Raw sugar

>> Sugarman 3 survive the demise of Desco

by RUPERT BOTTENBERG

Funk bands are a dime a dozen, but an act like NYC's Sugarman 3 is priceless. A throwback to the days of dancefloor jazz, boogaloo and earthy funk, the band's members cut their teeth in the company of prime movers of the genre, people like Eddie Henderson, Brother Jack McDuff and the great Lou Donaldson.

"There's a certain groove that you get from playing with that kind of musician," says saxophonist Neal Sugarman, "the way musicians from that era phrase music that younger players don't. Playing with them is how you pick up on that. In the history of jazz, it was like a ball handed off to the next player. Young musicians--I've heard guys in New York who sound just like Charlie Parker, but it's like a scratchy record of Parker. That's what they learned from, the sound coming from the turntable."

Not that Sugarman's dissing the vintage vinyl. If anything, that's what the band strives for--check the very live presence they achieve on their last disc, Soul Donkey. "You could say 'retro' and this and that, but to me, the great thing about old funk records is that the sound leaves something to the imagination. Like, what went on at the session? They sound rough--you can almost imagine the mic dangling in front of the drums. That's something that, to me, a lot of new recordings don't have."

No surprise that they found themselves on NYC's amazing, intensely authentic Desco label--new releases from which often passed for genuine articles from the glory days of funk. The surprise comes when Sugarman announces the tragic, recent collapse of Desco.

"It was a very idealistic label, and the stubbornness led to the break-up. For them, it wasn't a matter of finding a label manager with good business sense. They had to have that and know every 45 that ever existed."

There's still hope, though. "Now it's gonna be two labels. Phil Leaman has Soul Fire, which has been churning out 45s like crazy. He prints up 1,500 records and they sell out in a week. They're different from Desco, a little rougher, tough and old-sounding. Gabe Roth, on the other hand, is putting together Dap-Tone. He's taking his time, trying to get it administered through another label, so that everything's done right.

"I get along fine with both, so I think we'll be doing 45s with Phil and LPs with Gabe. I really can't see us working with anyone else."

At Swimming on Friday, April 13, 10pm, $6