On Tuesday, Live for Live Music presented the fifth edition of monthly residency The Funk Sessions at Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom in Denver, Colorado. Each edition of The Funk Sessions features a rotating cast of players from across the funk and jam scenes playing in unique and creative lineups, with the lineup centered around a host artist and a curated group of friends and musicians whom they admire.

Tuesday night’s May edition of The Funk Sessions was hosted by recent Colorado transplant and TAUK drummer Isaac Teel. Isaac was joined by bassist Marc Brownstein (The Disco Biscuits), Jennifer Hartswick (Trey Anastasio Band/Ghosts of the Forest) on trumpet/vocals, Nick Cassarino (The Nth Power) on guitar/vocals, Joey Porter (The Motet) on keys, and Nicholas Gerlach (Michal Menert & The Pretty Fantastics) on sax. The one-time-only group also welcomed a slew of surprise guests throughout the evening including Lyle Divinsky, Adam Deitch, Mikey Carubba, Deshawn Alexander, and Will Trask.

The all-star cast of musicians offered up a genre-bending performance, working through pop, R&B, Reggae, and soul classics while always—of course—keeping it funky. Lauryn Hill‘s “Doo Wop”, The Meters‘ “Ain’t No Use”, Aretha Franklin‘s “Rock Steady”, Bob Marley‘s “Exodus”, Zapp & Roger‘s “More Bounce To The Ounce”, Chaka Khan‘s “Tell Me Something Good”, The Whispers‘ “Rock Steady”, Kings of Leon‘s “Sex On Fire”, Bonnie Raitt‘s “Love Me Like A Man”, and Steve Wonder‘s “Superstition” all got the Funk Sessions treatment throughout the course of the memorable night.

Luckily, you can watch a full pro-shot video of May’s edition of The Funk Sessions courtesy of Ninja Video and check out a beautiful gallery of photos courtesy of photographer Dave Vann below:

Live For Live Music Presents: The Funk Sessions – 5/21/2019 – Full Pro-Shot Video

[Video: Live For Live Music]

Setlist: L4LM Presents The Funk Sessions ft. Isaac Teel, Marc Brownstein, Jen Hartswick, Nick Cassarino & More | Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom | Denver, CO | 5/21/19

Set: Aint No Use, Doo Wop (That Thing), Tell Me Something Good, Sex Is On Fire, More Bounce To The Ounce, Love Me Like A Man, open jam (with DC Go Go vibes)*, Exodus > War > Exodus, Rock Steady (Aretha), Rock Steady (The Whispers)^

Encore: Superstition

*with Adam Deitch (Lettuce/Break Science) on percussion

^with Lyle Divinsky (The Motet) on vocals


Marc Brownstein is sticking around Colorado’s Front Range this weekend, as The Disco Biscuits return for their annual Bisco Inferno run featuring a two-night run at the Ogden Theatre on Thursday and Friday, May 23rd and 24th, followed by a Red Rocks performance with PNUMA Live on Saturday, May 25th.