James Holvay has recorded his first new music in 40 years after writing hits for The Buckinghams and fronting his own rock ‘n’ roll bands in the 1960s (above right). (Courtesy of jamesholvay.com)

Brookfield native and Lyons Township High School graduate James Holvay, who wrote the 1967 chart-topping hit “Kind of a Drag” and others for The Buckinghams before fronting and playing guitar in the rhythm and blues show band The Mob through the late 1960s and 1970s, will release a new five-song EP on April 16.

Titled “Sweet Soul Song,” the EP is a nod to the horn-drenched soul music of late 1960s Chicago.

“The collection is a vibrant tip of the hat to the music Holvay witnessed and then played in during its 1960s flowering, when such hometown stars as Curtis Mayfield, Major Lance and Gene Chandler ruled the R&B roost in America,” says a press release sent March 20 announcing the release of the EP and the debut of the single “Working On It.”

After The Mob broke up in 1980, Holvay left the music business, headed to California and commenced a long career as a sales rep, selling copiers and mailing equipment. In 2012, Lyons Township High School inducted Holvay into its Hall of Fame, and 40 years after leaving the music business, at the age of 75, he went back into the studio to record “Sweet Soul Song.”

You can hear “Working On It” through Holvay’s YouTube channel or by visiting his website, jamesholvay.com.