Founded in 1995 by former Rolling Stones bassist Bill Wyman, the Rhythm Kings boast an impressive sweep of credentials. From the early 1960s there's Albert Lee's work with Gene Pitney and Wyman's startup with the Stones, then Gary Brooker's later '60s work with Procol Harum, all the way through to the '90s with Beverly Skeete's vocals for the Orb and Whitney Houston.

Given that kind of experience, it's no surprise that the Rhythm Kings have built a solid reputation as the Cadillac of "old time" rock 'n' roll road shows. And this year there's a bonus: Stax veteran Eddie Floyd has joined the group.

"That's the weird part about it," Floyd says with a laugh when asked if the band needed to make any adjustments for his style. "You know what? They are closer to where I've been for years."

Exactly where Floyd has been over the years is at the very foundation of the music that swept the world. Floyd's '50s recordings with his Detroit group the Falcons included original members of the Supremes, Wilson ("Midnight Hour") Pickett and Sir Mack ("Mustang Sally") Rice. So he is not exaggerating a bit when he says, "We have been active in this music ever since the first day — and we haven't stopped yet." Floyd, who celebrated his 70th birthday this summer, punctuates "yet" with an easy laugh before adding. "Knock on wood."

That was the title of Floyd's first big '60s Stax hit, which landed him solidly in the R&B canon. The cover of Floyd's first solo album portrays him in a business suit pounding on a tree with a sledgehammer, and a better illustration of the resolve he brought to his work at Stax would be hard to find. He was not only a recording artist but also worked as a producer and a songwriter as well. With collaborators such as Steve Cropper, Floyd put together a string of hits for himself that included "Raise Your Hand" and "Love Is a Doggone Good Thing." Although there was a lull during the disco years of the '70s, in the late '80s Floyd started appearing as a guest on Blues Brothers tours, which finally led to his appearance in the Blues Brothers 2000 film.

With his Detroit credentials, Floyd could have gone with the smooth-sounding Motown crew. Instead fate led him to the harder-rocking, Memphis-based Stax label. "I liked both of the sounds, and I feel like I've contributed to both," he says. Floyd's openness extends to the unabashed emulation of American R&B by '60s British Invasion rockers, in particular the Rolling Stones.

"Hey, we thought it was kinda neat," Floyd says with a chuckle. "It was sort of an exchange thing, the way I felt. You know, with guys from England coming to the U.S. and then we began to go over there."

Opening for the Rhythm Kings will be a Czech '60s reaction to the British Invasion known these days as Matadors Memory. The original Matadors covered their fair share of R&B classics prior to the 1968 Russian invasion, when they were one of the Czech Republic's most popular blues-rock groups.

Certainly the high point of the Rhythm Kings show will be when Floyd takes the microphone. He says that UK–U.S. relations could hardly be more easygoing in the band.