Founding drummer Roger Earl still loves rocking with Foghat, which will perform Feb. 5 at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center as part of the Twang & Bang Tour. Courtesy photo

Fifty-plus years after helping form the British band Foghat, drummer Roger Earl is still rocking at the age of 79.

Famous for hits like “Slow Ride” and “Fool for the City,” Earl and Foghat will perform Feb. 5 at the Maui Arts & Cultural Center as part of their Twang & Bang Tour.

“I’m one of those fortunate few who gets to earn a living with something I love doing,” said Earl. “I play in a great band. We’re still making records. We had a new album two years ago that went to No. 1 on the Billboard Blues Chart, and a couple of the singles charted in various parts of the world.”

Hailed for keeping classic rock alive, Foghat’s current lineup features Earl, long-time guitarist Bryan Bassett, bassist Rodney O’Quinn and lead vocalist and guitarist Scott Holt, who spent years touring with Buddy Guy.

Formed in London in 1971, Foghat fused raw British blues with boogie rock, highlighted by distinctive slide guitar, with three of the members, including Earl, previously playing in the popular Savoy Brown blues band.

In an interview, ZZ Top’s Billy Gibbons reported: “It’s a well-known reality that it was the British guys like Foghat who unexpectedly wound up rescuing an art form that ran the risk of evaporating into the abyss.”

Before playing with Savoy Brown, Earl had auditioned for Jimi Hendrix. “Jimi’s manager called me up and said, ‘Have you heard of Jimi Hendrix?'” Earl recalled. “Everybody was talking about him back then. He said, ‘Would you like to audition?’

“All these wannabe drummers were lined up outside this club, and Jimi came up to me and started talking to me about some songs he’d written the night before. When he started playing, I didn’t have a clue. I played for nearly 40 minutes with him, and I got to play with Jimi a couple of times after that.”

When they formed Foghat, did they have a particular vision?

“Anything other than three chords has to be viewed with a certain amount of suspicion,” Earl said.

Foghat hit big with their platinum-selling fifth studio album, “Fool for the City,” which featured the band’s signature song, “Slow Ride.” The album cover showed Earl sitting on a box, “fishing” down a New York City manhole.

“Right from the beginning, we played and arranged songs how we wanted to,” he noted.

“There was always that blues and rock and roll influence from myself, Dave (Peverett) and Rod (Price). Dave was the main writer, and Rod Price, playing lead and slide, put a lot of magic on it. Rod was an absolutely brilliant guitar player.”

In 2010, Foghat paid tribute to the blues legends that influenced them. The Rolling Stones and Aerosmith released similar blues homages a few years ago, but neither topped Foghat for sheer power. “We did some classics and put the hat on them,” Earl said.

Songs included Elmore James’ classic “Shake Your Moneymaker” and Willie Dixon’s “Rollin’ & Tumblin’.”

“The original songs are just as good as the blues covers,” praised Goldmine Magazine.

“‘Last Train Home’ may be the best song on the album. With a riff that would make Joe Perry envious, the song rides like a freight train tempting you to jump aboard. The lead guitar of Bryan Bassett is outstanding on the disc, pure electricity in every note.”

Their most recent album, “Sonic Mojo” in 2023, was also lauded. Rock Cellar Magazine called it “The English rock band’s finest in over 20 years.”

Over the decades, some of Earl’s favorite memories have been meeting and hanging out with America’s blues legends.

“I’ve met a number of my musical heroes,” he said. “I met Willie Dixon and Muddy Waters. My favorite album was ‘Muddy Waters at Newport 1960.’ Foghat did a tribute to the blues in Manhattan. Muddy was there, John Lee Hooker, Johnny Winter, Paul Butterfield and Eddie Kirkland. We were basically the house band.”

Having recorded songs by Dixon, Earl was delighted when the legend showed up at one of their Chicago concerts. “Willie Dixon wrote our first hit, ‘I Just Want to Make Love to You.’ It was also a hit single off the live album (the multi-platinum “Foghat Live”). He invited us to his house to have dinner. Without Willie Dixon, there would be no rock and roll.”

Renowned for their extended jamming in concert, Earl said, “We’ve got a huge inventory of music to pick from, and that’s always exciting. I love my job.”

Foghat will play at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 5 at the MACC’s Castle Theater. A dance floor will be available for those with orchestra-level tickets. Tickets are $37 to $77 with a limited number of preferred seating available for $137 at www.mauiarts.org.