Music
Stavin’ Chain, Stavin’ Chain (PGD/Ruf)
This quote’s been attributed to Michaelangelo: “Trifles make perfection, and perfection is no trifle.” Well, Stavin’ Chain aren’t exactly painting the blues-rock Sistine Chapel yet, but they’ve come a long […]
Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Blackjack (Sugar Hill)
“Gates” gets upset when you refer to his music as blues, partly because the genre can sometimes carry a connotation of dejection and despair, but mainly because it’s just plain […]
The Black Crowes, By Your Side (American/Columbia)
The Robinson brothers (AKA The Black Crowes) have returned with their newest release, the raucous Southern rock joy-ride, By Your Side. The album opens with an appropriately funky drum-beat followed […]
Selwyn Cooper & The Hurricane Blues Band, Louisiana Swamp Blues (Sound of New Orleans)
When you cue up the first song on this CD, ”The Cat Is Back,” you’re not liable to be much impressed. The sound of this album is far too thin, […]
Charles Lloyd, Voices in the Night (ECM)/Charles Lloyd, Just Before Sunrise (32 Jazz)
Not many musicians are as willing to stretch their aesthetic boundaries as Charles Lloyd. Coming up in Memphis R&B, Lloyd also absorbed the angular exploration of the ’60s post-bop avant […]
Lynn August, Creole People (Aim Records)
“Creole people, they don’t want to be nobody else,” sings the gritty voice of zydeco’s Lynn August on Creole People, the album’s title track. ‘They want to be recognized for […]
Irvin Mayfield, Irvin Mayfield (Basin Street Records)
In the last three years, trumpeter Irvin Mayfield has become an important force in New Orleans music. The 21-year-old is a charismatic, up-and-coming performer. More importantly, whether he’s working with […]
Corey Harris, Greens from the Garden (Alligator)
Joy— pure joy — that’s what you’re dealing with here. Look at Corey on the cover: gravity-defying dreadlocks bound up in a topknot, a big ol’ grin, a blue business […]
Various Artists, The Orleans Record Story (Orleans Records)
Even if you’ve only got a small assortment of contemporary New Orleans music, in all probably you’ve got at least one Orleans Records CD. Carlo Ditta’s Orleans label has been […]
Astral Project, VoodooBop (Compass)
In their twenty year history as a band, these five New Orleans jazzmen have developed a sound completely their own, embodying the highest ideals of art, while maintaining a childlike, […]
