Issue Articles — Cover Story
Mem Shannon: Blues on Wheels
Mem Shannon is the blues personified, and he has been going places for 25 years. He is one of the most well-traveled men you’ll ever meet—yet he’s never ventured north […]
Mark Whitfield Finds His Way Home
After starting his career in New York and experimenting with the dreaded “instrumental pop,” the guitarist settled in Baton Rouge and took a 7th Avenue stroll back to clean, straight-ahead jazz. […]
Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys: Creating Within The Tradition
BANNED FROM COMPETITION He had sung French songs at three, and played his first accordion riff at seven. Everything was peachy for the child prodigy until he won a […]
Frankie Ford: Ooh-Wee Baby!
Someone should tell Frankie Ford he doesn’t need to work this hard. On a Sunday evening in July, Ford’s big black Lincoln Town Car—the one with the “ooh-wee” personalized license […]
Tommy Ridgley: The Comeback Kid
Tommy Ridgley’s long wait is over. The vocalist, pianist and songwriter, who cut his first record in 1949 and was among the city’s upper echelon of R&B stars in the […]
The Mind of Mystikal
Desert Storm veteran and former security guard Michael Tyler, known in the local rap community as Mystikal, was well into the recording of his debut album when his sister was […]
Nouveau Zydeco: Rosie Ledet Pours It On
When Boozoo Chavis returned to zydeco in the early 1980s, his hard-driving button accordion style appealed to young fans who hadn’t been interested in their parents’ sleepy two-steps and waltzes. […]
Nouveau Zydeco: Keith Frank Gets It On
Keith Frank is at the forefront of a nouveau zydeco wave. When Boozoo Chavis returned to zydeco in the early 1980s, his hard-driving button accordion style appealed to young fans […]
Kermit Ruffins Comes Out Swingin’
The Treme district is soggy under a lifeless gray sky on this chilly Sunday afternoon in February, but the sunny disposition of Kermit Ruffins refuses to be dampened. The neighborhood’s […]
Look at Snooks Now!: Snooks Eaglin on Record, Then and Now
The diminutive man who can’t see is led onto the stage, seated in front of his amplifier, and handed his guitar. His gnarled fingers seek the strings and quickly renew […]
