Sammy Rae and The Friends radiate positivity and light at Roadrunner

“Now more than ever, I want you to go out there and put a smile on someone’s face,” Samantha Bowers sang at the end of her show. “I want you to tell someone you want to be friends with them.”

Bowers is the lead singer of Sammy Rae & The Friends, a classic rock, folk and funk band from Brooklyn. His goofy and deeply talented friends are C-Bass Chiriboga (drums), Debbie Tjong (keyboards), James Quinlan (bass), Will Leet (guitar), Max Zooi (tenor saxophone and synths), and Kellon Reese (alto saxophone). Their message has always been to take care of the people around you and to love each other and yourself.

Sammy Rae & The Friends brought that joy and vibrancy to Roadrunner on November 15 for the first of two shows closing out their Something for Everyone The Album Tour. The first disc promises songs for all types of listeners with captivating ballads and disco party tracks.

A soft blue glow turned white as a bright spotlight fell on Bowers. She kicked off the show with “Thieves,” a track all about getting exactly what you want. It started with the smoky energy of a jazz club and exploded into powerful rock.

Bowers’ smooth, effortless runs were punctuated by soulful grunts. She played along with her songs all night, finding new harmonies and vocal swings and taking her time against the tempo.

“Boston oh my God! Damn, we’re back at the Roadrunner,” she exclaimed. The group stopped there last September Camp: the tour. They set up the stage to look like a forest with leaves wrapped around the mic stands and a tent. Bowers even wore a park ranger outfit.

The leader of the group felt more adult this time, while retaining her childish wonder and joy of life. She wore black pants and a white silk crop top. Pearls set down her mic stand and a small lounge was placed off to the side – she often used it to admire her friends as they played solos.

Before diving deeper into their repertoire, Bowers told the audience to be kind to themselves and the people around them. And whatever energy the crowd gave them, the band returned it immediately.

Sammy Rae & The Friends launch into “The Feeling” from their 2018 EP The good life.

“Oh! It’s not worth it!/ Being hurt by love!/ And is it worth it/ Honey, being hurt by love?/ Is it worth it? / Being hurt, singing lalala-ost in the Feeling now! Bowers sang, grooving around the stage She showed impressive leaps in vocal range as she wondered if falling in love was worth losing Zooi. and Reese had a lively saxophone conversation at the front of the stage, which had Bowers and the audience shaking their heads in awe.

“Radical joy is resistance and you are part of it tonight,” Bowers said, referring to recent election news. The group promised that the night would be a refuge for everyone to be themselves and leave all pain and anger at the door.

Bowers welcomed Berklee’s Nebulous Quartet to the stage for “Jackie Onassis,” my favorite Sammy Rae & The Friends song. I spoke to Bowers last fall and she told me the song was about women finding strength in their own identity.

“This song is a love letter to the feminine,” she said. “It’s partly about coming of age and my first love, but more than that, it’s just a story about the powerful women who surrounded me when I was young, teaching me the power of my own femininity and my own femininity and teaching me that there is no one way to be a woman and that you can find the power within yourself.

She likens queer romance and feminine vigor to former First Lady Jackie Onassis with her booming saxophones and powerful strings.

“She behaves, she sings/ Oh, ah, woah, ah, woah, ah/ She’s the first lady/ To accompany me all night long, I sing/ Oh, ah, woah, ah, woah, ah” , Bowers sings.

A rainbow of light swirled around the stage as Bowers indulged in new, incredibly free yet controlled vocal freedoms.

Bowers sat down at the piano for the stunning ballad “I Get It Now.” The song began with a piano soaring towards the woodwinds and strings in a magical construct. The cinematic track enveloped the audience in the hazy feeling of all-consuming love.

The acoustic-oriented “David” reflected on male trauma and not having space to feel, and “Call Ya Back” used non-traditional instruments like water bottles.

Sammy Rae & The Friends played a mashup of some of their old favorites – “Kick It to Me,” “Talk It Up,” and “Good Life.” The crowd was jumping and swaying to the energetic tunes.

Bowers reflected on the importance of Boston early in the band’s career. She remembers their first tours when they could only afford to play in their hometown and Beantown.

“Boston is the kind of city that feels like home,” she said. “We love you and we have loved you from the very beginning.”

Setlist

• Coming home song
• Friends intro/thieves
• The feeling
• We did it
• Jackie Onassis
• Cool-Doug, at night
• No rule book
• I understand now
• David
• Remember
• Good Times Tavern
• Luck of the draw
• Kick me/Talk about it/Have a good life
• State Song
• Hold the line (Toto cover)