FoodMusicJustice.com

Left to right: Bo Dollis, Big Chief of the Wild Magnolias (lead singer of what may be the funkiest funk band of all time); rhythm and blues artist Al “Carnival Time” Johnson; singer Michelle Davis; poet Chuck Perkins; composer and arranger Wardell Quezergue (seated); Ken McCarthy

Last month, I was at the 80th birthday party for Wardell Quezergue “the Creole Beethoven,” a musical genius who applied his gifts behind-the-scenes to countless hits over the last fifty plus years.

Some of Quezergue’s music with cuts from the Wild Magnolias and Al “Carnival Time” Johnson.

From an article about Henry James Allen, Jr, jazz great

“In the fall of 1959 Red accompanied Kid Ory and his Dixielanders to Europe - it was Red’s first visit and he enjoyed it immensely, as did European audiences, reviewers, and critics. Red was particularly well-received in Britain and would return again in 1963 and 1964, this time to play with the Alex Welsh Band. During the ‘64 tour, he received an award in Manchester for his contributions to jazz music.”

Source http://www.libertyhall.com/red.html

Cellist Helen Gillet - a New Orleanian by way of Belgium, Singapore, Japan and Chicago - was a renter in pre-Katrina times.

She came home in October 2005 to a roofless apartment inhabited by wildlife.

Now she is a home owner through the Habitat for Humanity Musician’s Village program.

Click here for more about Helen Gillet
Helen Sings with Vavavoom

Caught this at the Sound Cafe and glad I did.

The video doesn’t begin to do it justice.

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Larry Blumenfeld did the interview. David Aman shot and edited. FoodMusicJustice.com produced it.

This was one of the videos Larry showed at the International Jazz Educators Conference in Toronto last summer.

Meanwhile, I shot a ton of nice stuff at the French Quarter Fest which I’ll be posting in the coming days.

One of the rare and beautiful things about New Orleans his how integrated live music is with daily life.

This used to be the norm. Now New Orleans seems to be the last place in North America where this is true.

And more than that, New Orleans has a music community that consciously develops its young; maintains its traditions (including a vast repertoire of New Orleans-based songs); and honors its elders for their open-handed generosity of spirit to the new generation.

It’s a very beautiful, very human system.

In this less-than-perfect video (the light was bad and I was cut off before things really got rolling) one of the most beloved figures in the New Orleans music community “Uncle” Lionel Batiste shares a moment at the Palm Court.

Another great article on the current New Orleans music and culture scene from Larry Blumenfeld.

This one about Donald Harrison Jr. and Mardi Gras “Indian” culture appeared recently in the Village Voice. (more…)

Fats Domino is like New Orleans itself: laid back, prodidgously creative, often copied, and underrated.

Vanguard just released a tribute album featuring Paul McCartney, Elton John, Neil Young, Robert Plant, John Lennon (courtesy of Yoko Ono), Willie Nelson…you get the idea.

The Big Guns of rock and roll know who made the music happen. Fats’ influence deeper than most people realize… (more…)

Is there any doubt?

New Orleans is the home of the funk.

Looking over the shoulder of drummer Terence Higgins with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band during a sound check.

A little treat from New Orleans.

A documentary about the making of “Do Your Thing” by Papa Mali, recorded in New Orleans with drummer Robb Kidd and brass band veteran Kirk Joseph.

Produced by Fog City Records.