The Royal Southern Brotherhood formed in 2010 when Cyril Neville (yes, one of the legendary Neville Brothers) got together with Devon Allman (son of Gregg) to talk about forming a new blues, rock, soul, jam band. Along with Mike Zito, Charlie Wooton and Yonrico Scott, the band exploded on the blues scene, immediately becoming one of the most sought after headliners in the genre.

The band has released two albums including this years Heartsoulblood, which picked up a nomination from the Blues Music Awards this week as best Blues Rock album of the year. Thursday night, the Heartsoulblood tour rolled into the Hard Rock Casino and Hotel in Sioux City, Iowa for a sold out show that left the capacity crowd standing and dancing with a set that spanned every genre they're known for and moved into uncharted territory.

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Earlier this year, founder Mike Zito left to focus on his solo career. He was replaced by Bart Walker (on the right in the picture above with Devon Allman and Charlie Wooton) Walker is a frontman from his own band that finished second at the International Blues Challenge just a few years ago and is a fantastic compliment to the talented band. In fact, if you just look at the 'pedigrees' of all the members, you'd expect the band to be good. But in concert, they're even better.

All the members have sustained and thrived with their solo bands in addition to their work within the band, reminding me of the way Devon's Pops band, The Allman Brothers, have been able to function all these years. Devon's solo record, Ragged & Dirty, has hit #1 on the roots charts, while Cyril's solo album, Magic Honey, also has garnered critical praise.

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The band took us through a tight 90 minute set that featured originals from their two albums in addition to several songs from Allman, Neville and Walker's solo bands. The encore that had the crowd on their feet, dancing and singing along, was two classic covers: The Allman Brothers 'One Way Out' and the Rolling Stones' "Gimme Shelter".

Allman has announced that he will be leaving the band after they play the Wanee Festival this spring. His replacement? Another southern blues rock legacy: Tyrone Vaughan. Son of Jimmie and nephew of Stevie Ray. If you get the opportunity to see The Royal Southern Brotherhood, do it. No matter what genre of music you're a fan of, they'll likely play it. What an absolutely smokin' band and one of my favorite shows of 2014.

The Hard Rock Casino is continuing the great shows with Sena Ehrhardt Band Thursday December 18th. The Kinsey Report on Christmas night. JazzFest 2014 'star' Samantha Fish will start 2015 off on January 1 at the Hard Rock, and Devon Allman will have his solo band back in January as well! Get the lineup and ticket info at the Hard Rock link above. They're planning 200 nights of entertainment every year, so there's something for everyone!

Here's a little taste of what's on tap over the next month at the Hard Rock:

 

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