Holmes Brothers (Formed in 1980)

The Brothers band consists of Sherman and Wendell Holmes, along with the drummer Popsy Dixon, who also possesses a fine tenor voice which adds an extra dimension to the band's sound.
The brothers are both professionally trained and between them they play (at the very least!!) clarinet, piano, bass, trumpet, organ and guitar. In the 1960s they worked with Jimmy Jones and Charlie and Inez Fox amongst others, formed their own band, and also played in numerous Top 40 bands.

The current band finally came together in 1980. Each of the albums they have recorded reveals the breadth of both their repertoire and capabilities. The Primer unreservedly recommends any and all of their records - you'll find blues, soul, r&b, gospel and even a touch of country and western in there, all fused together into something just a little bit special. The group's career has been aided by the interest of people like Peter Gabriel, who recruited them for his WOMAD festivals and who also recorded them in a gospel context on the album "Jubilation" for his Real World subsidiary of Virgin Records in 1992. Constant touring, especially early on in their (relative) mainstream success also helped spread the word. 

The 1997 release "Promised Land" (on Rounder Records) is a fine starting point (it even takes the Beatles 'And I Love Her' and makes it into a true soul classic) but "Where It's At" from 1991 or 1993's "Soul Street" are equally as good. In 2004, the Brothers found themselves on Alligator Records and released "Simple Truths" and, yes, definitely worth a flutter, as is "State Of Grace", an album of both originals and covers, which came out in 2007.There's also a 'Best of' available ("Righteous: The Essential Collection") that pulls together some of the best of the Rounder material up until 2002.