June is Black Music month! A tribute to New Orleans musicians
27th June 2022 · 0 Comments
Part II
As the end of June 2022, National Black Music Month, approaches, The Louisiana Weekly continues to show its appreciation for New Orleans musicians and their invaluable contributions to the international music scene.
It’s fair to say that music is not only an integral part of the Black culture but also that Black Americans are feted worldwide for their musical and lyrical genius. All Black Americans can take pride in their culture’s gift to the world because music is the universal language.
Black New Orleanians can claim that our musicians were the first to gift America, and the world, with inimitable sounds that influence America, and remains the soundtrack of generations here and abroad. New Orleans is known as the birthplace of jazz, but it is also the home of R&B, Rock & Roll, and Carnival music, which goes unheralded…un-til now. The Louisiana Weekly is paying tribute to New Orleans musicians this National Black Music Month and telling the world that our musicians paved the way for various music genres worldwide.
Regarding “jazz,” we must never forget the progenitors of “traditional music,” as music professor and late jazz pianist Ellis Marsalis called jazz. Preservation Hall in the French Quarters still provides a venue for jazz musicians. The Humphrey Brothers “Sweet Emma” Barrett and everyone who played traditional music performed there in the mid-20th Century.
Barrett was a self-taught jazz pianist and singer who worked with the Original Tuxedo Orchestra between 1923 and 1936, first under Papa Celestin, then William Ridgely. She also worked with Armand Piron, John Robichaux, Sidney Desvigne, and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. One could also hear Paul Barbarin’s “Bourbon Street Parade” or his “Secondline.” both songs celebrated New Orleans’s black cultural traditions.
However, a new sound emerged in the late 1940s through the 1950s: Rhythm & Blues. Roy Brown cut “Good Rockin’ Tonight,” and Shirley & Lee released “Let the Good Times Roll.” The lyrics included the words rock and Roll.
New Orleans pianist Antoine “Fats” Domino and Dave Bartholomew, the songwriter, trumpeter, and A&R man for the Imperial Record label, are credited with being the fathers of Rock & Roll. During a 1957 interview, Domino was asked what he thought about Rock & Roll, and he replied, “Well, what they call rock ’n’ roll now is rhythm and blues. I’ve been playing it for 15 years in New Orleans.”
“He sold 65 million singles in those years, with 23 gold records, making him second only to Elvis Presley as a commercial force. Presley acknowledged Mr. Domino as a predecessor,” The New York Times reported in Domino’s obituary.
Batholomew wrote numerous hit songs, including “One Night,” with his wife, Pearl King. Elvis Presley covered the song, and it rose to #11 on the Billboard charts.
Bartholomew wrote, arranged, and produced recordings for Smiley Lewis (“I Hear You Knocking” and “One Night”), the Spiders, Chris Kenner, Earl King, Tommy Ridgley, Robert Parker, T-Bone Walker, Roy Brown, Frankie Ford, and Shirley and Lee. Bartholomew produced Lloyd Price’s recording of “Lawdy Miss Clawdy,” which featured Domino (uncredited) on piano.
Unfortunately, covering the recordings of New Orleans’ black musicians and songwriters became a cash cow for White singers but a financial bust for local artists.
“Fats made thousands while others made millions,” Bartholomew told one reporter in the 1980s. Indeed, many Domino songs were covered by Pat Boone recorded “Ain’t That A Shame,” and Ricky Nelson covered “I’m Walkin.”
Both John Lennon and Paul McCartney recorded Domino songs. McCartney later recorded “Ain’t That a Shame,” “I’m in Love Again,” and “I’m Gonna Be a Wheel Someday” in 1988. John Lennon covered Domino’s composition “Ain’t That a Shame” on his 1975 album “Rock ‘n’ Roll,” his tribute to the musicians who had influenced him.
Domino passed away in 2017 at age 89, and Bartholomew died in 2019 at age 100. Here is a video of the dynamic music duo: Dave Bartholomew & Antoine “Fats” Domino Reunited 2010.
Joe Banashak and Larry McKinley, radio host and artist manager, founded Minit Records in New Orleans early in 1959. Legendary pianist and music producer Allen Toussaint spearheaded most of the label’s recordings. The roster included Ernie K-Doe, Irma Thomas, Benny Spellman, Jessie Hill, and Aaron Neville, among others.
Irma Thomas, New Orleans’ first lady of R&B, was the first artist to record “Time is On My Side.” Thomas said that her song was a hit in Great Britain, where she toured. The Rolling Stones re-recorded the song.
Not content to just record and perform, Harold Battiste, a composer, arranger, and performer, founded AFO Records in New Orleans in 1961. According to AFO (All for One) alumnus Wallace Johnson, Battiste “said it was time for New Orleans musicians that make the music to make the money – not out-of-town companies that came here to record.”
House musicians for AFO included Harold Battiste, Red Tyler, Roy Montrell, Peter Badie, John Boudreaux, and Melvin Lastie. In 1961, AFO released Barbara George’s song “I Know (You Don’t Love Me No More),” which reached the top of the R&B chart and #3 on the Hot 100 chart.
Battiste moved to Los Angeles, where he became the music director for the Sonny & Cher Show before returning to the Crescent City.
The Dixie Cups’ #1 hit “Chapel of Love” solidified the city’s reputation as an R&B mecca in 1964. Aaron Neville’s “Tell It Like It Is,” released in 1966, is on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.
The Meters’ “Cissy Strut,” and other melodies sent them on European tours. In fact, the group opened for the Rolling Stones during the British rock band’s 1977 tour.
The Meters (Art Neville, George Porter, Leo Nocentelli, and Joseph “Zigaboo” Modeliste) made up the ‘house’ band for Sea-Saint Studios. Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn opened the recording facility in Gentilly in 1973. Lee Dorsey recorded his hits “Holy Cow,” “Working in a Coal Mine.”
The 1970s saw Labelle’s Lady Marmalade, two albums by Paul McCartney and Wings, and Billboard smashes by Glen Campbell, Paul Simon, Joe Cocker, Elvis Costello, The Meters, Dr. John, Lee Bates, and Tony Owens record at Sea-Saint.
Today, the city remains unrivaled in the number of award-winning musicians and vocalists born here. From the early days of the 20th Century and now in the 2lst Century, at any given time, we hear brass bands playing a fusion of New Orleans-style traditional music, r&b, and gospel in our neighborhoods for a variety of events; either a repast, birthday, or second-line street parade.
Brass Bands still perform traditional music worldwide too. The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, The Hot 8, and Rebirth Brass Bands are award-winning groups.
What is wholly overlooked is New Orleans musicians who have performed and recorded what we call “Carnival/Mardi Gras Music” and “Mardi Indian” music. Professor Longhair and Earl King’s “Go To the Mardi Gras” and “Street Parade,” Al Johnson’s “Carnival Time,” “The Wild Tchoupitoulas,” and “The Wild Magnolias” all defy description and categories. In fact, New Orleans sounds were once deemed “not commercial” and could only be heard on the local “urban” radio station, in private homes, or blaring from speakers on Mardi Gras Day.
Many New Orleans-born musicians and singers have received and continue to receive worldwide acclaim. New Orleans is home to many musical families: Marsalis, Batiste, Neville, Hawkins, Toussaint, Crawford, Barbarin, Rouzan, Barker, Jackson, Humph-rey, Lastie, Pichon, Turbinton, and Morton. Still, many individuals have kept the city’s rich musical heritage in the global spotlight.
Lil Wayne is a superstar. His fusion of hip-hop, rap, and R&B puts him into the Bounce Music genre created by him and other New Orleanians. At last count, Lil Wayne had five Grammys and numerous other awards. TV viewers can see him daily singing the theme song of “Undisputed,” a sports talk show on the FOX Sports Network. Wayne Carter began his music career on the Cash Money Records label. Founded in 1991 by entrepreneurial brothers Ronald “Slim” Williams and Bryan “Birdman” Williams, Cash Money recorded the “Hot Boys,” “Juvenile,” Drake, Nicki Minaj, D..J. Khaled, Busta Rhymes, Christina Milian, Teena Marie, and others.
Percy Robert (“Master P) Miller Sr. is a rapper, songwriter, record executive, entrepreneur, actor, producer, and philanthropist. Miller launched No Limit Records in 1991. The label included artists such as Snoop Dogg, Mercedes, Silkk the Shocker, Mystikal, Mia X, Mac, C-Murder, Magic, Romeo Miller, Fiend, Kane & Abel, and Soulja Slim.
Big Freedia, the Queen of Bounce, is featured on “Break My Soul,” Beyoncé’s lead single on the Renaissance album, which drops on July 29, 2022. Freedia is a recording artist, television personality, and filmmaker. She recorded her first single on her own Big Freedia Records label.
The musical contributions of New Orleans’ women are unique and unparalleled: Sweet Emma, Blue Lu Barker, Linda Hopkins, Mahalia Jackson, Irma Thomas, Barbara George, Germaine Bazzle, Lady B.J., Charmaine Neville, Doreen Ketchens, Stephanie Jordan, Trin-i-tee 5:7 (gospel girl group – Chanelle Haynes, Angel Taylor, and Terri Brown-Britton), and Ledisi, who recently won a Grammy, among others.
Among New Orleans’ male musicians, Wynton Marsalis and Branford Marsalis are Grammy-winning composers. Wynton, the artistic director of Jazz at Lincoln Center, has won nine Grammy Awards, and his Blood on the Fields was the first jazz composition to win the Pulitzer Prize. Brothers Delfayeo and Jason are also musicians.
Terrence Oliver Blanchard started his career in 1982 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then The Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed on more than fifty. He is best known for his film scores on Spike Lee films.
Jonathan Michael Batiste is a singer, songwriter, musician, bandleader, and television personality. Jon is the son of Michael Batiste, a member of the famed Batiste Brothers Band. He was Stephen Colbert’s bandleader.
New Orleans’ Grammy Winners
Louis Armstrong, The Neville Brothers, Dr. John, Lil Wayne, Darius “Deezle” Harrison (songwriter & producer), Wynton Marsalis, Irma Thomas, Terence Blanchard, the Rebirth Brass Band, Hot 8 Brass Band, Professor Longhair, Aaron Neville, Mahalia Jackson, PJ Morton, Louis Armstrong, Branford Marsalis, Wynton Marsalis, New Orleans Jazz Orchestra (Irvin Mayfield), Nicholas Payton, Ledisi, Lucky Daye.
Jon Batiste won five Grammys, including Album of the Year (2022) – “We Are” Louisiana artists who contributed to the winning “We Are” album include P.J. Morton, Hot 8 Brass Band, Gospel Soul Children Choir, St. Augustine High School Marching 100 and Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews.
Grammy Lifetime Achievement Awards
Louis Armstrong, Mahalia Jackson, Fats Domino, Jelly Roll Morton, The Meters (Joseph “Zigaboo” Modeliste, Art Neville, Cyril Neville, Leo Nocentelli, George Porter Jr.).
Louisiana Recording Academy Trustees Award Winners
Allen Toussaint and Dave Bartholomew.
New Orleans is America’s music mecca. The city’s musicians put New Orleans on the top tourist destinations list. The city’s musical heritage drew The Essence Music Festival, which marks its 27th year in the Crescent City in July 2022.
This article originally published in the June 27, 2022 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.
