Duke and The Drivers Blues Formed in Boston in 1970 by an unnamed, "always heard, never seen" Duke who is legendary for his generosity and anonymity," The Drivers sport colorful monikers such as Earthquake Morton (bass), Mad Mississippi Buffalo (keyboards), Rhinestone Mudflaps III (harp and sax), Sam Deluxe (guitar), Cadillac Jack (guitar), and Chuck "a-Luck-a-Lover-Boy)" Purro (guest drummer). Vocals are shared by all. Their zany stage names belie the fact that they are serious musicians who possess an encyclopedic knowledge of blues, soul and R&B.Duke And The Drivers are no mere revivalists; they’ve been playing this music with unabashed passion for more than 30 years. Check Your Bucket their third album, is a faithful snapshot of what these apostles of joy do best. Recorded live at the House of Blues in Harvard Square, the band, augmented by the Uptown Horns, offers an exuberant set of lesser-known party tunes from the likes of Otis Redding, Don Covay, James Brown, Eddie Bo, and John Ellison (of Soul Brother Six fame). There's comic relief with the singalong country cut-up "Ya Ba Da Ba Do (So Are You)," and two originals: the sax-drenched ballad "Like A River" and the crunchy, guitar- propelled funk number "Love On My Hands."Regional R&B bands such as Duke And The Drivers once dotted the musical landscape. Unfortunately, there are precious few on the scene today -- the Fabulous Chickenhawks (New Orleans), the Billy Price Band (Pittsburgh), the Groove Hogs (Wisconsin), and the Dynatones (San Francisco) come to mind. Those looking for a party on CD should check their bucket with Duke And The Drivers.

article by Bella English, Globe StaffThere are two women up front, inches away from the band, who just can't contain themselves; they're shaking their booty, among other things. It's rock 'n' roll, the kind that grabs your shoes and makes them move ...They're Duke and the Drivers, a group that in the '70s was one of Boston's top party bands. At their peak, they were on the road 28 nights a month, playing the New England prep-school and college circuit. Theirs was music to drink and dance to. They had ... hit singles, including ''What You Got'' and ''Check Your Bucket.'' They opened for J. Geils Band, Three Dog Night, Steely Dan, the Allman Brothers, Bruce Springsteen, the Eagles, Chuck Berry, and B. B. King.Some of the band members have known one another since grade school ... [going] ... by stage names: Mad Mississippi Buffalo (Swift), Cadillac Jack (Eaton); Sam Deluxe (Lilly), Earthquake (Morton), and Rhinestone Mudflaps III (Hixon).They grew up. There were marriages, births ... remarriages, and more births. ''We've been friends for 35 years,'' says [Sam Deluxe]. [Sam Deluxe] is the band's musical director and songwriter ... [Mad Mississippi], lead vocalist and keyboardist ... a lawyer. Bassist ... [Earthquake] Morton became a chef. [Rhinestone Mudflaps III] saxophonist and singer, went into investment ... and banking. [Cadillac Jack] on guitar, percussion, and vocals, was a Boston TV reporter before going to law school.Buoyed by a sold-out two-night gig last year at the House of Blues in Harvard Square [Cambridge, MA] -- they had to add a third night -- the band ... decided they were having too much fun to quit. They've ... produced a new CD, launched www.dukeandthedrivers.com, and [are] playing gigs ...''This is the definitive Duke record,'' [Deluxe] says of the new disc, ''Check Your Bucket.''A recent show at the Kings bowling alley and lounge in the Back Bay brought a full house. Last weekend, Duke and the Drivers cut some new tracks [toward] another album.''When the Duke calls, I'm there,'' says Swift [Mad Mississippi Buffalo], who ... has law offices in Chicago, New York, and New Bedford [MA]. ''I think we are musically better than ever.''They all shared a passion for R&B and soul. Their first gig, in 1972, was in Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard [MA]; they didn't make any money, but the owner gave them free drinks. ''He lost money on the deal,'' says [Cadillac Jack].The group didn't even have a name. At the Western Front in Cambridge, the owner told them they had 20 minutes to come up with one. The guys had been drinking ''drivers'' -- a drink similar to a screwdriver ... ''a cheap orange drink with cheap white wine.'' They needed a name to go with it and came up with ''Duke.''Mention Duke and the Drivers to nearly anyone ... in their teens or 20s in Boston in the 1970s, and he or she will react. ''They were a very cool band,'' says Kai Armstrong ... of Milton [MA]. ''The music was great, the beat was strong, and they were very hip and a lot of fun. They were kind of wild, and of course Tommy [Mad Mississippi] ... was [and may we add IS] very good looking.''Today, Swift [Buffalo] ... has a 17-year-old son and, from a second marriage, a 6-month-old son. He recently moved back east from Chicago, where he practiced law for 20 years. Part of the reason was ''The Duke'' -- the fictional bandleader. ''I feel [music is] the truest expression of who I am,'' Swift says. ''I've been in a band since I was 14 years old.''''Duke and the Drivers had an infectious sound and a beat that was absolutely perfect to dance and party to,'' says [Dave] LaCamera, who [managed] the group in 1973 ... [in] the heady days of Boston rock, with J. Geils and then Aerosmith breaking out.... ''It's just the charisma. It's still there, 30 years later. There's a fraternity ... who don't want to let the fun go.''... three decades have passed. Among the five of them, there are 11 kids. [Rhinestone Mudflaps III] is a grandfather. [Sam Deluxe¹s] 19-year-old son, [the Petulant Prince] will often jump in and play lead guitar...Cathy Perron has been married to Eaton [Cadillac Jack] for 20 years ... She was at Kings with their teenagers, Brooke and Perry. ''When the children were young and in the bathtub, my husband used to play and sing to them,'' she says. ''They love this part of him.''Brooke, a freshman at BU, acknowledges that she teases her dad about rocking out. ''It's funny to see him up there,'' she says. ''But I love it, because I know he's having a good time.'' Says Perry, 14: ''I think it's good that my dad can still go.''Pete Cunningham, who roomed with [Cadillac Jack] at Harvard, is an environmental lawyer in Florida. Thirty years ago, he was the group's road manager. ''They're very much out of the soul tradition of the '60s,'' he says.Each member, he says, brings a unique talent to the group. He calls [Sam Deluxe] the musical heart and soul of the band. [Mad Mississippi] is ''the showman.'' [Cadillac Jack] is the driving rhythm force, [Rhinestone] is the ''court jester, a natural performer,'' and [Earthquake] Morton is ''Mr. Soul,'' the musical historian.Morton ... owned the Bridge Street Cafe for 20 years in South Dartmouth [MA]; now he has a catering business. ''This is really about relationships,'' he says. ''And we're making [even] better music now. Our new tracks are just outrageous.''Hixon ... the MC ... loves stepping into his Rhinestone Mudflaps persona, calling it ''a walk on the moon.'' He's also the one who lives the farthest away, in ... Calif., but flies in whenever he's [summoned by The Duke].