On Stage: Humbleman Band has a special relationship with ‘No kings’

By Denny Dyroff, Entertainment Editor, The Times

The Humbleman Band has a special relationship with “No Kings Day.”

Last year, the band had a show scheduled for June 14 from noon-4 p.m. at “Art on the Ridge: Saturday Artist Market” at Pocket Park in Roxborough.

In a totally uncharacteristic move for a performing act, the band told its fans not to come to the show.

Now, nine months later, the Humbleman Band has a concert scheduled for “No Kings Day Eve” — March 27 – and the band is inviting all its fans to attend.

The show will be held Friday night at The Royal Music & Arts Center (1 South Easton Road, Glenside, http://www.theroyalglenside.com) where the band will share a bill with The Planets.

“Here we are with a ‘No Kings’ weekend again,” said Humbleman Band singer/guitarist Charlie Cooper, during a phone interview Wednesday afternoon from his home in Germantown.

“It’s a strange coincidence. We’ll be going to a “No Kings Day” event on Saturday. I’ll go to Norristown or Philly. I’m not sure yet.”

On the band’s website last June, it asked fans to stay away from the event in Roxborough, which was billed as a “A cultural initiative supporting local artists through rotating exhibits, pop-up markets, interactive installations, along with sip, treats with live music.”

The band had no problem with the promoter, the sound system or event vibe. It’s just that the scheduling created a conflict of interest.

Here was the message from Humbleman Band – “Shucks! Don’t come see Humbleman 6/14, go to the “No Kings” rally instead.

“Go to the “No Kings” rally.  It’s the thing to do. You can see Humbleman some other time. We’d much rather be at the ‘No Kings Rally.’”

Philadelphia is set to host the third major “No Kings” march and rally on March 28 – one of many nationwide demonstrations planned for the same day.

Organized locally by Indivisible Philadelphia, the event aims to draw protesters to Center City to oppose policies of the Trump administration and to voice broader concerns about civil rights and democratic norms.

The march will kick off between noon and 12:30 p.m., with participants beginning to gather as early as 11 a.m. at Love Park, the north apron of City Hall and along John F. Kennedy Boulevard and North Broad Street, according to the city’s press release.

On March 28, over 3,100 events will be happening across the U.S. as part of the third “No Kings” protest.

The “No Kings” group said on its website (www.mobilize.us/nokings) that the American people are “ready to stand in solidarity against the Trump administration’s overreach and heinous acts against working families and immigrants.” Trump has previously called similar protests “a joke” run by “radical left lunatics.”

There are 23 events already listed for Minnesota, where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) actions in the Twin Cities have exacerbated local tensions, over 100 in Massachusetts, over 60 in Florida, over 40 in Texas, over 20 in New York, and many others across the country.

There will be “No Kings” rallies in Chester County – March 28 at 1 p.m. at Historic Chester County Courthouse (2 North High Street, West Chester) and March 28 from noon-2 p.m. in Phoenixville.

There will also be rallies in Norristown, Media, Ardmore, Havertown, Audobon, Springfield, Wayne, Ambler and Pottstown and in Delaware in Wilmington and Newark.

With all the activity slated for Saturday, fans will have Friday night free to catch the Humbleman Band Live.

After waiting a long time for a new album by the Humbleman Band to drop, the group’s fans saw their patience rewarded four months ago when the band performed a “Record Release Show” at the Black Squirrel Club in Philadelphia.

The new disc, “Looking Up,” is an album that was several years in the making.

Humbleman Band is one of the Philadelphia area’s longest-running rock bands — and a band which has been involved in projects all over the country.

Humbleman Band’s current line-up is Charlie Cooper – writer, vocals, guitar; Wain Ballard – lead guitar; Kim Alexander – vocals; Boz Heinly – bass; and Buck Buchannan – drums.

“We’ll be playing all the songs from the new album,” said Cooper. “There are 14 songs on the record.”

There will also be an added attraction.

“We’re also going to be playing a new song that was just written and is not on the album,” said Cooper, one of several musicians to come from the Norristown area along with a pair of late jazz greats — bassist Jaco Pastorius and Hammond legend Jimmy Smith.

“The song is called ‘No Kings’ and was inspired by the recent ‘No Kings’ events. We’re also playing a new song we’ve just written – ‘Iceman.’

“And we’ll be doing some new covers. One is a Miley Cyrus song, ‘Flowers,’ and the other is a Brazilian song, ‘Patuscada de Gandhi.’”

The two songs are favorites for North America and South American audiences.

“Flowers” spent 57 weeks at the top of Billboard Adult Contemporary chart, becoming the longest-running number one-song on any Billboard airplay chart, and earned the most cumulative weeks atop all Billboard airplay charts of all time.

The lyrics to Gilberto Gil’s song “Patuscada de Gandhi” are sung in Portuguese and are about the excitement and joy of participating in a parade with the children of Gandhi. It is a vibrant and energetic track that encapsulates the spirit of Brazilian carnival parades.

Humbleman Band has been around for more than a quarter-century.

“Humbleman Band was formed in 1999,” said Cooper. “We get along really well musically and as friends. We have a lot of respect for each other.”

Humbleman Band is not very prolific when it comes to releasing albums.

“We seem to have a cycle of putting out an album every five years,” said Cooper.  “We put out an album a few years ago called ‘Least Bad of Humbleman 1984-2009.’ That album was a 25-year compilation starting with our days in 1984 as a punk band called The Proles.”

The band released its albums “Late Bloom” in fall 2014 and “Beautiful Day” in November 2018.

Humbleman Band, a rock band that is socially conscious, features songs that band members have written and arranged – songs with lyrics inspired by current events.

“With ‘Looking Up,’ we recorded the rhythm section in a big studio — Rittenhouse Soundworks in Germantown. Then we did the overdubs at our home studio, J-Street Studios.

“The last recordings happened in March. Then we sent it to Rittenhouse Sound for mixing and mastering.”

The LP, which has an up-tempo feel and an uplifting vibe, is the band’s best recording yet.

“The title track – “Looking Up” – showcases the group’s optimism with lyrics such as, “Not so bad, could be worse, could be surrounded by flowers in the back of some hearse” and “Things are looking more up, my friend, that’s how I’m feelin’ today.”

Cooper is a native of Norristown. In the late 1960’s/early 1970’s, he was part of an extended group of musical and artistic friends that lived in and around Norristown.

That diverse group included the late Tim Boyle, one of the most “sought after” recording engineers in Southern California; Karen Tobin, a Narberth native who established herself as a respected vocalist in the L.A. country music scene; Conshohocken native John Vuotto, a Delaware Valley acoustic guitar legend; and several music journalists including Ed Dwyer, the founding editor of High Times magazine who had earlier written the text of the Woodstock music festival program booklet.

Humbleman Band, a rock quintet that is socially conscious, features songs that band members have written and arranged – songs with lyrics inspired by current events.

“We went out to Standing Rock (Indian Reservation) in North Dakota,” said Cooper. “That inspired song – ‘AIM ’21.’ The title stands for ‘American Indian in the 21st century.’”

In July 2023, Humbleman Band posted the following on its website – “Once again, we will be taking skateboards to the Oglala Lakota Sioux tribe of Pine Ridge, South Dakota.

The Sioux have managed to build a skate park with the help of some professional skateboarders and some corporate sponsorship. However, poverty is so pervasive there is little money for skateboards, pads, and helmets.

The reservation is home to over 45,000 members; over half of this population is under the age of 18; over 80% are unemployed; over half are below the poverty level; and the reservation has the lowest life expectancy of any region in the United States.

Dealing with epidemics of alcoholism, drug addiction, and depression affect the entire community. I have seen the joy and the pride these kids get from skating. It is a healthy and positive thing for them, and I’ve seen the passion with which they do it!”

Humbleman Band has consistently delivered social commentary and positive messages, often with humor and a light touch, using spoken word lyrics, and generally delivered with dance beat arrangement.

This weekend, the focus will be on “No Kings” and who could be better to do that than a musical group that evolved from a band called The Proles.

Video link for Humbleman Band — https://youtu.be/01Clk69MaAU.

The show on March 27 at The Royal Music & Arts Center, which also features The Planets, will start at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $20.

Another upcoming show at The Royal Music & Arts Center will feature Del Cobras, Erin Fox and Scott Radway.

The Brook & The Bluff, who are headlining a show at Union Transfer (1026 Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia, 215-232-2100, www.utphilly.com) on March 31, are one of the better known bands from Birmingham.

When music fans think of Birmingham, they think of Black Sabbath. But, unlike Ozzy and his bandmates, The Brook & The Bluff are not a metal band nor are they British.

The members of The Brook & The Bluff all hail from Birmingham, Alabama. Eight years ago, they relocated to Nashville, Tennessee.

On March 6, 2025, they released their new LP, “Werewolf,” on Dualtone Records. It marked the band’s fifth album release.

The band features Joseph Settine (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Alec Bolton (lead guitar, vocals), Kevin Canada (keyboards) and John Canada (drums, vocals).

“We recorded ‘Werewolf’ at our producer Micah Tawlks’ studio in Nashville,” said Bolton, during a phone interview yesterday from Nashville during a tour break.

“We recorded it live in the studio. We were all facing each other in a circle. That kept the energy at a good level.

“We had ideas we were excited about. We only pursued ideas that we had gotten from live playing. There was a lot of spirit – a lot of good energy.”

The Brook & The Bluff return to their rock & roll roots with “Werewolf” — a high-voltage, live-inspired record that turns up the amps, pushes the tempo, and howls in four-part harmony.

Fueled by the sharp songwriting and stacked vocals that have defined their catalog, the album captures the raw, supercharged energy of the band’s concerts.

The Brook & The Bluff had its start in Birmingham and continued at Auburn University where all four were undergrad students prior to graduating in 2015.

“Joseph and I met freshman year at Auburn and started a cover band,” said Bolton. “I actually went to high school with John and Kevin at Mountain Brook High in Birmingham.

“Joseph went to Hoover High School in Bluff Park. That’s where we got the bluff and the brook for the band’s name.

“At Auburn, we started the band and did cover shows. They did well enough. Then, we decided to move back to Birmingham.

“We recorded a three-song acoustic EP with ‘Rush,’ ‘Straws’ and ‘A Little Change of Pace.’ It was a trio for a little bit and then we decided to add a bassist.

“It took some time to play a show fully with original shows. After a while, we decided to move to Nashville.

“When we moved to Nashville, we wanted to give it everything we had — while we were still 25 years old.

“We did six months of doing cover shows without a single person in the room.

“We were playing the Cambria Hotel. Jeffrey Hasson, a promoter, heard us and contacted our booking agent. That was our first distinct move forward.

“In 2018, we went on a big, three-month tour opening for Ripe, a really good band from Boston. We learned that we need to have passion and energy in our performance.

“In 2019, we recorded the ‘Halfway Up’ single with Micah. That’s when we began the cycle of tour, write and record and then tour some more.”

After nearly a decade of nonstop touring — earning 200M+ streams with fan favorites like “Halfway Up” and

“Everything Is Just a Mess” — the band pressed pause and regrouped in Nashville, meeting every morning to write and rehearse like they did in their early days at Auburn University.

Channeling the spirit of Creedence, Petty, and Eagles, “Werewolf” delivers loud, melodic, deeply human songs like the lead single “Super Bowl Sunday” alongside the highway-born “105” and the swaggering “Get By.”

Video link for The Brook & The Bluff – https://youtu.be/WBuSLatGCXI.

The show at Union Transfer on March 31, which has Cassandra Coleman as the opening act, will start at 8 p.m.

Tickets are $25.

Other upcoming shows at Union Transfer are Drain on March 27 and There, There on March 28.

“The Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein” is running now through April 19 at the Candlelight Theater (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware, candlelighttheatredelaware.org).

The show is a Mel Brooks Broadway musical based on the movie “Young Frankenstein,” a 1974 comedy film written by Mel Brooks and Gene Wilder.

Described by Brooks as his best film, it is a parody of the horror film genre — especially the 1931 Universal Pictures adaptation of Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein.”

After the success of the movie, which has been named to the “Top 50” lists of comedy films by a number of organizations, Brooks teamed with Thomas Meehan to write and produce a stage version of the show.

The show tells the story of Frederick Frankenstein, a New York doctor who is ashamed to be a Frankenstein and insists his name be pronounced “Fronkensteen.”

His grandfather Dr. Victor von Frankenstein, a mad scientist, passed away so the younger Frankenstein has to travel to Transylvania to settle the estate.

In Transylvania, Dr. Frankenstein becomes involved with a variety of zany characters including the hunchback Igor, the yodeling lab assistant Inga, the mysterious Frau Blücher and, of course, The Monster.

The Candlelight Theater is presenting “The Mel Brooks Musical Young Frankenstein” now through April 19. Tickets, which include a tasty dinner, are $77.50 for adults and $35 for children (ages 4-12).

This is the final weekend for “Twelfth Night” at People’s Light (39 Conestoga Road, Malvern, www.peopleslight.org).

The show is a brand-new spin on Shakespeare’s comedic love pentangle

A shipwreck, mistaken identities, and tangled desires set the stage for a new adaptation of Shakespeare’s sharp and subversive comedy.

Andrew Watring’s directorial debut at People’s Light sets the scene in a luxurious resort, a modern playground for the upper crust.

After Viola washes ashore and disguises herself to navigate this strange new world, she quickly finds herself caught in a dizzying love triangle.

As the resort’s eccentric inhabitants start to disrupt the order of things, the servants and the served collide in a riotous, romantic story of revelry and rebellion.

Show times this weekend are 7 p.m. om Friday, 2 and 7 p.m. on Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Ticket prices start at $64.

Uptown! Knauer Performing Arts Center (226 North High Street, West Chester, www.uptownwestchester.org) will host Mamma Mania! on March 27 and 28 and West Chester Dance Works 2026 Annual Spring Concert “in Pursuit.”

Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http://www.kennettflash.org) is hosting The Collingwood on March 20 and “Love You To: A Tribute to The Beatles” on March 21.

Jamey’s House of Music (32 South Lansdowne Avenue, Lansdowne, www.jameyshouseofmusic.com) will host Solomon Dub on March 27, Stew Cutler and Friends with special guest Jesse Loewy on March 28 and A.C. Steel & the Perpetrators on March 29.

The Kelly Center (4-6 East Eagle Road, Havertown, kellycenter.org) will host NuCoustix with The Jazzgrass Chamber Orchestra on March 28 and Kala Farnham on March 29.

The Colonial Theatre (227 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, thecolonialtheatre.com/events) will host “Brave Strangers – A Tribute to Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band” on March 28.

Steel City Coffeehouse and Brewery (203 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, www.steelcitybrews.com) will host Feelsgood with Mr. Fatty. Mile Zero and Teresa Marie on March 27.

The Elkton Music Hall (107 North Street, Elkton, Maryland, www.elktonmusichall.com) will present The Funsters on March 27 and Warped Tour Band with All The Blink Things & Dookie on March 28.

The Queen (500 North Market Street, Wilmington, www.thequeenwilmington.com) will present Obey Your Master on March 28.