If it’s “Dancing Queen,” “Superstition” or “Funky Cold Medina” that propels you out to the hardwood, then Casablanca Orchestra (CBO) is your “soul” salvation. While there are many bands that rock the south metro area in clubs on the weekends, there probably isn’t one that’s as intimately intertwined with the rise of rockin’ in the suburbs than CBO.

When Bogart’s Place in Apple Valley took its current name in 1992, the nightclub picked Carlotta and the Kool-lots to be its house band under the condition that it change its moniker. Taking a cue from Humphrey Bogart’s most famous role, the group, upon adding two more horn players, became Casablanca Orchestra. CBO was the house band at Bogart’s for nearly two years, before it started to branch out in its gigging.

In the summer of 1995, the band and Gatlin’s Music City, formerly at the Mall of America, invented a weekly ’70s dance party, which took the band in a new direction. With costume changes and high-energy hits from the ’70s, CBO had tapped into a thirst for music to move closet American Bandstand dancers.

Since that time, CBO has expanded its repertoire to hits from the ’70s, ’80s and ’90s, and the set list has grown over the years to include hundreds of songs and everything from the swingin’ the ’40s to hits of the current decade. Local ties CBO is not only tied to the south metro through its frequent shows at local clubs, but two of its members live here. Guitarist Patrick Thorsteinson, who grew up in Northfield, has lived in Eagan and then Farmington since 1999.