Road Hogs bassist and vocalist Toby Gray reports that he and his bandmates don’t ride motorcycles. “We drive very large vehicles, like Humvees and that sort of thing,” he says.

But the Santa Cruz-based R&B and rock outfit does have a connection to the motor biking world. Back in the early ‘90s, the Road Hogs started playing parties thrown by the Ghost Mountain Riders, a motorcycle gang based in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

According to Gray, the shindigs were impressive affairs that included female dancers. “Anyone who can afford a Harley is pretty well off, so the parties are quite nice,” he says.

In the group’s early days, the Road Hogs played covers  of rockabilly and swing classics. But by 2000, the Hogs had a batch of originals, which they recorded on their release >>Take You There. The CD was primarily their own material and included Gray’s “Love At 1st Sight,” a dance-oriented R&B number showcasing the bassist’s nimble work.

Following gigs opening for bands like Blue Oyster Cult and War at the Catalyst, the band recorded >>Live at Moe’s, a CD that found the band backing away from its own work. It featured only one original track, along with covers of the Ohio Players’ “Fire” and Herbie Hancock’s “Chameleon.”

These days, Gray admits that the Hogs play mostly other artists’ songs at their live shows. “The covers go over so much better,” he says. “The quickest way to clear a dance floor is to say: ‘Here’s a tune we wrote.’ ”

Even though the band only pulls out three or so originals during its live runs, Gray says the band has a surplus of their own material. Currently, the Road Hogs are recording and reworking more than 30 songs that they have written over the past 15 years. He describes the sound as a cross between Sonia Dada and the Subdudes.

One that the bassist is particularly excited about is a ballad titled “Never Gonna Say Goodbye,” which he says features Beach Boys-like harmonies over a clunky drum machine. “That’s the gem I’m looking to polish up,” he says.

Gray admits that a lot of the songs will probably make it onto CDs but not the stage. “A lot of this new material we may never play live,” he says.

Just a year ago, the Road Hogs brought vocalist Cindy Edwards into the group. Previously. Edwards was a member of the Los Angeles country rock outfit Rank Strangers. Her work with the group got her nominated for a Grammy back in 1977.

Gray says the addition of Edwards has allowed the group to cover songs with more complicated vocal parts during their performances. The bassist says the band has been into Motown material lately and just learned Janis Joplin’s “Piece of My Heart.”

“I get a kick out of playing that,” he says. “It’s just fun to play. We play it no-holds-barred.”  

THE ROAD HOGS perform on Friday, April 27, 9pm at Sly McFly’s, 700 Cannery Row, Monterey. 649-8050