‘Undercover Woman’ is the first single released from Bonneville’s second album, ‘Flying Machine,’ a follow-up to their well-received self-titled debut album. Bonneville is a band that has carved out a reputation for its retro-soul, funky R&B sound. Their compilation of work reflects their Southern artistic roots, passion to preserve the music legacy of this era, and tireless effort to reignite the appreciation and celebration of classic soul grooves through their own unique blend of styles.
‘Undercover Woman’ is a song about a man longing for a woman who is physically close but emotionally distant. He is overwhelmed by his desire for a deeper connection but sees the fear and hesitation that is holding her back. Eventually, his insight and persistence are rewarded, and the mood of the song elevates; celebrating the intense satisfaction of experiencing love where you have struggled to find it. The listener is finally left with a joyous, infectiously celebratory song. It’s definitely one of the more funky ‘bop your head’ tracks,” says lead vocalist Wes McGee.“Something you’d want to listen to on a road trip to Vegas.” His bandmate, Jeff Hayashi agrees. “It’s a really fun track,” says Hayashi. “Head bobbing and grooving all of the way through. But when you get to the end, it’s a massive house party.”
Hayashi describes the creation of the song as coming ‘on a whim’ while in Muscle Shoals’ Fame Studio in Alabama, charting a set list for upcoming performances. Hayashi started playing around with ‘open tuning,’ popularized by Jimmy Page in his ‘Rain Song.’ “It’s a non-standard open tuning,” says Hayashi, “DCGCGD, which sounds almost Middle Eastern.
The song is in G Natural Minor, but Page adds the notes B and F# to the G Natural Minor scale, allowing for a natural suspension almost everywhere on the fretboard. So I wondered if I could play some funk in this tuning.” The answer to that question turned out to be an emphatic yes. “Bass player, Andy Dixon, started singing some lyrics and melody over it,” continues Hayashi. “Then Brad Kuhn jumped on the keys and began to lay down a syncopated pad, and when Wes started belting out the top-line vocals we were off and running. That was the birth of the song.”
Continuing on the momentum they created from the first album, Bonneville worked with fellow Southerner and Mississippi-born, GRAMMY®-recognized producer, Starita, on this second compilation. Starita is well-recognized for pushing the envelope of sonic ranges and unique genre-blending styles (recognized for his work with Childish Gambino, A Tribe Called Quest, Christian Scott a Tunde Adjuah, Third Eye Blind, Madame Gandhi, Rebelution, Los Amigos Invisibles, Michael Franti, and Spearhead). He is also accustomed to this sort of improvisation when working with Bonneville. “I’m always excited to produce Bonneville,” says Starita, “because we are starting to push the envelope of what soul and funk music can be.”
This single exemplifies Bonneville’s playful creative energy, as well as their willingness to experiment with new sounds. While every note they play is an homage to the past, they never stop exploring ways to capture it more beautifully. “Their sound may be retro, but one thing I love about these guys is that they’re not afraid to access new tools to achieve their vision,” says Starita. “That’s one of the reasons it’s so fun to work with them.”
So when Starita connected with John Jennings, VP of Sales & Marketing at Royer Labs, to discuss a collaboration based upon the energy and momentum from Bonneville’s releases, they both agreed it was a great opportunity to try something new. “Royer’s past collaborations have traditionally been with big established bands. For them to be supporting an emerging band like Bonneville in this way is HUGE. Not only were we excited, but the president of FAME Recording Studios, Rodney Hall, was also watching closely. For many years, Rodney and the FAME engineers wanted to experiment with this microphone set-up in their studios,” Starita adds.
In an attempt to create a more “organic” sound in the studio, Starita and lead engineer Wes Sheffield experimented with a new microphone set-up to add richness and depth to the recording. “Recording this song with all ribbon microphones is not usually done,” says Starita. “With that many ribbon mics living in a room, I would typically expect to have a mess given that ribbons pick up sound from the front and back of the mic. To our surprise, when we pulled up the faders, there was this rich, warm, and very natural sound as if you were actually in the room with each instrument.
The sound was just simply beautiful.” Wes Sheffield added, “I love using ribbons, and especially Royers but every ribbon is naturally a figure 8. So, I had some concerns about bleeding and phasing issues. With a little thought towards how everyone was positioned and which mics to place where, we actually wound up with a gorgeous, rich sound that had a super low noise floor with very three-dimensional imaging. That was a true selling point for me. That you could have so many ribbons in a live room, not only without hiss and bleed overpowering the sources, but also the tonal quality that was phenomenal.”
“Royer Labs goes back years with Starita,” says Jennings. “So when he called us about an all-Royer recording of Bonneville at Fame Studios, we were all in. We love the way this recording turned out. The band killed this song and there’s ribbon warmth and power throughout the recording.”
“We’re grateful to the folks at Royer Labs for the opportunity,” says Starita. “Thanks to them, we were inspired to move out of our comfort zone a bit, and it really paid off. And another great thing is that Bonneville was exactly the right artist to try this with; both in terms of the sound we are trying to achieve and their willingness to work with new and different creative tools.”
This remarkable combination of openness to the use of cutting-edge production tools to produce a more authentic retro sound is an example of why Bonneville’s signature sound is so unique. What Starita calls “a funky, groovy, greasy soul jam” is a product of a purposeful artistic vision finding its best platform. As the band keeps creating and experimenting with their sound, it seems there is no limit to where they can take it.
The full production team on ‘Undercover Woman’ includes band members – Jeff Hayashi, songwriter, guitar, background vocals, co-producer; Wes McGee, songwriter, lead vocals; Andy Dixon, bass, Christian Pepin, percussion; Brad Kuhn, keys; Justin Holder, drums; Brad Guin, Marc Franklin, Sarah Morrow, horns, Cindy Walker, Marie Lewey, background vocals, Starita, producer; Wes Sheffield, recording engineer, mix engineer. The album was recorded at Fame Studios, Muscle Shoals, AL. Mastered by Daddy Kev, Los Angeles, CA. Creative direction by Tam Akiko. Released by Starita Records, a division of Starita Music.
Bonneville’s ‘Undercover Woman’ is available on all streaming services.. For a complete list of upcoming performances and events, visit their website.
ABOUT BONNEVILLE
Sometimes an artistic journey is a road back in time, to a place where you’ll find the most genuine version of yourself. If you embrace the wisdom of the past, you may find the purest form of your art. Bonneville duo, Jeff Hayashi and Wes McGee have both had a lifelong love of music. Each has traveled a bumpy road searching for the truest expression of that love. Their retro-soul, R&B sound embodies that fearless reflection of their artistic roots. Their energetic sound expresses the joy in the discovery.
For Wes, the time machine reveals memories of his father’s well-traveled Gibson 335 guitar, sitting by the door in a weathered case. It was a sacred object to Wes, who stole moments to open the case and strum the strings. He grew up with artists like Journey and Phil Collins; he was emotionally gripped by the sounds. “It helped to sew the tapestry of who I became,” says Wes, “listening to these people and understanding their tones.” At an early age, Wes forged a deep connection to music.
But when his father suffered a debilitating injury, it put distance between Wes and his creative pursuits. “In college, I did what everyone told me to do”, says Wes. He started his career in IT work, but it wouldn’t be long before his true nature emerged. Influenced by a girl, he tried acting and rediscovered creativity. It was a revelation: “I don’t have to be anyone else except who I wanna be,” says Wes. Now his creative pursuits are numerous, including writing and acting. But music is his first love, and Bonneville is the vehicle to revisit those early influences.
When guitarist and songwriter Jeff Hayashi bought a Gibson 335 guitar identical to the one owned by Wes’ father, their collaboration seemed like it was meant to be. Jeff was also captivated by music in his childhood and heavily influenced by his father, a jazz/rock drummer who was his first and only guitar teacher. Having learned the major chords by age 11, Jeff would be self-taught from that point forward. It seems the teacher and the pupil flourished. “Jeff pulls songs, rhythms, and melodies out of the air like nobody I’ve ever seen,” says Wes.
Jeff’s time travel is embodied in his love of rare guitars, evidenced by his purchase of the Gibson. His favorite is a 1957 reissue of Les Paul Black Beauty, a key to the retro southern blues sound that is Bonneville’s acoustic signature. Working with a trained vocalist like Wes gives him new artistic space. “There’s a freedom like shackles being removed,” says Jeff. “I feel like I can write whatever I want, and Wes can sing it.” Bonneville is for Jeff, as it is for Wes, a return to his past to rediscover his voice. “For the first time in my life,” says Jeff, “I am writing and playing the music that is closest to my soul.”
Bonneville’s journey continues as they experiment with new sounds. But the common thread is a musical legacy. It’s not a strictly retro sound, but it echoes the passions of the previous generation for both men and recalls the time of hand-crafted, “analogue” music, sung from the soul. It’s a beautifully imperfect sound that makes you want to go along for the ride.
