The World of Music: Homegrown and international

15th August 2016   ·   0 Comments

By Geraldine Wyckoff
Contributing Writer

Aaron Neville
Apache
(Tell It Records)

Aaron Neville possesses a truly unmistakable and remarkable voice. It simply doesn’t matter what genre of music he applies his talents to – doo-wop as he did on 2012’s My True Story, gospel, soul, standards, rhythm and blues – Aaron sounds wonderfully like Aaron. His new release, Apache, on his own Tell It label, opens strongly with a blast of percussion and horns and then Neville steps to the microphone with his signature warble.

Produced by next generation guitarist Eric Krasno of jam/soul/funk bands Soulive and Lettuce, the album represents a fresh take on Neville’s old-school roots. For the first time in his long career, Neville, 75 (!), co-wrote the majority of the tunes that appear on the disc. They began as poems he’s composed over the years with Krasno and his writing partner David Gutter turning the words into lyrics and putting them to music.

Neville’s romantic side is never far away and he offers a beauty on “Orchid in the Storm” complete with horns and background vocals set to a light rhythm. More simply orchestrated is “I Wanna Love You” with the peaceful organ of Peter Levin warming the melody. Now a cha-cha beat shouts old-school and it’s the rhythm of choice for “Sarah Ann,” Neville’s love letter to his wife, photographer Sarah Ann Friedman who shot the photos for the disc.

The vocalist is known as a deeply religious man and he brings this side of himself in a prayer-like tune called “Heaven.” It begins, “God forgive me for any wrongs I have done,” with the background singers taking the part a gospel choir. Neville sings much of the second half of this spiritually moving tune completely in falsetto, a special talent that hasn’t diminished an iota in his long career.

Incidentally, Neville is celebrating the 50th anniversary of his first major hit, “Tell It Like It Is.”

With its Mardi Gras Indians meets Bo Diddley beat, “Stompin Ground” gets the party going. Here Neville tells his story of coming from New Orleans where, he sings, he “Grew up on the music of the streets; second line bands and the Indian beats.” He gives shouts out to a slew of this city’s iconic musicians – “Fesser Longhair, Fats Domino, Smiley Lewis to the Great Satchmo” – as well as Black Indian gangs including the Wild Tchoupitoulas, which was once led by his uncle George “Big Chief Jolly” Landry, and another uptown gang, the Creole Wild West.

Storytelling and music with a message play a strong part of Neville’s musical persona. The groove gets funky on “Ain’t Gonna Judge You.” “Lookin’ me up and down, take a closer look at yourself,” he advises. “If you don’t judge me, I ain’t gonna judge you.” Neville makes his message personal on “Make Your Momma Cry,” while warning a wayward youth, “Trouble gonna run you down… Karma gonna gun you down.”

The album closes with the tune, “Fragile World,” that solely comes from Neville’s pen. He does it primarily as a spoken word piece that laments the state of the world today while the backing music, with Neville on piano, remains upbeat. He does end it on a more positive note saying, “I just want to say peace on earth…”

Apache, which has been Neville’s nickname since his childhood, rightfully finds Aaron Neville’s voice and style center stage among some hip musicians whose admiration for the legend is evident.

The Arrival of Dub Pioneer and Reggae Legend Lee “Scratch” Perry

Lee “Scratch” Perry, who arrives at Tipitina’s on Wednesday, August 17, has been a core part of the musical history of Jamaican music – he’s know as the pioneer of dub, worked with luminaries of early reggae like Clement Coxone Dodd and Joe Gibbs and produced a recordings for the legendary Bob Marley and Junior Murvin in his own Black Ark Studio. Perry, 80, who won a Grammy for the Best Reggae Album for his 2003 release Jamaican E.T., is considered a wizard in the studio having been an innovator in the use of sampling and mixing. To discover the roots of American hip hop, Lee “Scratch” Perry is your man. Perry has put out some 60 albums including two Grammy nominated discs – 2007s End of An American Dream featuring Keith Richards and 2010’s Revelation with funkmaster George Clinton onboard. He’ll release a new CD, Must Be Free, on September 23, 2016 that features Subatomic Sound System who will join Perry at Tip’s.

All those facts about Lee “Scratch” Perry are impressive though to experience his eclectic and electric vibe and free-stylin’ dub is the draw though these elements are near impossible to adequately describe. His dubs, which would be at home at a poetry jam, can be both spiritual and highly irreverent – and sometimes just hysterical. His costuming and accessorizing make Perry, who seems to thrive on his persona of being part genius and part madman, visually compelling. It’s been many years since Lee “Scratch” Perry landed in New Orleans making this show a real rarity. Don’t miss the legends. Doors open at 8 pm, showtime is at 9 p.m.

This article originally published in the August 15, 2016 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.