A celebration honoring the Godfather of Soul stretched into the early morning hours Sunday in the form of a jam session at a downtown Augusta nightclub.

Coco Rubio, the owner of Soul Bar on Broad Street, said he invited members of James Brown's band, The Soul Generals, to partake in an informal jam session after daylong "homegoing" ceremonies Saturday for their deceased boss at James Brown Arena.

Mr. Brown died Dec. 25 of pneumonia and congestive heart failure.

"They played about two 45-minute sets," said Mr. Rubio, who, in 1995, named his Broad Street venue to honor Mr. Brown.

"We had a capacity crowd, with probably 400 people in and out throughout the night," he said.

Longtime Brown band guitarist Keith Jenkins said the jam session doubled as a healing session for band members.

"We got a chance to reflect and consider our future options," said Mr. Jenkins, a 12-year band member. The session attracted many former and current band members, background singers and dancers.

"We're not sure when we'll all get together again," Mr. Jenkins said.

Mr. Rubio said the idea for the jam session was presented by Mr. Jenkins and former Brown drummer Erik Hargrove.

Mr. Hargrove said he's confident the band will play on despite of Mr. Brown's death.

"I would hope they would continue to stay together," he said.

At his father's public funeral, Daryl Brown, a guitarist in the band, urged the musicians to remain united.

He said the legacy was not solely on him, but for the entire group to continue advancing on the successful groundwork laid by his father.

Mr. Jenkins said the band can continue working without a front-singer, as long as the business aspects are intact.

From a club owner's perspective, Mr. Rubio said the jam session proves the band has a lasting fan base.

"It's the tightest band in history. People would continue to pay to see them," he said.

Mr. Rubio's patrons at the post-memorial service jam session included people from the Netherlands, Germany and Japan.

Reach Timothy Cox at (706) 823-3217 or tim.cox@augustachronicle.com.