YOU LIKE US! YOU REALLY LIKE US!
Enclosed please find my check as my donation to OffBeat. This is just a small way to say thanks for all your efforts and perseverance, past, present and future, to help the music culture and musicians of New Orleans. What you [Jan Ramsey] have accomplished with regard to the operation of OffBeat post-Katrina is nothing short of miraculous. The energy and effort that you and the staff have expended are phenomenal. I know that OffBeat will continue to be a key element in the rebuilding of our city. May the music flourish again.
—Robert D. Edmundson, New Orleans, LA
On January 19, I emailed you inquiring about post-storm publications. You assured me that you were presently publishing, determined what issues I had missed and informed me that you would see to my address change. Imagine my delight when, two days later, I received the three issues I had missed! I appreciate you taking the time and the expense to see that I was caught up on what is happening in the music world over there. Actually, it brought tears to my eyes as any small act of kindness does these days. I, like so many of your readers, lost everything material to Katrina and having OffBeat on the floor beside my air mattress makes things feel a little more normal.
Being a lover of and frequent visitor to the city, I have followed with a heavy heart the happenings there while being overwhelmed with what happened here. Don’t forget us over here as our lives and landscape have also been forever changed. We love you guys and look forward to a little sunshine in the mailbox from you in the future.
—Kim Sumrall, Gulfport, MS
I wanted to thank you guys for hanging in there and working so hard. A lot of things and people that are familiar to me are gone, and it’s very depressing. I’m glad you guys are around.
—Jeff Chaz, New Orleans, LA
I was born at Ochsner but only lived [in New Orleans] for a year. However, I have been going back to my favorite city many times since. As a kid, for the last 10 Jazz Fests and other assorted times in between. This year, my wife and I went back for Tipitina’s Founders Ball and the first second line since Katrina. We saw the good, the bad, and the really ugly.
It was wonderful to dine at Jacques-Imo’s and dance to George, Wolfman and Joe Krown at night. A smile came upon my face seeing Frenchy back where he belongs. It was a treasure to be a part of the largest second line in a long time (we were about 10 yards away from the incident) but that night after the Indians’ practice, Big Chief Peppy and Big Chief Monk helped put all in perspective — the only thing that can get you down is you. Not hearing a gunshot, not a hurricane, and especially not a fucked up government.
NOLA had its problems before, and tossing a bitch of a hurricane and broken levees on top did not help. We will try, as many of our friends are doing both here, there and everywhere to get the spirit dancing again. NOLA has been through shit before and it will see it again, but as I told my wife at the second line, “The band’s coming, love, the band’s coming.” And as Monk said that Sunday night, “They always do.”
—Craig Meyers, Arlington, VA
I just received your December issue and almost immediately read it cover to cover.
My wife and I visited New Orleans for the 2005 Jazz Fest and fell in love. A real city with real people and real neighborhoods! We were sad to leave the city and we both knew that at some point in time we had to go back to New Orleans.
A group of us will be coming there for reconstruction work. Several in our group have never been to New Orleans, and I’m sure they will like it as much as my wife and I have.
I’ll continue to tell my friends and acquaintances to buy Louisiana music and products. I have heard this will make a positive impact on the economy.
—Cris B. Newman, Dallastown, PA
Dear Readers — Your words of support have been incredibly gratifying and have helped us a great deal through this difficult time. One of the positive by-products of the hurricane is that we have found out how many friends OffBeat and New Orleans have, and the feeling is wonderful. Still, we’re a magazine about the city and its music, and we hope we’re engaging your minds as well as your hearts. As reassuring as it is to read your kinds words, we’d also like to see what you think about stories we tell and the opinions we put forward. Thanks.—ED
MAIL WOES
We LOVE receiving OffBeat at our home in Celebration, FL. I am a native Cajun and my husband is a Cajun-in-Training. He fried his first turkey, so he’s almost official and he can put down some crawfish bread too.
Anyway, we like to travel back and forth to New Orleans for the music, but we receive the magazine in the middle of the month. If we could get the magazine as soon as it is printed sent to us, then we could plan accordingly. We saw a lot of acts and events for January but received the magazine this weekend — too late.
We know in our hearts that you are doing your very best, and we appreciate that. My entire family is in New Orleans and surrounding areas, and all safe and sound, Amen. We attend many fundraisers in Florida and give to Catholic Charities each week through Church for the hurricane fund.
The music of New Orleans is in our hearts, the food in our souls, and the people in our prayers!
—Sandra Sigur and Richard Sznerch, Celebration, FL
You can access our listings on our website www.offbeat.com, we usually put them up pretty quickly.
We have experienced unbelievable problems with the post office and have done everything we’re supposed to when it comes to mailing the magazines. The December issue was mailed on December 2 (a bit late) and the January issue on December 28. Most of our subscribers reported receiving the magazine nearly a month after we mailed them. OffBeat has contacted the Post Master General in New Orleans, who assured us that he will look into this matter immediately. We have not received any of the more than 25 magazines we subscribe to since August since, unlike OffBeat, most magazines are not mailed “first class” but “third class” which the New Orleans post office will not deliver.
Thanks for letting us know when and how you’re receiving the magazine .—ED
LOUD AND PROUD
Just yesterday I signed up for my very first mail subscription to OffBeat. Although I live only a few blocks away from your offices, I wanted to insure I don’t miss even one issue. Your dedication and service provide encouragement and invaluable support for all of us. So glad you are still hanging in there.
I am the unnamed “nice young gay with a good, good voice” mentioned in the January 2006 letters to the editor by a reader talking about the Rock ’n’ Bowl’s grand opening night. Thank you for the compliment!
—Olivia Green, New Orleans, LA
COWSILL LOVE
I receive most of my information about New Orleans through The Chicago Tribune. They are informative and do not let the situations and plight disappear.
I’m too far away to make opinions or draw conclusions but I think about the city a lot and wish you all the very best. I do hope to be there for Jazz Fest!
Sorry to hear about Barry Cowsill. I am a Beach Boys fan and always enjoy brother John Cowsill’s contribution to the band. He takes Carl Wilson’s part on “Kokomo” and “Darlin’.” Mike West is coming to our town next week and the Iguanas were here December 30. Take care and get well soon.
—Steve Moen, Iowa City, IA
A DISCOURAGING WORD
DUDE! What is up with OffBeat and getting a decent article?!?!? [see Reviews, February 2006]
We have the best selling and the best drawing band in the area that all of this Cajun/zydeco music came from and I read articles [in OffBeat] from bands that could not put two people in a club or sell two CDs and OffBeat raves about the CD, and here we have the best selling CD in the state in its genre of music and the number one requested song on KBON, which is a Louisiana station and also several other stations not related to Louisiana music and even closing several major festivals including closing out the most famous Cajun festival in our area (The Crawfish Festival) and even Wisconsin and has carried all the way to Texas and most requested in Morgan City and all over the state and yet the guy writing the article is just not in touch to what is going on in the music industry!
If he thinks we should have spent more effort in the studio then he must have not been around any parade or trail ride or club and found that 80 percent of all floats are playing our CD!
It is just very frustrating to have people that really could help our music and have them write uneducated stuff like that!
—Travis Matte, Scott, LA
