The 30th anniversary of the dance band The Real Imposters could well be like a high school reunion … without the annoying guy who played quarterback or the gum-chewing cheerleader. Or running into the girl in algebra that wouldn’t let you copy her answers.
Sunday’s celebration — and farewell performance — of the Benicia-based, multi-genre act at the Empress Theatre in Vallejo is eagerly anticipated.
And nobody’s going to need name-tags. Hopefully.
The reminiscing will undoubtedly be joyful, said David Martin, a former Vallejoan who lasted 25 years with the Imposters as vocalist and percussionist.
“We had a bunch of fun,” Martin said. “And we had a lot of gigs. We were really busy making money and having fun. We had a really good time.”
“Oh my God, there were a lot of ‘best moments,'” noted keyboardist Dwight Cotton, one of the band’s charter members. “When we came together as a unit and the energy was right, the music spot on and the crowd was over the top. It was a joy to play with these guys.”
Martin gladly makes the trip from his Pleasanton locale, recalling his entry into the Real Imposters in 1992, two years after the band was started by Cotton, Mike Jacobs and Ken Leach. Later on, guitarist/vocalist Ralph Setttembrino, bass player Rod Verette, and drummer Leo Vigil were eventually added as the ongoing players.
Playing R&B, funk, soul, rock, hip-hop and reggae … it was all about the variety, Martin said.
“We’d do Tom Petty, Earth, Wind and Fire … Tower of Power .. and the players were really good,” Martin said. “Our mission was to play as close to the record as we could. It was a blast.”
The former Choices — now a sports bar — near the foot of First Street in Benicia was the anchor for The Real Imposters.
“When it closed … that was very sad,” Martin said. “That was our ‘Cheers’ where everyone knew your name. All the camaraderie.”
Martin said the highlight Real Imposters gig was probably doing a show in Southern California for the Mercedes Benz Dealers Association when the band was lodged at the Ritz Carlton.
“You really felt like you made it,” Martin said.
Last playing with the band a few months ago, Cotton said it was “a challenge” at times, but also “wonderful” to be in the Real Imposters.
“I worked real estate seven days a week, but was young enough to play Friday and Saturday nights. I had the energy for it,” Cotton said. “When people stayed for the entire show, it gives you a lot of energy.”
Cotton, now in Clayton, said 40 or 50 musicians toiled for The Real Imposters at one point or another. As many as possible were contacted for Sunday’s big gig, including vocalist LeeAnn Christopherson who did numerous gigs with the band.
“Our first real big gig when I was with them was the show down on the marina in Benicia,” recalled Christopherson. “It was a great concert we had so much fun. That’s when the band sounded like a damn good band; rehearsed so much…it finally came together there.”
Vigil figures to get the bulk of drummer duties and can’t wait as the Pittsburg native drives up from his Southern California home.
“They’ll be a lot of great musicians. I’m really looking forward to it,” said Vigil, staking his claim to the drummer chair with the Imposters in the mid-1990s.
His last gig with the band?
“That’s a toughie,” he said.
It was a benefit for the family of the late musician John Seppala at, coincidentally, the Empress Theatre.
“The Imposters got together to do that and I think that was the last time I played with them,” Vigil said. “They called me a couple of times to play, but I was busy.”
It’ll be great to dust off some of the old tunes, Vigil said.
“I’ll have to go back in my memory,” said Vigil, thrilled to share the sticks with perhaps three other drummers on Sunday.
“It’s not about me being the drummer all night,” he said.
Sunday’s finale “will be fun from a lot of different viewpoints,” Cotton said. “Not only will I get to see the other musicians, but all the people who are coming. We’ll see who shows up and see whose names I can remember.”
Sure, there were squabbles along the way, Cotton acknowledged.
“When you play with a band 30 years, it’s like family. Unfortunately, a dysfunctional family,” he said chuckling.
It did become more difficult in the last few years, acknowledged Cotton, because he was aging and the band wasn’t doing it by the “muscle memory” of playing 40 to 50 gigs a year.
“It’s like a skier … when you slow down, it gets more difficult,” Cotton said.
Martin said the anniversary show will likely be his last public performance.
“I think I’m going to hang ’em up,” Martin, 63, said. “It’s time to do something else. I still love the music and will probably do some karaoke.”
At 67, Cotton said he was always the oldest member of the Imposters. And, this too, will likely be his last gig. But he plans on enjoying every moment.
“Just seeing people’s faces light up … I hope a lot are there,” Cotton said.
The 30th Anniversary and farewell concert by The Real Imposters is Sunday, Empress Theatre, 5 p.m. 330 Virginia St., Vallejo. General admission $25. For more, visit empresstheatre.org.
2019-09-17 22:41:29Z
http://www.timesheraldonline.com/september-19-arts-and-entertainment-source-real-imposters-celebrate-30th-anniversary-ersary
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