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In this episode, Tales From The Green Room presents their conversations with Joe Marcinek and Jeremy Hoenig recorded before their respective performances during Jazz Fest 2025 in New Orleans – featuring two musicians swimming in the same music circles in the San Francisco Bay Area and nationally - and both connected with Melvin Seals! Marcinek joins the show before his stellar appearance leading Dead Funk Summit during the Crawfish Festival at The Broadside, and is joined by soulful percussionist, drummer, vocalist, Rick King – a member of the Summit on this day. King talks about getting drawn into the Grateful Dead vibe, including with his own band, Rick King's Royal Hustle, elaborating on how magic happens on stage with Marcinek.
Hoenig sits down with the hosts before holding down the beat on drums at his gig with Melvin Seals & JGB at Café Istanbul - made possible by venue host Mitch Stein, responsible for curating a stellar lineup of musicians at the venue during Jazz Fest.
The Marcinek segment – recorded the very day his new album, The Groove Sessions, was released - delves into Joe’s late entry into music, his love for New Orleans sounds, the evolution of his Dead Funk Summit project now taking on a life of its own, and the special energy created by different musicians joining the venture around the country - including the likes of George Porter, Jr. and the aforementioned, Melvin Seals. The Crawfish King, Shaggy Davis, even makes a cameo during the interview!
Hoenig talks about his own musical journey from being inspired by his father's record collection to his current gig with the iconic Seals, playing with Camille Boudin of The Radiators, and reflects on “falling into the groove” playing beats the first time he entered the New Orleans music scene. Jeremy identifies a cadre of his favorite New Orleans drummers and how playing with Melvin Seals & JGB is the perfect fit for him.
Joe Marcinek, Rick King, and Jeremy Hoenig go in depth sharing their experiences in the music scene, their love for improvisation, and the collaborative spirit they embody, providing for a heartwarming and informative episode.
HIGHLIGHTS
When you have a band that plays all the time, it's easy to kind of go through the motions…where if you've never played together or it's something new, everyone's really locked in. Are we hitting the changes? Are we going to the move? Any little change that a musician does, that's when the magic happens.
-Joe Marcinek on brining in different musicians to his "Dead Funk Summit"
I read something about Miles Davis saying, “ I don’t talk to my musicians about music, because if I would have to talk to 'em about it, I hired the wrong people in the first place. And I always think about that.
-Rick King on the possibility of creating situations where magic can happen on stage among musicians, if you talk too much about it.
You can imagine how proud I am to be playing this music, which for me has all the styles that I love, and the music I gravitate towards. It's blues, it's funk, it's reggae, it's jazz, it's country. It's all these rhythms. And Jerry knew, when he had his own band, he wanted to explore all those different things. So that's why I feel it’s a very good fit for me… and personally, I just, I enjoy it. It lets me have everything that I love in one band.
-Jeremy Hoenig on being a member of "Melvin Seals & JGB"
PHOTOS
Backstage Photos at NOLA Crawfish Fest – 4.29.25 – by Appelbaum Images
SPONSOR SHOUT OUTS
HIGHLIGHTS
When you have a band that plays all the time, it's easy to kind of go through the motions…where if you've never played together or it's something new, everyone's really locked in. Are we hitting the changes? Are we going to the move? Any little change that a musician does, that's when the magic happens.
-Joe Marcinek on brining in different musicians to his "Dead Funk Summit"
I read something about Miles Davis saying, “ I don’t talk to my musicians about music, because if I would have to talk to 'em about it, I hired the wrong people in the first place. And I always think about that.
-Rick King on the possibility of creating situations where magic can happen on stage among musicians, if you talk too much about it.
You can imagine how proud I am to be playing this music, which for me has all the styles that I love, and the music I gravitate towards. It's blues, it's funk, it's reggae, it's jazz, it's country. It's all these rhythms. And Jerry knew, when he had his own band, he wanted to explore all those different things. So that's why I feel it’s a very good fit for me… and personally, I just, I enjoy it. It lets me have everything that I love in one band.
-Jeremy Hoenig on being a member of "Melvin Seals & JGB"
PHOTOS
Backstage Photos at NOLA Crawfish Fest – 4.29.25 – by Appelbaum Images
SPONSOR SHOUT OUTS
Special Thanks to Son Vo (Jerry’s Middle Finger) for his expert audio engineering skills editing the interview with Joe Marcinek and Rick King- recorded in a very noisy, outdoor backstage area at the Broadside in New Orleans during the Crawfish Festival - making this episode possible!
Son Vo is also a talented writer! Check out his compelling story, now available as an audiobook: Tales of the Mekong Delta Bluesman - Autobiography of Son Vo
@sonvosongs
Special thanks also to Mitch Stein - producer of JazzFest after shows at Café Istanbul - for welcoming us to the venue and accommodating our interview with Jeremy Hoenig!
Special thanks also to Mitch Stein - producer of JazzFest after shows at Café Istanbul - for welcoming us to the venue and accommodating our interview with Jeremy Hoenig!
Checkout and download Mitch’s DEADSHOWZ App – The most powerful mobile Grateful Dead search engine on the planet!
LINKS
JOE MARCINEK
Upcoming Shows
- Joe Marcinek's Dead Funk Summit w/ Melvin Seals, Tony Hall, Cliff Porter, and Rick King
- Joe Marcinek Band
31 Aug – Sunday Is Dead – Harlan Records, Outside Show, San Francisco, CA 4pm – 7:15pm
w/ Angeline Saris, Dylan Teifer, Jerry Saracini, Jeff Hobbs, Jen Freebairn)
w/ Angeline Saris, Dylan Teifer, Jerry Saracini, Jeff Hobbs, Jen Freebairn)
RICK KING
https://www.honeyislandswampband.com/
Upcoming Shows
21 Aug to 2 Oct - Funky Residency at Mom’s Place, Chicago, IL
Upcoming Shows
21 Aug to 2 Oct - Funky Residency at Mom’s Place, Chicago, IL
JEREMY HOENIG
Upcoming Shows
Melvin Seals & JGB Tour Dates
Melvin Seals & JGB Tour Dates
Creators and Guests
Host
What is Tales from the Green Room?
Welcome to Tales from the Green Room - Backstage conversations from popular music venues around the country curated by Mount Tam Media.
Buckle up and listen in, as host Dennis Strazulo and Mount Tam Media founder, Tami Larson, dig up conversations with artists - before and after shows - in the exclusive confines of the green room. Barriers are down with stories abound!
Tales from the Greenroom Special Edition (Sweetwater Music Hall's 50th Anniversary Series)
Mount Tam Media is thrilled to launch its Tales From the Green Room Podcast with a special series of episodes celebrating the 50th Anniversary of the iconic Sweetwater Music Hall in Mill Valley, California. The roster of artists that have crowded onto the club's little stages, first at the original Sweetwater location two blocks away, and now at the new location which opened in 2013, reads like a Who's Who of roots & rock music: Bob Weir, Aaron Neville, Big Mama Thornton, Carlos Santana, Elvis Costello, Etta James, Greg Allman, Van Morrison… the list of musical luminaries is endless. In the 80's, the Times of London hailed Sweetwater as one of the best nightclubs in America and the legacy continues! Mount Tam Media has been granted special access to Sweetwater’s green room during the venue’s 50th anniversary year to interview musicians, photographers, managers and the like, and capture their favorite moments and memories, preserving the untold secrets of what has graced these hallowed walls for half a century, before they are lost forever.