Mandrill

Formed around 3 brothers, Louis ‘Sweet Lou’ Wilson (trumpet, congas and vocals), Dr Ric Wilson (sax) and Carlos ‘Mad Dog’ Wilson (trombone, flute, guitar and vocals) along with Claude ‘Coffee’ Cave (keyboard / vibes), Omar Mesa (guitar), Charlie Padro (drums) and Fudgie Kae (bass). They came from Brooklyn but the group would later settle in Philadelphia and played a heavy mix of rock, funk and salsa, a reflection of their mixed heritage. Six months after forming they landed a major label deal and their first album went top 30 in the US. They went on to release many more albums including Mandrilland, Mandrill Is and Beast From The East.