Walkin' to New Orleans
If I get out to the music store again any time soon, I've got two geezer picks to look for -- new albums by old guys with New Orleans connections.
First, there's Fats Domino's new recording, "Alive and Kickin'." If a 78-year-old Katrina survivor (and a rock-'n'-roll legend) is still putting it out, I'll throw 20 bucks at it.
Then there's British singer-songwriter Ray Davies's new offering, "Other People's Lives," which he created on a sojourn to the Big Easy that lasted many months before it almost got him killed. According to a recent New York Times profile:
Mr. Davies came to America and to New Orleans in 2003 because, having mastered the tidy horrors of the English middle class, he wanted to explore American musical roots and temporarily adopt a new frame of reference.The former leader of the Kinks always produces great songs, and I'm quite curious to see what came of his time in Nawlins.He succeeded, perhaps too well, getting shot in the leg in January 2004 near the French Quarter after confronting a robber who had taken his companion's purse. From a British perspective, there could be no more quintessential American experience than being injured in the course of a street crime.
| Posted at 5:06 PM | Permalink |
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Comments (6)
One of the only good things that came out of the hurricane is this resurgence of interest in Fats Domino. Maybe this is the next great musician movie after “Ray” and “Walk the Line.”
As for the Kinks, they’re on my short list of rock bands that really mattered: “You Really Got Me” “All Day and All of the Night”, “Well Respected Man”, “Tired of Waiting”, “Lola”, and yes, even a newer one like “Come Dancing.” I’d put “You Really Got Me”, right there with “I Can’t Explain” by the Who as definitive British rock songs.
Posted by Bill McDonald | March 7, 2006 5:34 PM
"Come Dancing" is one of the best pop singles ever recorded. It's just perfect.
Posted by Jack Bog | March 7, 2006 5:47 PM
I heard him on NPR a couple weeks ago, and am also looking forward to hearing this new album. You can hear the archived interview and a few tunes at
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5232915
Posted by Houston | March 7, 2006 8:47 PM
Try the Wild Tchoupitoulas' "Meet the Boys on the Battlefront", the quintessential New Orleans Mardis Gras song. 99¢ on iTunes. As is my favorite Kinks song, "Skin and Bone" from Muswell Hillbillies.
Posted by jrw | March 7, 2006 8:56 PM
Also do not overlook the Neville Brothers album:
"Fiyo on the Bayou"
Posted by Bill McDonald | March 7, 2006 9:04 PM
Anyone else think Fats is capitalizing on this a bit?
(ducks. covers.)
Not that he doesn't deserve it, just sayin...
Posted by TK | March 8, 2006 10:40 AM