REMEMBERING NICK DANIELS III
July 2, 1955 – April 26, 2024
“Nick Daniels III was born in New Orleans. He has a soulful voice and an undeniably funky bass playing style… Nick started playing drums in the fourth grade. By his mid-teens, he was the drummer and conga player for a local New Orleans group that backed up The Soul Impressions. After leaving his first band, Nick joined Tavasco as a bass player… Since that time, Nick has played bass for the Uptown All-Stars, The Neville Brothers (9 years), Zachary Richard, the Wild Magnolia Indians, and Allen Toussaint. In 2006, Nick joined the currently popular band, Dumpstaphunk…” https://blues.gr/profiles/blogs/q-a-with-native-new-orleanian-musician-nick-daniels-iii
Sadly, Nick’s life came to an end on April 26, 2024, after a short battle with Multiple Myeloma, a type of cancer that forms in the white blood cells. For our tribute to Nick, we’re going to look at some of the recordings he made. (A LOT of information for this tribute was found at Discogs.com.)
1983 – Nick co-composed the song “The Time Is Right” with Ivan Neville and the late Gerald Tillman. The song was a staple in early Neville brothers shows and was included on Rufus’s “Seal In Red” LP https://youtu.be/i1hiyPV56Lo
1984 – Nick played bass on Louisiana Purchase’s self-titled LP.
1986 – He co-authored and contributed vocals and synthesizers to Leo Nocentelli’s “We Put The Rock In Your Roll” / “Buckwheat” 45 https://youtu.be/2FgTOFJprIk
1987 – The Neville Brothers’ LP, “Live At Tipitina’s Vol 2” was a live recording that required a lot of studio doctoring to make it releasable. Nick was NOT a participant in the actual live recording but was involved with the after-the-fact studio overdubbing, adding backing vocals.
1991 – The song “House on a Hill” was included as a bonus track on European pressings of Aaron Neville’s “Warm Your Heart” LP. Musicians on the track are: Aaron Neville (vocals); Carlos Vega (drums); Ivan Neville (keyboards, synthesizer); Nick Daniels (bass) https://youtu.be/CS6Lbgio7X4
1992 – Nick contributed “additional instrumentation” to Kool G. Rap & DJ Polo’s “Train Robbery” (1992) EXPLICIT LANGUAGE WARNING!!! https://youtu.be/kFF1Vuh7FY4
1992 – I’m a long-time fan of “Blueswave” https://youtu.be/mbr3YFtJEhM from Dumpstaphunk’s 2013 LP, “Dirty Word.” I never realized that Nick had written that one. I also never made the connection that Maria Muldaur had included a recording of that song 21 years earlier on her “Louisiana Love Call” LP. (Her recording featured contributions from ex-Neville Brothers band members Chris Severin (bass) and Herman Ernest III (drums.) https://youtu.be/BDRnPrwN5KI
1994 – He provided backing vocals on Ivan Neville’s “Stay What You Are” (from his 1994 “Thanks” LP. https://youtu.be/FdyPu6nFmXw . On January, 8, 2014, Ivan and Nick performed an acoustic version of the song during Jam Cruise 12. https://youtu.be/ca1V-paYavo
1994 – Nick was a one-time member of Cyril Neville’s Uptown All Stars, so it makes sense that he would participate on Cyril’s solo LPs. He played bass on that band’s debut LP, “The Fire This Time”: “Genocide” https://youtu.be/XN2bl-daXhI ; “Congo Square” https://youtu.be/gM_XioOqRLU ; and “Hearts Desire” https://youtu.be/8E7mM4_pVqw
1995 – 1995 – Nick provided backing vocals on four tracks on Anders Osborne’s LP, “Which Way To Here”: “Pleasin’ You” https://youtu.be/AyE48ep8LO4 ; “What’s Going On Here (Big Lies)” https://youtu.be/hZcLZx4XeQk ; “Brother, Brother” https://youtu.be/lgRmX9N55b4 ; “Nothin’ On” https://youtu.be/TKNlUq1Lxb8
1995 – Nick contributed backing vocals to the song “Gotta Have Some Gospel” on Larry Garner’s “Baton Rouge” LP from 1995.
1995 – In the mid-1990s, P-Vine Records in Japan released a series of various artists discs, which focused on songs by notable bass players. On the disc “Deep ‘N’ Juicy” from 1995, Nick contributed a track on which he played bass, guitar, keyboards and programmed the drum machines. (The only other player on the track was Kevin Walsh, who was also on Leo Nocentelli’s “Live in San Francisco” LP. Walsh contributed organ to Nick’s solo track.) Sadly, I cannot find this track (“We Are Americans”) online anyplace. Maybe one of our Japanese friends has a copy???
1995 – Nick played bass on Tim Tobias’s “Garden of Dreams” (from his 1995 LP, “Mister Cat.” https://youtu.be/n1MS4Sgs8ss?si=WntkCJcDcdzFkiPv&t=1080
1996 – Nick co-wrote the song “Over a Million Strong” with Cyril Neville (from “Get On The Bus – Music From And Inspired By The Motion Picture” soundtrack LP. https://youtu.be/NrLMEwjJKNs
1996 – On August 22, 1996, The Jazz Crusaders released their “Louisiana Hot Sauce” LP. One track on the disc (“Catfish Mardi Gras”) features contributions from: Jon Cleary (keyboards); Nick Daniels (bass); and Willie Green (drums.) https://youtu.be/vC_lJ0yFVFE
1997 – Leo Nocentelli released his “Live in San Francisco” LP, featuring Zig Modeliste on drums/vocals, Nick Daniels III on bass/vocals, and Kevin Walsh on keyboards. The album is comprised of Meters tracks, a couple new tracks, and one cover (“Que Sera Sera,” which is sung by Nick.) You can listen to that track here: https://youtu.be/gdYxNlfgTuU
1998 – Nick co-wrote and sang on two tracks on Funky Derrick’s “Boogie Dawn” LP: “Bang Liberation” https://youtu.be/-6N-vhapRj4 and “Keep It Up” https://youtu.be/vbxE8XmWx68
1998 – Since Nick was a member of the Neville Brothers band at the time, he can be heard singing and playing bass on the Nevilles’ live recording of “Yelllow Moon” on “Big Blues Extravaganza!: The Best Of Austin City Limits.” A video of that performance can be seen at: https://youtu.be/gvMDrUBe8tY
1999 – Nick co-wrote the song “Real Funk” (along with Art Neville, Earl Smith, and Eric Kolb) from the Neville Brothers “Valence Street” LP. https://youtu.be/WFirnPImq5M
1999 – Earl Smith and Nick provide backing vocals on Jon Cleary’s “Help Me Somebody” (from his 1999 LP, “Moonburn.”) https://youtu.be/juJ3heooxIY
2000 – Nick and Earl Smith contributed vocals to Shane Theriot’s “Trashy” (from his “Highway 90” LP) https://youtu.be/AzCkvgnD_F8
2000 – Nick contributed bass and vocals to four tracks on Joseph Modeliste’s “Zigaboo.com” LP. “Shake What You Got” https://youtu.be/djNHKW7C29o ; “Sing Me A Song” https://youtu.be/Gvg1xAg2qQ0 ; “Standing In Your Stuff” https://youtu.be/tWU969GfzuQ ; “Gonna Have A Party” https://youtu.be/v9FxcFGnx90
2000 – Nick contributed backing vocals to George Porter, Jr. And Runnin’ Pardners’ “Funk ‘N’ Go Nuts” LP.
2001 – Nick and Big Chief Monk Boudreaux share vocals on two songs on the Forgotten Souls Brass Band’s 2001 LP, “Don’t Forget ‘Em”… the disc’s title track and “Indian Red.”
2002 – He contributed bass to Troy Andrews’s “Trombone Shorty’s Swingin’ Gate” LP.
2002 – Thanks to Billy Iuso for reaching out and letting me know that Nick played and sang on this excellent cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Jesus Children of America!” (from Brides of Jesus’s “Saints & Sinners” LP.) https://youtu.be/SzwvAcaT6fI
2003 – Nick played guitar on Russell Batiste Jr. & the Orkestra From Da Hood’s “The Clinic.”
2004 – Nick provided backing vocals on the song “Sing” on Bobby Charles’s “Last Train To Memphis” LP.
2004 – Nick (along with Raymond Weber and Vasti Jackson) provided backing on 11 of the 12 tracks on Henry Butler’s “Homeland” LP.) “Jump To The Music” https://youtu.be/xslwTWJM5BQ , “Henry’s Boogie” https://youtu.be/pRYY0bm-DGE , “The Way We Loved,” “Homeland,” “Hey Little Girl,” “Casino,” “Some Iko,” “The Game Band Strut,” “I Stand Accused,” “OS7.0,” “You Can’t Beat My Love”
2005 – The “Our New Orleans 2005, A Benefit Album” compilation included a recording by the Wild Magnolias of Brother John Is Gone / Herc-Jolly-John https://youtu.be/Dabu_6hDjSA featuring Willie Green (drms), Makune Fukuda (guitar) and Nick as bass player and musical director.
2005 – A live performance by the Neville Brothers of “Rivers Of Babylon” can be heard on the “KGSR Broadcasts Vol. 13” CD. In addition to the four Brothers, Ivan and Nick (on bass) can be heard on this recording.
2006 – This album (“Once In A Lifetime”) by NOLA funk band, Family Underground was recorded in the late 70s, but remained unissued until 2006. Willie Green (drums and percussion), Earl Smith (backing vocals) and Nick Daniels (bass, backing vocals) contributed to five songs on the album: “I Don’t Know Why” https://youtu.be/9fDZiUV20U4 ; “Dr. Music” https://youtu.be/46E6-Rkzsmg ; “For The Love Of Disco” https://youtu.be/W5Mq1FAoRXo ; “All We Need Is Love” https://youtu.be/M894XqVm-14 ; “There Must Be An Answer” https://youtu.be/m5NMZ32c1lo
2008 – Nick sings lead on two tracks on Big Sam’s Funky Nation’s “Peace, Love & Understanding” LP from 2008. “We Got It” https://youtu.be/lNLUxb2BaC0 and “Feelin’” https://youtu.be/Fb39ObJy70U
2009 – Nick performs on five cuts on Renard Poché’s “4u 4me” LP: “I Got Some Funk 4 U, Pt. 1,” “We Are The People,” “Feel It,” “Do You Believe,” and “4u / 4me.” The entire album can be found on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/album/1dmcUk2G3JyPDZ2qIWIScP
2011 – Nick played and sang on “Impatient Ain’t Ya” from Billy Iuso’s “Trippin’” LP. (Thanks to Billy for making me aware of this!) https://youtu.be/q5cQN_6WKks
2013 – Nick sings the song “We Gonna Stank You Down” on Terence Higgins & Swampgrease’s “Rage ’til Sunrise” LP
2015 – Nick sings “Lay Away” on Nigel Hall’s “Ladies & Gentlemen… Nigel Hall” LP. (Ivan plays organ and provides backing vocals on the same track.) https://youtu.be/mTo0ctKGBfs
2015 – Nick sings and plays bass on Roseland Hunters’s “This Time” LP
2020 – Tavasco 504 (Nick, Earl Smith and James T. Harris, Jr.) released the album “Be Yourself.” https://www.breakthrumediamagazine.com/BandTavasco504_MarApr_2021.pdf
2022 – Nick sings on “Everything’s Gonna Be Alright” on Lettuce’s “Unify” LP https://youtu.be/ND5spBdJ9yY
2022 – The Groove Krewe featuring Nick Daniels III’s “Run to Daylight” was released with Nick as the front man of the group! “Run to Daylight” https://youtu.be/z127stMxdlg ; “That’s New Orleans” https://youtu.be/NYMgrW4y3Us ; “Have a Party” https://youtu.be/xftz90D6KCM ; “In the Groove Zone” https://youtu.be/qBM3IBs4LTE ; “Reach Out” https://youtu.be/STftmWEDCq4 ; “I’m Gonna Prove My Love” https://youtu.be/inYXHG9sm2k ; “Where Love Lies” https://youtu.be/HMy4AVr0oP8 ; “Sweet Situation” https://youtu.be/URCA_5OB3Pg ; “Where Ya at in Life?” https://youtu.be/M4vQeWwfZ6I ; “Raising Cane on the Bayou” https://youtu.be/DfQcl4SHKGE
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