Music
Two People, The Music of Billy Strayhorn (TwoPeople Productions)
Danish-born and New Orleans-based reedman Christian Winther is one of the top jazz saxophonists in town. Also a fine clarinetist, he’s heard on both instruments on this recording. On Two […]
Jon Batiste and Stay Human, Social Music (Razor and Tie)
Jon Batiste, like so many of the great New Orleans pianists who came before him, cannot be contained. Batiste, whom locals undoubtedly still refer to as Jonathan, performs with […]
Amy Trail, Cold Springs (Independent)
Local songwriter/pianist Amy Trail’s third solo album pushes home writer Thomas Wolfe’s axiom held in the title of his 1940 novel: You Can’t Go Home Again. In a long, noble […]
Mark Galasso, Big Backyard: Montessori Songs for Children (Independent)
Mark Galasso made Big Backyard during his tenure teaching music to preschoolers at Montessori Children’s House in Baton Rouge. This makes sense when you hear the lyrics, which stress all […]
Ratty Scurvics, A Wooden Nickel on Fire (Upperninth Records)
Deservedly gaining in terms of recognition, stage and studio time, mad-genius man-about-town Ratty Scurvics kicks off A Wooden Nickel on Fire with a bang—a blistering dance-hall romp in “Bananas,” a […]
Jason Isbell, Southeastern (Thirty Tigers)
Jason Isbell’s skills as a songwriter have never been in doubt. His songs “Outfit” and “Danko/Manuel” rank as some of best his former band, the Drive-By Truckers, ever did. And […]
Lightnin’ Slim, High & Low Down (Alive)
Of the handful of albums that were released during Lightnin’ Slim’s lifetime, and the dozen or so collections that have been released since his passing, this is the last album […]
La Récolte, Who’s Gonna Fill Their Shoes… (Independent)
The concept is an excellent one: an upstart Cajun band adopting the French word for harvest, which fits in sowing, cultivating and reaping tradition. Labeling its debut disc Who’s Gonna […]
Dave Duplissey, Wine and Roses (Saxophobia)
Veteran sax man Dave Duplissey calls the sound of his eleventh album “Louisiana Smooth Jazz,” and having gigged with John Fred and gotten one of his instrumentals on The Weather […]
The Onlies, Open Road (Independent)
“We’re playing Country / right on CMT,” sings Will Harrison on “Country Star,” the second track from this Lafayette group’s second album. Whether the channel would be up to actually […]
