Will Scruggs is a swinging saxophonist soloist and band leader. This week, he and C.C. Booker III raise the roof at Twins Jazz in their tribute to soul-jazz greats Ray Charles, King Curtis and Booker T.
In addition to Atlanta-based Scruggs, the group consists of organist Nate Shaw, guitarist Tony Romano and drummer Matt Kane, all from New York. They are joined for this event by Charles Phaneuf, who tempers his day job with the Shakespeare Theater Company as guest saxophonist with his hometown buddy.
“I’ve known Charles since the fifth grade,” Scruggs says. “We grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina, went to the same high school and were rival saxophonists in the school’s jazz band. We’ve remained close friends and I always invite him to play with us whenever we’re performing in D.C. There’s lots of chemistry and rapport as we trade licks in a sax battle.”
After graduating from Emory University, where he was named the Top College Jazz Musician of 2001, Scruggs joined Teach America and was assigned a school in Southeast Atlanta.
“I wasn’t quite ready to jump out and begin performing professionally, but I wanted to do something positive and service oriented,” he says. “It worked out very well because, by staying in Atlanta, I was able to keep my musical contacts in the city.”
He has done exactly that, working with Cadillac Jones and other top jazz groups there until he organized his own band, the Will Scruggs Fellowship. Their most recent album, “BlueBari Jam,” was released last October. Along with performing and composing, he has appeared on more than 25 albums, including “Leavin’,” with Natalie Cole, prior to joining her tour and playing at New York Apollo Theater.
“Since I live in Atlanta and the other members of C.C. Booker III are based in New York, we look forward to getting together several times a year for runs up and down the East Coast,” he says. “We always have a blast and so do our audiences because our music is upbeat, energetic and alive and appeals to all kind of people.
“This group loves to explore. When we play a Booker T number we groove for five or six minutes on a piece that you might have heard on a recording lasting only three minutes.
“Washington is one of our favorite places to perform because its people have an intellectual interest in jazz. I want the Twins Jazz audience to become excited and feel the connection and the party spirit.”
(If you go: C.C. Booker III with Will Scruggs and special guest Charles Phaneuf pay tribute to Ray Charles, King Curtis and Booker T., September 12 and 13 at 9 & 11 p.m.; Twins Jazz; 1344 U St. NW; $15 at www.twinsjazz.com; 202-234-0072)
