Based on the premise that the true Home of the Groove, at least on the North American landmass, is the irreplaceable musical and cultural nexus, New Orleans, Louisiana and environs, this audioblog features rare, hard to find, often forgotten, vintage New Orleans-related R&B and funk records with commentary. Some general knowledge of N.O. music is helpful here, but not required to get your groove on.
I currently host a weekly show, "Funkify Your Life", on KRVS 88.7 FM in Lafayette which includes music covered on HOTG and more. You can listen-in live Thursdays at 2:00 PM or to the rebroadcast Fridays at 9:00 PM, or stream shows on demand and see playlists at the station website under the Programs tab. I am a former resident of Memphis, TN, where I did a weekly radio show called "New Orleans: Under the Influence" from 1988 to 2004 on WEVL 89.9 FM. I've been collecting and researching this kind of music (& others) even longer.
It's late. I just got the email as I was attempting to tear myself away from the damned screen for dreamland. . . but, I gotta tell ya that the Meters will be back. And Allen will perform with Elvis. And. . . oh, just go have a look, revelate, and book it.
posted by Dan Phillips @ 1:30 AM
5 Comments:
"Jazzfest also announced a partnership with American Express. The company will promote various local acts and sponsor the Jazz & Heritage Stage, which debuted at the 2005 festival with a lineup of brass bands and Mardi Gras Indians. Budget constraints would have forced the festival to drop the stage had AmEx not stepped in, Davis said." _Keith Spera article in the New Orleans T-P
Ugh, I can't believe that there was nearly no jazz & heritage at the jazz & heritage fest!!! This despite the fact that Lionel Ritchie and Jimmy Buffet are headlining and Shell and American Express are sponsoring the event. It would have been nice if they could have added some of those Pinewood Stomp obscure folks plus some more blues, jazz, and New Orleans hiphop and bounce.
I mean Ponderosa Stomp above by the way.
Damn. Thought there might be another stomp out there!
Look. I guess everybody knows that the Jazz & Hertiage Festival has become over the years less about jazz or heritage and more about big name draws that have NOTHING to do Louisiana/New Orleans cultural history. Many local acts and/or those old school acts that the Stomp presents sadly don't get in. Corporate sponsorship also takes its commercial toll. That said, I'm giving Quint 'Cosmic Q' Davis (Festival Director) and the entire operation a pass this year just because here are having the event at all in the midst of the ruins. It will help the city to come back financially, drawing droves of visitors. We can take the Fest to task later. It's mission should be re-exasmined, though it's still one of the largest music festivals in the world and does have regional musicians, atrs, crafts and food.
Lionel Ritchie (!? - so many better non-NO soul acts to choose from) and Dave Matthews (repeat offender) and acts of similar ilk will, as ususal, attract the yahoo hordes to the big stages, leaving more room for me (and you) to get closer to the locals at the smaller stages. But just maybe, some of those hordes will catch a slice of gumbo music around the grounds and be converted. It could happen. . . .
From a quick scan of the performers, it looks to me like the percentage of locally based performers is actually higher than in years past. From the out-of-town standpoint, that more than makes up for Lionel Richie and the DMB. If they have to book those guys to bring n the cash, fine, I'll be over by the smaller stages checking out the real stuff.
You're right about the percentage, Reap. And it has always been so. It's just that some of the "big name" booking choices have seemed not well thought out and have created a dissonance with the local flavor over the years. As big as the Fest is, even if it had only regional acts, there is not room for every worthy perfomer. The area is so rich in quality talent. Thus, the promoters could never please everyone. I think I can make do nicely with the "real stuff" that will be there. And, there will be more real stuff on hand a week earlier at the French Quarter Festival. And it's free!
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