Menahan Street Band

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Menahan Street Band
Menahan Street Band performing onstage
Menahan Street Band at Jazz Fest Wien in 2011
Background information
OriginBrooklyn, New York, United States
GenresAfrobeat, funk, jazz, soul
Years active2007–present
LabelsDunham Records, Daptone
MembersThomas Brenneck (guitar)
Dave Guy (trumpet)
Leon Michels (saxophone)
Nick Movshon (bass)
Homer Steinweiss (drums)
Past membersMike Deller (organ)

Menahan Street Band is a Brooklyn, New York–based instrumental band formed in 2007, that plays funk and soul music. The band features musicians from Antibalas, El Michels Affair, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings and the Budos Band. The group was founded by Thomas Brenneck while living in an apartment on Menahan Street in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Bushwick. Their debut album, Make the Road by Walking, was released in 2008 on Dunham, a sublabel of Daptone Records and was followed by The Crossing in 2012.

Various songs from Make the Road by Walking have been sampled by hip hop artists, including the title track, which was sampled by Jay-Z on the track "Roc Boys (And the Winner Is)...",[1] "Going The Distance", which was sampled by Kid Cudi on his song "Solo Dolo Pt.II" featuring Kendrick Lamar on Cudi's third studio album Indicud, and "The Traitor," sampled by 50 Cent on his mixtape War Angel LP and by Cudi on his debut album Man on the Moon: The End of Day. In addition, the song "Tired of Fighting" is used as a primary sample in Kendrick Lamar's "Faith" from his eponymous 2009 EP, as well as YBN Cordae's 2019 track "Family Matters" from his debut album The Lost Boy.

After a ten-year hiatus, the band announced in December 2020 a new album, The Exciting Sounds of Menahan Street Band, which was released in February 2021.[2]

Members[edit]

All members are active on the Daptone roster, and most have played together in Sharon Jones & the Dap-Kings, El Michels Affair, The Budos Band, and/or Antibalas, among other projects.[3][4][5]

  • Thomas Brenneck – bandleader, guitar, bass, keyboards (2007–present)
  • Dave Guy – trumpet, guitar (2007–present)
  • Leon Michels – saxophone, woodwinds, organ (2007–present)
  • Nick Movshon – bass, percussion (2007–present)
  • Homer Steinweiss – drums (2007–present)
  • Mike Deller – organ, piano (2007–2017; contributing musician: 2017–present)

Discography[edit]

Studio albums[edit]

Title Album details
Make the Road by Walking
  • Released: October 14, 2008
  • Label: Dunham Records
  • Format: LP, CD, digital
The Crossing
  • Released: October 30, 2012
  • Label: Daptone/Dunham Records
  • Format: LP, CD, digital
The Exciting Sounds of Menahan Street Band
  • Released: February 26, 2021
  • Label: Dunham Records
  • Format: LP, digital

Collaborative albums[edit]

  • Charles BradleyNo Time for Dreaming (2011)
  • Charles Bradley – No Time for Dreaming (The Instrumentals) (2011)
  • Charles Bradley – Victim of Love (2013)
  • Charles Bradley – Changes (2016)
  • Charles Bradley – Changes (The Instrumentals) (2017)
  • The Sha La Das – Love in the Wind (2018)
  • Charles Bradley – Black Velvet (2018)
  • Charles Bradley – Black Velvet (The Instrumentals) (2019)

Singles[edit]

Title Year Album Format
"Make the Road by Walking" / "Karina" 2006 Make the Road by Walking 7"
"The World (Is Going Up In Flames)" / "Heartaches and Pain" 2007 No Time for Dreaming (with Charles Bradley) 7"
"The Telephone Song" / "Tired Of Fighting" 2008 7"
"The Wolf" / "Bushwick Lullaby" 2009 Non-album single 7"
"Heart Of Gold" / "In You (I Found A Love)" 2011 No Time for Dreaming (with Charles Bradley) 7"
"No Time for Dreaming" / "Golden Rule" 7"
"The Crossing" / "Everyday A Dream" The Crossing 7"
"Lights Out / Keep Coming Back" 2012 7"
"There's a New Day Coming" / "Tommy Don't" 2019 Non-album single 7", digital
"Queen's Highway" 2020 The Exciting Sounds of Menahan Street Band digital
"Midnight Morning" / "Stepping Through the Shadow" 7"
"The Duke" / "Midnight Morning" 2021 7", digital
"The Starchaser" digital
"Devil's Respite" digital

Split singles[edit]

  • Australian Tour EP b/w Charles Bradley (2009)
  • "Run it Back" b/w Charles Bradley (2012)
  • "I'll Slip Away" (Charles Bradley & Menahan Street Band) b/w Rodriguez (2012)
  • "Revelations" b/w Charles Bradley (2016)
  • "How Did I Get Here?" b/w Larose Jackson (2021)

Guest appearances[edit]

Selected credits[6]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The 100 Best Songs of 2007". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on March 4, 2008. Retrieved December 27, 2007.
  2. ^ Kreps, Daniel (2020-12-03). "Menahan Street Band Announce First New Album in Nearly 10 Years". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2020-12-04.
  3. ^ Madora, Ryan (2017-10-20). "Bass Players To Know: Nick Movshon". No Treble. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  4. ^ "Dave Guy". The Dap-Kings. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  5. ^ "Homer Steinweiss". The Dap-Kings. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  6. ^ "Menahan Street Band". Discogs. Retrieved 2021-03-06.
  7. ^ Kelly, Tyler Damara (October 3, 2023). "Light in the Attic announce Record Store Day exclusive reissue of their Cover Series, Light in the Attic & Friends". The Line of Best Fit. Retrieved October 4, 2023.

External links[edit]