If you’re partial to classic cars, then there’s a good chance Rock’n August’s upcoming Friday night car cruise and street dance is right up your alley.
Join the crowds as St. Anne Street transforms into an outdoor dance emporium that brings to life rock and roll music history.
This year’s band of the evening is Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, a corporate party band of six individually successful musicians from diverse musical backgrounds.
Their musicianship is strong, tight and sassy as they deliver a cocktail of Top 40 music from rock, pop and R&B to country, blues and soul charts.
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels was created about five years ago from the ashes of Shakin’ Not Stirred, a popular ’50s to the ’80s retro band that played Rock’n August in 2001.
The Scoundrels’ power couple Crystal Hanson and hubby Ralph Pretz along with vocalist Ruth Blais were part of a boogie band that drew an estimated 9,000 people to the car show.
“But about seven or eight years ago, people wanted to take a break. Ralph and I were more into country at the time and we took a break. But Ruth and I missed each other and our get-togethers,” said Hanson.
“We really enjoyed performing in the Shakin’ party band. We liked covering different decades, but this time around we wanted to do more current stuff.”
The trio recruited bassist Shane Painter, drummer Rolland Vidok and keyboardist Alex Russo. At the street dance, Marcus Bykowski and Myles Jackson will fill in for Painter and Russo who are unable to be at this engagement.
Their set list features songs from soul singers such as Bruno Mars and old R&B legends such as Tina Turner to country swingers Pam Tillis, Dixie Chicks, Johnny Cash and Elle King. And then there are the band’s pop hits from celebrity superstars Katie Perry, Lady Gaga and Ariana Grande.
Blais and Hanson either take lead vocals or mesh their sound depending on a song’s requirements.
“Ruth is a fantastic vocalist with great harmonies. She can riff off a smoky jazz song or do a Tina Turner. She sings Led Zeppelin’s Rock and Roll and does a great job.”
On the other hand, Hanson’s classically trained voice with strong country background complements vocals with yet a different vibe.
“One of my favourites is Bruno Mars’ Treasure. It feels comfortable. It feels funky. It feels fun.”
Pretz, who studied jazz at MacEwan College and is a member of The Joint Chiefs and Joe Piccolo & the Swing Cats, displays musical versatility in every genre from swing to pop, and that makes him one of the area’s go to guitarists.
As a drummer, Vidok can wail with the best.
“He’s animated and controlled. He has lots of energy and is always aware of what’s going on.”
Although Bykowski is a fill, his credits with Pretz and Blais go back to their MacEwan days as grads while Jackson plays with Dash Rip Rock, an ’80s and ’90s sizzling rock band that performed at the 2015 Rock’n August street dance.
“Personally I’m very excited. Ralph and I live here and we’re music teachers in St. Albert and we hope to see students and friends come out. It’s our community and it’s going to be fun.”
Preview
Dirty Rotten Scoundrels<br />Rock’n August Street Dance<br />Friday, Aug. 5 from 8 to 11 p.m.<br />5 St. Anne Street<br />Free
