From Here to Jupiter & Back Again
Returning to planet Earth after an extraordinary trip to the moon and Jupiter, and finally returning to, and settling in the Chocolate Swirl Sea, I am now able to begin figuring out who Harold Battiste is.
On the 16th of October late in the evening, the Red Room bulged with enough love energy…more than enough…to lift off and thrust this tiny satellite into unexplored places and unexpected events in his life. Who would of thought? Not ME!!
I thank each and every one of you, from the bottom of my heart and the depths of my soul. The gifts of your presence, your laughter and your smiles…some of you allowing me to have my photo taken with you…these are the life-lasting gifts that I…(and Harold Who?) will treasure until my final Space Journey.
I love you New Orleans.
Harold R. Battiste, Jr.
New Orleans
Mr. Battiste was the subject of our October cover story and subsequent tribute night. Obviously, the moment wasn’t lost on this illustrious, talented gentleman.—Ed.
Bering Deserved More
I picked up the November copy of OffBeat with some expectations. Of course, I was not surprised to see that the murder of Raymond Myles was covered—certainly a very sad story and one that received a great deal of media coverage.
I was shocked and dismayed, however, to see that the untimely death of Charlie Bering was given no more than a passing mention. Throughout his life, Charlie was an instrumental figure in the New Orleans jazz scene and was known by most people in the music business, whether they knew him personally, had been booked by him, had worked with him, or knew of his fine reputation with the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.
I worked for Charlie when I first moved to New Orleans and found him to be one of the kindest and most sincere men in New Orleans. He was generous in spirit and always had a kind word. When I began to work for Pete Fountain Productions, everyone here knew of Charlie and worked with him on many occasions. He was respected and admired.
Charlie deserves more than a one-line mention of his death. Surely, OffBeat could spare at least a few paragraphs to describe a man who truly loved New Orleans jazz and promoted this city’s riches in his own venues as well as at the Jazz Fest.
Sincerely,
Dee Drummey
New Orleans
Your points are well taken, Dee. But, in addition to the mention on the Raymond Myles page, Jonathan Tabak also covered Mr. Bering’s life in his “Straight, No Chaser” column. Thanks for your thoughts.—Ed.
Minor Essential Corrections
Prior to picking nits, just let me say that I think your 100 Essential Louisiana CDs segments are a great introduction to the recorded legacy of New Orleans music to those looking to learn more and hear more.
In the November segment, Scott Jordan reviews the Rhino compilation on the history of the Neville Brothers, Treacherous. It is an excellent place to start with one’s Neville Brothers education. Unfortunately, there are a couple of facts wrong in the review.
He mentions Art Neville’s vocals on the Hawkette’s version of “Mardi Gras Mambo” (originally done by Jody Levens for Sapphire Records) and says it was recorded for Specialty Records. That should be Chess Records. Later in the review, he mentions the Brothers’ 70s work for A&M, including “Washable Ink.” Their first A&M LP was 1981’s Fiyo on the Bayou. “Washable Ink” appeared on their debut 1978 Capitol LP, The Neville Brothers. This information, by the way, is available on the Treacherous track listings.
Thanks for all the good you all do for New Orleans/Louisiana music. I’m paying attention!
Dan Phillips
New Orleans: Under the Influence, WEVL
Memphis, TN
As pickers of nit go, Brother Dan, you’re among the top five. Thanks for reading the fine print, as it were.—Ed.
In Praise of Song
The first time I’d heard of Clyde McPhatter (OffBeat, Nov. ‘98) was a mention of his name in a song on Aaron Neville’s Soulful Christmas release. I enjoyed learning more about the man who inspired Aaron Neville.
I wonder if Aaron is aware that his description of McPhatter’s “power to sooth and take you there” voice could also be used to describe his own unique talents. As Cyril [Neville] has said, “There’s only one voice like that in the universe and brother Aaron’s got it.”
So OffBeat, thanks for broadening my musical interests and to Mr. Aaron Neville, thanks for the joy that you’ve given me. I want you to know that I believe in your song.
Sincerely,
Lynda Draudt
Hamburg, NY
Yeah, ya right!—Ed.
Fred LeBlanc Responds
This is in response to a letter written to OffBeat addressed to me personally by a former guitarist of the band Mercyland. Aside from my personal feelings at being blindsided by someone I thought was a friend, let me point out a couple of (what I thought were) obvious things to the author of said letter.
I truly believe Mercyland was one of the great unsung bands of the last 10 years. I have said that to anyone asking about the name of the CD in many radio and print interviews throughout the promotion for it.
But you chose to read and respond to only one interview that was edited down from over two to three hours of conversation done on the road after a show. In addition, each band member was thanked individually on the album for the specific use of the title.
However, the most bizarre aspect of this is that you have my home phone number and you have not returned my phone calls to you in order to talk about this like adults. Maybe you just wanted to take a swipe at me in a public forum. Shame on me? I don’t think so. Remember what they say about people with glass houses throwing stones.
Fred LeBlanc
Somewhere in America
And From The Man Who Wrote About Mercyland
When I opened the November issue of OffBeat and read the letter from Andrew Donaldson concerning Fred LeBlanc’s comments about the title of Mercyland in my BackTalk piece (October 1998), I was bummed indeed. I feel some clarification is necessary on my part and, though I’d never heard of Donaldson’s band, I do think it’s fair to go into a bit of the journalistic process that resulted in Fred’s statements.
As most journalists know, the published Q&A format is rarely exactly as the conversation went down. Meandering conversation patterns, interruptions, excessive length, decisions in mid-sentence to go “off the record”—a variety of possibilities—make it frequently necessary to edit Q&As or, at least, move around excerpts to make the piece flow better and more concisely.
I had been talking backstage with Paul Sanchez about the metaphorical idea of “Mercyland,” having commented to him that, upon hearing the name, I immediately thought of two things: Elvis’ Graceland, and the idea of redemption. Paul was elaborating, talking about how I was definitely in the ballpark insofar as the spiritual implications of a “Mercyland,” when Fred wandered up and asked what we were talking about.
I just said something about the idea of a mythical “Mercyland” being a place of redemption, and Fred said what he said, which was printed in OffBeat. Later, when it was time to edit what was really a long piece and I was trying to fit the comments in without explaining that Fred was merely contributing to a theme that Paul and I had been discussing, it seemed to me that the easiest way to present Fred’s remarks was simply to frame a brief question asking “who or what” Mercyland represented.
In retrospect, mine was a poor choice of words, though absolutely in context of the conversation that took place. I have no qualms about the integrity of my work but I do regret that the editing perhaps implied an attitude of Fred’s that wasn’t comprehensive to the whole history of the Mercyland title or suggested an omission of “credit due” on his part which he didn’t mean.
I suppose, looking back, that I should’ve phrased the question, “What are the metaphysical implications of the title Mercyland” (or something like that) but I was striving for brevity given spatial constraints. In my dealings with Fred LeBlanc (and indeed all the members of Cowboy Mouth and their organization), I’ve found them to be gracious, honest and more than supportive of other bands.
I regret any unintentional misrepresentations or omissions, but stand by the quotes and the context.
Sincerely,
Rick Koster
New London, CT
Utilizing the Rashomon approach to problem solving, we have now completed the second and third parts of our search into the real meaning of Mercyland.—Ed.
Thanks & Greetings from New Zealand
We are renewing our subscription for a further two years. With the help of OffBeat, we recently organized the sale and delivery of some CDs reviewed this year. They’re terrific and our thanks go to a great NO team: Scott Jordan at OffBeat who e-mailed us Tower’s fax number; Shelley Galiano at Tower who promptly dealt with our order and arranged for the good folks at Bookstar next door to get the book we wanted; and to Bookstar for keeping the book aside from their collection. Thanks also to Nelson ophthalmologist, Dr Derek Sherwood, for taking time out from his conference to collect the goodies and bring them safely home so we are once again in touch with the taste of NO. OffBeat is now part of our regular life and if the supply should be cut off we are sure that we would suffer severe withdrawal symptoms.
Sincerely,
John Smith & Lyn Dawson
Nelson, New Zealand
Not wanting to contribute to some sort of epidemic Down Under, we have extended your subscription (or maybe we should say prescription) accordingly.—Ed.
Missing One of the Hank Sinatras
Thanks for the article on my friends, Amy and the Hank Sinatras. The article was great except that you neglected [to mention] their regular saxophonist, Ken “Snakebite” Jenkins. He has played at virtually all of their gigs that I have attended (probably over 40 shows at last count).
His picture is included with the band photo but you didn’t mention him and called him an “occasional” member.
Thank you,
Melissa Allred
New Orleans
Funny you should mention it, Melissa, but when we discovered our error, our faces turned like your last name. Thanks for reading.—Ed.
A Yankee in Donna’s Court
Thanks for your quality publication and web site. It helps me keep in touch year-round with a city and culture that I love very much. Thanks for all that you do.
However, I was very disheartened to learn about the arrests of Wolf Anderson and Tuba Fats at Donna’s Bar & Grill and the hassles at the club. Donna’s is one of the best clubs in New Orleans for brass band music, New Orleans atmosphere and ribs! It is one of the few clubs in town where black and white—the entire human rainbow—enjoy music and share each other’s company. It truly shows the cultural diversity of New Orleans and I mean in the audience, and not just on stage. I can still remember eating chicken cooked by that distinguished chef and hometown horn blower, Kermit Ruffins, from the back of his truck at 3 a.m. Or the time I shared Chips Ahoy with the Soul Rebels.
I’m from New York so I have a sense of how a city works. [From my perspective] you have a very special thing down there in New Orleans. You have a real culture and your music is renowned and unique worldwide. Understand that [your] music is the main commodity (oh yeah, and the food too). Donna’s has them both and a peace groove too.
Please don’t ruin it for yourselves, or us, by [unnecessary] regulation. I know that I’m a Yankee and I shouldn’t say too much about it but, hey, I care. New Orleans is my spiritual home and I mean to help preserve it.
Respectfully
Billy “The Rhino” Schempp
New York
You know, sometimes these Yankees just make too much sense.—Ed