Muscle Shoals Meets the 70s rewind

Part 10: Permission to act a fool

Muscle Shoals Meets the 70s tasked one of my favorite new-to-me local artists with taking on one of my all-time favorite songs. Do you hear it, friends? That's one of the most iconic high-hatting (opening) hand-clap sequences in the history of music. I like to think of Rose Royce’s “Car Wash” as the universal call to act a fool, too. Trust me, my boss loves that about me.

She said, “Let me see your hands … let’s go!” Then, Natasha Nix stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park with her rendition of “Car Wash.” Natasha is a high-octane performer who led the “Car Wash” seventh-inning stretch dance break portion of MSM the 70s night two, set one with soul-infused energy. Natasha is one of those rare artists who has an old soul wrapped in a youthful spirit — best believe she’s an undeniable spitfire, friends.

You know that adage about “choose a job you love, and you’ll never work a day in your life?” Yeah. “Car Wash” was a Shoals all-star work session that proved the old saying true beyond a shadow of a doubt. Those world-famous Fiddleworms were joyfully working, y’all. They matched Natasha’s explosive talent and incendiary stage presence and raised the bar even higher. Steve Vickery’s dirty, groovy bass licks had us all working overtime and loving every minute.

I'll tell you this, those silky-smooth Shoals Sisters worked and worked — Lenny LeBlanc was right there with them working hard, too. Cissy Guin had us covered doing her job with all the percussive support and those funky Polyester Horns and sexy Shoals Strings added just the right amount of punch and class to this anthem. *Chef's kiss, friends.

I have loved "Car Wash" since the beginning of time. I wonder if "Car Wash" is patient zero for my origin love story with funk. Since radio raised me, I'm thinking I most likely heard it real time on the one and only Q107. Was there Funkadelic Fridays back in 1976? I know the movie, "Car Wash" is surely the root of my love for Richard Pryor. Oh, Daddy Rich ... gotta love the rise of cable and satellite TV in the early 80s. Am I right?

As much as I love this song, it has always been firmly planted in the guilty pleasure/novelty category for me. I never thought of "Car Wash" as a great song, y’all ... until Natasha's MSM the 70s rendition. Turns out, at the hands of Shoals masters, this beloved Seventies anthem checks all the timeless treasure boxes.

Hey, by the way — I need a job like that. Where do I apply?

Stay tuned … more to come.

Dig Worms.

Photo credit: Devona Hawkins