Dr. John is among the core group of New Orleans musicians who’ve brought renewed purpose to their work in the last five years. His last release, City That Care Forgot, was a masterpiece of post-Katrina commentary. Tribal is more personal, with a spectacular performance from his “Lower 911” band, particularly from drummer Herman Ernest III, [...]
The family band has been a cornerstone of the American entertainment industry since the 19th Century, when singing families became the first domestic music stars. There’s something magic about the way blood relatives interact with each other spiritually and instinctively rather than technically. This is even more important in the African-American music tradition, in which [...]
I met Shamarr at an in-store in Louisiana Music Factory Jazz Fest 2006. I was still with the Mouth and he was still with Rebirth. They were playing after the Mouth set, and during our set I sang Randy Newman’s “Louisiana, 1927,” and Shamarr got up and joined me on that song. I said into [...]
Mitch Woods has long been acknowledged as one of the preeminent boogie-woogie pianists working today, as well as a master of pre-rock R&B. Most of his recordings over a three-decade career have been tributes to such influences as Louis Jordan and Cab Calloway, but his affinities go beyond swing and jump blues. Woods worships at [...]
1907 Jourdan Avenue is situated just past the east wall of the Industrial Canal. Shamarr Allen recalls growing up there, practicing his trumpet at home with encouragement from his father and Kermit Ruffins. Playing with his childhood friend Dinerral Shavers, buddies so close people thought they were brothers.
But like so many other such New Orleans [...]
French-speaking Montreal has a deep fascination with its cultural cousin from the colonial era, New Orleans. The Montreal Jazz Festival is the only international jazz event that has always maintained that no representation of the music is complete without a New Orleans element honoring the birthplace of jazz. This has often consisted of Canadian bands [...]
As long as human beings try to express their emotions in language, magic still exists in the world. Mary McBride conjures that magic in the deep, deep emotional waters of her songwriting. She has hit on striking images and cavernous depths in the past, but The Way Home is her masterpiece. McBride comes from a [...]
The Festival International de Jazz de Montréal has always kept a close watch on its cultural cousin Louisiana, but this year the connection between New Orleans and Montreal has been given particular emphasis. The Montreal music bash will celebrate the finale of its 12-day run on July 6 with a massive free concert on St. [...]
[Tonight, roots rocker Mary McBride plays d.b.a. at 7 p.m. as part of her "The Home Tour," which started at Angola Penitentiary. Friday, she plays St. Anna's Mission at 6 p.m. Here's a review of her new album, The Way Home.--Ed.]
Mary McBride
The Way Home
As long as human beings try to express their emotions in [...]
Conga master Chris Jones grew up listening to the Mardi Gras Indians at Second and Dryades. Jones remembers “beating on a 40-ounce beer bottle for hours with Geechee Johnson” and became close friends with Big Chief Bo Dollis of the Wild Magnolias.
Jones came back to New Orleans in 2005 after the federal flood and got [...]
