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Disc a Day - New Orleans
Disc a
Day -- New Orleans
Vitaminic Capsule Releases
to be Administered Daily
Blues/R&B | Classic Rock | Eclectica | Funk
| Jazz | Modern
Rock | New Orleans | Reggae | World
| Professor Longhair -- Anthology (Rhino) |
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Professor Longhair led the class of
Crescent City Soul. His Cuban influenced Creole stylings were
upbeat, bluesy and more fun than anyone else's. A national
treasure. Henry Roeland Byrd, a.k.a. Fess made a comeback in the Early 70's
performing with inspiration throughout the decade. His spirit will live forever
in New Orleans where he remains a favorite son and
patron saint of the Annual Jazz and Heritage Festival.
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| James Booker's off-the-cuff New Orleans piano style continues to
impress long since the late master's untimely demise in 1983. On this
disc of mid-'70's recordings we hear him dice Leadbelly, Chopin,
Professor Longhair and Meade Lux Lewis into a new gumbo brew. Wearing
a patch over one eye, murmuring something unintelligible in English
but unmistakable in music, Booker was a swashbuckling pirate of the
keys. He held the audience in his sway, fluidly making his picaresque
world acceptable and laughably hip. |
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| Nicholas Payton -- Gumbo Nouveau
(Verve) |
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Nicholas Payton at 22 years of age is
busting out the tradition in more ways than one. A native New
Orleanian and son of reknowned Cresecent City bassist, Walter Payton,
Nicholas has forged a trumpet style that harkens back to the birth of
jazz. In doing so, he updates the spirit of the originals including
the time honored compositions of Jelly Roll Morton and trumpet icon
Louis Armstrong on "Wildman Blues"
 . Payton has grown more
confident on this his second release and has recently taken part in
the soundtrack for Kansas City. |
| Allen Toussaint -- Connected (NYNO) |
| Connected is Allen Toussaint's return to
form after a 17 year hiatus revisiting masterworks written for Lee
Dorsey ("Get out of My Life Woman") and Aaron Neville
("Wrong Number"). Powerful new material includes spiritual
New Orleans soul and 'Fess influenced keys. Toussaint (58) is in the
groove on NYNO (his new lable dedicated to the "indigenous"
music of New Orleans). Check out the There exclusive radio show and notes for more on this 1997 Rock
and Roll Hall of Fame inductee. |
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| Galactic -- Coolin' Off (Fog City) |
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Galactic comes out of the Southeastern
Louisiana swamps with a rich analog funk sound, well steeped in the
traditions of New Orleans, Memphis and the rest of the funk galaxy. On
this debut release (produced by Dan Prothero
with vocals from Theryl deClouet and hearty rhythm
from band leader Stanton Moore, Galactic offers an authentic new take
version of the Acid-Jazz sound. "Stax Jam" highlights the
depth of the groove. At a recent performance at San Francisco's
Fillmore, sax man Ben Ellman lights up on the Coltrane channel,
heightening the jazz dimension with contributions from Charlie Hunter
who shared the bill. |
| Various Artists -- Crescent City Soul (EMI)
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| A superb instant
collection offering 131 singles from the heyday of Big Easy R&B,
funk and soul including Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, Dr. John,
Earl Palmer, The Meters and many more. In a There exclusive
performance/interview with soul legend Earl King he talks about
his funky bottom end which you may remember from "Street
Parade", "Big Chief", "Come On Pts. 1 + 2"
and "Trick Bag". |
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