WEEKEND MUSICIAN
I am what you call an OffBeat part-time weekend musician. With my percussion cowbell and CD player I love to go and stand outside of department stores and play on the sidewalks—sometime with a band that comes and plays in and around town. You do not have to be in a band or have a CD that’s on the radio to have fun playing music. Music can open anyone’s heart and soul. Keep up the great work; you have the best music magazine in Louisiana.
—Jimmie Breaux, Kaplan, Louisiana
BERNARD AND CHENIER
This is in response to Jeff Hannusch’s review of Rod Bernard & Clifton Chenier’s Boogie in Black & White.—Ed.
“There are no originals in the compact 10-song package.” Actually, there is one original track on the CD, “Baby Where Did You Go Last Night,” which Bernard and Chenier composed on the spot for the recording.
—Shane K. Bernard, New Iberia, Louisiana
MARIA MULDAUR
Thank you so very much for all your efforts Maria [Muldaur]. Your sets at Jazz Fest are warm memories of a musical wind available nowhere else. And the excellence of your tribute to Sister Rosetta makes tonight’s tribute [at Snug Harbor] to Memphis Minnie a must see. Break a leg darlin’!
—Eric Robertson, Columbus, Ohio
USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA
The following is in response to Jan Ramsey’s blog post “The Curmudgeon and the Millennial” where she ponders the Millennial Generation and their use of social media.—Ed.
A lot of the time, this reminds me of standing in the hall at junior high school before class just bullshitting. But several recent uses of social media reminded me of its value.
On a recent visit to New Orleans, we visited with a friend who works for a small non-profit. She was headed off to India for a month for yoga training. A few days later, back in Tucson, we see her post on Facebook many beautiful pictures of her environment in India. I’ve been working in technology for 25 years but this was definitely a “gee whiz” moment for me—just wonderful to see.
A friend we met in New Orleans a year or two ago stays with an artist friend who lives on Royal Street. I sent a Facebook friend request to our friend’s friend. The new friend sees the fabulous Doreen Ketchens regularly set up and play on Royal Street. The new friend posted a video of Doreen. Our friends in Philadelphia are fans of Doreen. I shared the video on their timeline. They really enjoyed seeing it.
My cousin in Northern California is Facebook friends with Candye Kane. My cousin shared a Facebook post with me about a gig Candye is playing in Tucson that we were not aware of and are now likely to attend.
Tweets and Facebook posts from WWOZ have alerted me to things on the air right now and I’ve been able to tune in online and catch them. I can’t really listen all the time so these are things I would have missed.
Before social media was so prominent, folks used to send jokes and other tidbits around to their friends via email. I recall reading a commentary on this phenomenon that pointed out that it wasn’t really the joke that was important—it was just a way for the sender to say to one or several friends—hey, I’m still alive and I was thinking about you.
So yeah, a lot of it is a waste of time. But as an old guy (older than our favorite curmudgeon), I have come to see the value in much of this stuff. It’s like the internet itself—plenty of crap, but lots of value for the finding.
—John Jacobs, Tucson, Arizona
So great to see this tribute to Art Neville coming together. Been watching him since the early ’70s with the Meters and then when the Neville’s put out their first album in around ’77 I think. Those were some wonderful days with Art, Earl King, Fess and Booker playing up and down the town from the Leaf to the original Tips. The soundtrack to my youth and with me everyday since.
—Brian O’Shea Papizzo, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
