over-the-top funk that
Parliament/
Funkadelic,
Bootsy's Rubber Band, and the late
Rick James were famous for in their heyday; rather,
Seskin favors what was called "sophisticated funk" back in the ‘70s -- that is, the sort of gritty yet polished funk associated with
Rufus/
Khan,
Maze,
AWB, and Philadelphia International Records.
Seskin formed
Blue Number Nine in September 1995; by that time, she had a résumé that included, among other things, a stint playing bass for the New York City band
Bill Popp & the Tapes in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s.
Seskin does most of the bass playing on
Popp & the Tapes' first album, Popp This, which singer/songwriter
Popp released on his own label, 121st Street Records in 1990. With
Popp's band,
Seskin played his songs and embraced a very British Invasion-influenced, ‘60s-minded style of pop/rock along the lines of
the Beatles,
the Yardbirds, and
the Zombies -- and
Seskin's ability to go from playing in
Popp's band to forming a soul/funk outfit about half-a-decade later underscores her versatility. But while there are major stylistic differences between
Bill Popp & the Tapes and
Blue Number Nine, the two bands have one thing in common: both of them reflect the creative visions of their leaders. Just as
Bill Popp & the Tapes is
Popp's baby,
Blue Number Nine is very much
Seskin's baby, and she has worn many different hats in her band, including lead vocalist, songwriter (she writes or co-writes most of the material), producer, engineer, flutist, keyboardist, alto saxophonist, clarinetist, and percussionist.
Blue Number Nine's debut album was released on Berger Platters Records in 2000; that CD was followed by 2001's Saving Spot (a live album) and 2003's
On a Shoestring, both on Check Other Music. Along the way,
Seskin's band has had more than its share of lineup changes; in 2004,
Seskin was the only remaining original member, and the East Coast musicians joining her in
Blue Number Nine included Marco Accattatis on bass and background vocals, Sal Carrubba on guitar, Ada Rovatti on tenor sax, Nabate Isles on trumpet, Rob Susman on trombone, Sheila Connors, Camari Frame, and Joel Hirsch on percussion and background vocals, and Jack M. Gourdine on drums,. ~ Alex Henderson