Steamboat Springs — All Garett Dutton wanted was to make one record.

And almost 20 years ago, while playing a weekly gig for $125 at an Irish pub in Boston, Dutton felt that G. Love and Special Sauce had what it took to get there.

His touring bus may have looked out of place in the small Dewey Beach parking lot, and his road crew may have been taken aback by The Starboard’s intimate environment and laid back attitude, but there was no doubt that G. Love was exactly where he belonged when he returned to perform at The Starboard June 30.

G. Love’s spirit, his classic rhythm and blues, guitar, vocals and harmonica rang out in the iconic beach haunt where he has performed annually since 2006. With musical roots embedded in folk music, the blues and Bob Dylan, G. Love and the intimate atmosphere of The Starboard create a perfect fit.

Mixing hip-hop, funk, blues, reggae and any number of other influences to the stage, G. Love (Garrett Dutton III) and band Special Sauce will be playing the House of Blues Feb. 4.

Back from their recent Australian tour where they showcased their Australian release Long Way Down, Philadelphia’s G. Love and Special Sauce are back playing for their fans stateside. The 40-city tour will feature songs from their 2008 release Superhero Brother along with other favorites from their 11-album, 14-year repertoire and hopefully some new songs to boot.

Q: Where did you find the funk heard in your music?
A: I got it from two sides. The first was the pursuit of playing guitar and learning the Delta blues. The other is from growing up listening to hip-hop, and one day they both collided. My drummer didn’t grow up listening to hip-hop. He grew up playing the stuff hip-hop samples like the Meters and James Brown. Hip-hop was looped off those kinds of records. He would know where I and the music were coming from, and immediately we had a cohesive sound based around that.

What started out as a hobby turned into a 16-year professional career for the bluesy hip-hop musician G. Love.
Garrett Dutton, better known to fans as G. Love, took guitar lessons when he was 8 years old. He continued to take lessons until 15, and a year later took to the streets of his hometown Philadelphia and started playing.
“When I was 16, I started playing on the street, and at that time I realized I could make some money doing that,” he said. “I got change in my case and I got $20 and I said, ‘Holy (expletive), I can make some money doing that.’ ... It was an empowering thing.”

It seems no one deserves a warm Santa Barbara welcome this weekend more than G.Love. Since
having to cancel his September 2008 stop at the Bowl due to an illness in his headliner’s camp,
the Philly-raised singer-songwriter has been touring relentlessly in support of his latest release,
Superhero Brother. Now back on the road again, G.Love & Special Sauce are stopping by
Saturda’s installment of the West Beach Music Festival, directly before Ben Harper and
Relentless7 close out the night. The Indy’s Shannon Kelley recently caughy up with the singer
via phone to discuss the fest, the fans, and his longstanding ties to Santa Barbara.