Rebirth
Charlie Burr
Now that we’ve fulfilled our nation’s commitment to the rebuilding of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, we can move onto breaking our addiction to oil, right folks? Well, not really, but for all of those Blue Oregonians who will be in Portland tomorrow night, one of the best New Orleans bands around, the Rebirth Brass Band, will be playing this Thursday night at LOLA’s room.
I’ve been to a few of their shows down there and can vouch that they NEVER disappoint. Regardless of whether you make it to the show, if you weren’t overwhelmed with Bush's specifics on rebuilding one of America’s truly great cities, but want to help out, a good place to lend a hand is the New Orleans Musicians’ Hurricane Relief Fund. They’re not just helping thousand of displaced families, they’re helping preserve the best of New Orleans’ cultural traditions. Check em out, and if you can, don't miss the chance to see these great New Orleans musicians at LOLA's.
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Feb 1, '06
Yes sir, they are fantastic. Picked up my tickets today!
Feb 1, '06
Nice call Charlie. I will make a gift there. Okay, as long as we are on the topic of the crescent city, how about a top 5 tribute to New Orleans...list your top 5 New Orleans bands or shows seen in New Orleans:
honorable mention: Driving up to Cleveland Mississippi to see Son Volt when I arrived at Jazz Fest a couple days early one year.
Band I'd wanted to see but didn't: Continental Drifters
What's your Top 5 New Orleans tribute?
9:49 p.m.
Feb 1, '06
My favorite New Orleans musicians? Too many to mention. Fats Domino is clearly first, but you've got the Marsalises, the Nevilles, Little Richard, Patti LaBelle, Dr. John, the Meters, Lloyd Price... Try this album. Robbie Robertson's "Storyville" album is a must, too.
Then there's the whole zydeco thing -- Clifton Chenier, king. Buckwheat, Beausoleil, Boozoo...
The last night I was there, we sat in Preservation Hall for a show. More spiritual than any church service I've ever attended.
8:56 a.m.
Feb 2, '06
When I was a lad at William and Mary in the 80s, a spate of flyers appeared one winter term: "Boo Hoo?" It was followed by another set: "Boozoo, that's who!"
Turned out to be a great gig introducing me to Zydecajun, although Buckwheat has become my favorite.
11:33 a.m.
Feb 2, '06
Libby & I drove through New Orleans coming back from New York this month - and I'll probably write about what it looked like on the ground later - but one of the best thing we did by far down there was see Kermit Ruffins play their Thursday night gig at Vaughn's in the Bywater. The place was packed; they didn't start until late but played way into the night. The whole place was rockin - everyone was on their feet dancing. There weren't any taxis to get back home, so we just walked back to the Quarter and didn't get back around 3 or 4 or so. Vaughn's always has free red beans and rice during the set break, so there wasn't even that much pain the next day.
Kermit's always good; this set was more political than anything I've seen him do, but the main thing is that we didn't know what to expect when we came into town so to have the place packed with locals letting off some steam was great.
What I’ve been listening to recently: James Booker: Live in Europe 1976 to 1977 Hot 8: The Hot 8 Dr. John: Dr. John’s Gumbo Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers: BBQ Swingers Live
And a video I finally got my hands on: Piano Players Rarely Play Together: Tuts Washington, Allen Toussaint, Prof. Longhair (Documentary Video, 1972) **If you haven't seen this and you like New Orleans music, you gotta check it out. It has the 3 of them playing and rehearsing together for the first time, preparing for a show that was never to be. Prof. Longhair sadly dies during the filming, but the jazz funeral is captured in the film. The music's out of this world; the story behind the film gets sadder yet still: the filmmaker, Stevenson Palfi, just died of self-inflicted gunshot wound a few weeks before Christmas.
Chip, thank you for helping out NOMHRF and Torrid, CitizenGregg and Jack - you guys have inspired me to make a Mardi Gras iTunes set list; you guys should do the same & post the link.
One more to my list: Randy Newman's Good Old Boys yes, the one song (Louisiana 1927) is suffering from serious overexposure, but the album as a whole is a really strong piece o work.