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When Chris and Candi are away, the rest of the boys are gonna play.

That's the recipe for Kings County Gumbo -- a little Avenue C Band, add a singer/guitarist of some renown, subtract husband-and-wife duo Chris and Candi Kagay and serve -- a rollicking, funky brew of blues and rock and anything else the boys might come up with.

"We're basically the rhythm section of Avenue C, with Russ Fuquay on guitar and vocals," Robert Higginbotham told The Daily Times this week. "I really enjoy playing with John (Stephens, bassist for Avenue C/Kings County Gumbo) and my son (James "Animal" Higginbotham, drummer for both bands) -- I mean, I'm playing with my son on the drums, so it doesn't get any better than that. And Russ is just a fabulous guitar player. So any evenings when Chris and Candi are booked doing other things, we get to take this band out, and I get to play with these great folks. They're a trip."

Higginbotham is a familiar fixture on the local music scene, having played for years with the band Groove Salad, which hosted the open-mic blues jam at Brackins Blues Bar for five years. These days, when he's not playing lead guitar for Avenue C, he's stirring up a pot of Kings County Gumbo, named after the New York county that includes Brooklyn -- from which he came and where his son was born.

His bandmates bring more than their share of experience to the table as well -- Fuquay, originally from Texas, also plays and works at the Joy of Music School in Knoxville; Stephens, who sings lead, plays solo and was a member of the Spank Dog Blues Revue; and the younger Higginbotham, plays with local funk-rock outfit Soulfinger, as well as with local musician Rey Pineda.

Although it may seem like the father-son relationship may lend itself to tension within the band, nothing could be further from the truth, Higginbotham added.

"We don't butt heads very often -- besides, he's taller than me, so it's not a good idea," Higginbotham said with a laugh. "No, seriously -- it's always wonderful, and I have nothing but pride for him. He's worked really hard, and he's come a really long way, especially when you talk to people who have heard him play over the last few years. To be a witness to that and be a part of that is just awesome."

Because of the cumulative experience of the band members, Kings County Gumbo can tackle more eclectic material -- as the guys did during a recent set at Two Doors Down in Maryville, when they arranged an entire set of covers by rocker Lenny Kravitz for bar co-owner Lisa Breazeale. Tonight's show at Waterfront in Maryville might include a few Kravitz tunes, Higginbotham said, or the guys might decide to pull out some old Al Green covers.

"It's a wonderful challenge being a part of this band, and I really respect Russ as a fabulous guitar player," Higginbotham said. "We can do some things in this band that we don't do in Avenue C. It's a different kind of energy, and we're not playing the same material at all. When we're playing with Avenue C, our job is to back up Candi; when we're doing Kings County Gumbo, our job is to back up John.

"To do that, we do more material that plays to his voice -- more songs in the funk, old-school kind of vein. We also do that in Avenue C, but in that band, we do more pop kinds of tunes. Both bands are geared toward people having a good time and dancing, and this is just another good way of going about it."