NolaFunk Lagniappe

Radiators Rock the Troops - New Orleans Band Donates CDs to Soldiers' Angels

Based in New Orleans, The Radiators have been rocking fans across America for decades. Now they are spreading their music around the world with a donation of nearly 3,000 CDs to the troops. Soldiers' Angels will be receiving the donation and including CDs in some of the thousands of care packages it ships overseas each month.

Home of the Groove's: Deacon John: The Show Goes On

Called 'Deacon' by a member of his first band, not for his religious lifestyle, but because of his clean-cut, straight and narrow look, Moore first recorded as a featured artist in 1962, waxing "I Can't Wait" b/w "When I'm With You" for Rip Records in New Orleans. He had already been playing guitar on various sessions for the Minit and Alon labels produced by Allen Toussaint, who recruited the guitarist after seeing him at the Dew Drop Inn, where Deacon John and the Ivories became the house band in 1960. Three years earlier, the teenaged Moore had formed the group with his friend, Roger Lewis, a saxophonist who would help found the monumental Dirty Dozen Bass Band some two decades later. From the beginning, the Ivories were a hot, in-demand group of rotating sidemen with Moore at the lead, playing the hits of the day at clubs, high school dances, and fraternity parties in and around New Orleans.

Interview with the Hot 8's Benny Pete




The Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame celebrates 10th anniversary

The Crystal Feather award, the Hall of Fame's highest honor, is given to Mardi Gras Indians noted for their outstanding achievements and dedication to the culture. This year's honorees include Big Chief Thomas Landry of the Geronimo Hunters, Spyboy Steve Solomon of the White Eagles and two queens, the late Big Queen Mabel Veal of the Yellow Jackets and Tribal Queen Littdell Banister of the Creole Wild West.

Bingo! Parlour Profile #2: THE NEW ORLEANS JAZZ VIPERS

For the past eight years, Vipers have been delighting tourists and locals alike with their twice weekly live shows at Frenchmen Street's Spotted Cat. A seven-piece acoustic swing band with an infectious love for the hot jazz of the 1920s-1940s, the Vipers love it when you dance. Featuring a deep repertoire of danceable tunes from the songbooks of such artists as Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Dicky Wells, Benny Carter, Count Basie and more, The New Orleans Jazz Vipers breathe life and energy into this material. Old songs sound young once more, vibrant and alive as ever.

Music Review: Grayson Capps' "Rott 'n Roll"

When I think back over the music that I'm familiar with from the last 30 to 40 years, the rock and roll that I've liked the best has had roots running back to a certain community or region. It doesn't matter whether the community has been the slums of Brixton in London England or the streets of Spanish Harlem in New York City the music has grown out of something and has a connection of some sort to a people's voice. Now I don't know if it's because I tend to gravitate to this music over others or not, but it seems like I'm hearing more and more regional music these days. One guy who recently came to my attention playing music along those lines is Grayson Capps.

Treme Brass Band lets listeners know about true New Orleans Music! on second CD

Treme Brass Band has done it again--they've managed to make fun, upbeat remakes of old popular tunes and add a uniquely Treme flare to the mix.

Always being inspired by the "culture of music" and the jazz funerals his father drummed in when he was a young boy growing up in the Treme neighborhood, snare drum player, Benny Jones has always wanted to make music that was distinctively New Orleans.

Professor: Katrina Boosted New Orleans Musicians' Productivity, Creativity

New Orleans artists are reluctant to credit Hurricane Katrina as a source of inspiration. But after the disaster -- which marks its third anniversary Aug. 29 -- many New Orleans musicians experienced their most productive months in decades and scaled new creative peaks, a University of Iowa professor asserts.

see also: Flood Water Gives as it Takes Away


Calling All Children to the Mardi Gras!

Calling All Children rises to the top because of one reason: even the youngest kids can sing along with these tunes without the band having to compromise the spirit and quality of the music. Plus, the songs are played by a real band, and the whole thing is ridiculously catchy! Man, you can't help but march along, drum along, shake along with these ditties, especially songs like "Here Comes the Big Parade," "Chicka Wah Wah," and "Mardi Gras Elementary." And "Up on the Ladder" is just a great song, no matter what genre it falls under.




For Sno-Ball videos, click HERE.


Amanda Shaw's birthday bash a big hit

More than 800 people attended the Cajun-pop singer and fiddler's Aug. 1 birthday party at the Mid-City Lanes. The venue reached its maximum capacity at various points throughout the night; new arrivals had to wait for people to leave before being admitted. "We were expecting a Jazzfest-size crowd," said one of the Lanes' bartenders, "and that's what it was."

see also: Amanda Shaw turns 18 with a bayou benefit

Tipitina's Foundation to celebrate 5th anniversary

The Tipitina's Foundation, the philanthropic non-profit affiliated with the famed nightclub, plans to celebrate its fifth anniversary with fundraisers in Aspen, Colo., and Jackson Hole, Wyo. The "New Orleans All-Star Mountain Jam-balaya" is slated for Aspen on Aug. 27 and Jackson Hole on Aug. 29, the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina.

Satchmo Summerfest salutes Armstrong

Pops would be proud.

Louis Armstrong, the most important figure in jazz and New Orleans' most famous son, would likely approve of the medley of music, food and scholarship that is the Satchmo Summerfest Aug. 1-3.