October 2018
Cover Story
- Dyna-Mite: Jon Cleary keeps the New Orleans piano tradition’s fuse lit
“I think if I have any talent at all, it’s for picking good guys to play with to make me sound good,”…
Letters
- Letters to the Editor: Don Suhor, Irma Thomas, Frenchmen Street
Don Suhor I was excited to read Geraldine Wyckoff’s review of the Don Suhor discs in your last issue [August 2018].…
Mojo Mouth
- I’ll Be Brief…: OffBeat's expanding digital only content
I’m actually forced into being succinct in this Mojo Mouth column because, well, there’s not a lot of room to express…
Fresh
- DEUTSCHES HAUS: Oktoberfest returns to New Orleans on Bayou St. John
Oktoberfest 2018 takes place on the grounds of the new Deutsches Haus at 1700 Moss Street. A brand-new Deutsches Haus is… - SOUNDCHECK: Five Questions with pianist Danilo Pérez
“Groove them out!” Danilo Pérez instructs musicians as a means of dealing with societal and political problems faced by the world… - GETTING HIS DUE: The Legacy of Caesar Vincent
Caesar Vincent, the honoree of this year’s Festivals Acadiens et Créoles, will likely have Cajun music pundits scratching their heads. Caesar… - SOUNDCHECK: Five Questions with Michael Allen Zell
When it comes to capturing the grit and allure of New Orleans’ dark side, no one is doing it with as… - MY MUSIC: Keith Stone
“I was a late-in-life baby, so my mom grew up in a different era in New Orleans. She loved music. My mom… - Five Questions with Walter “Wolfman” Washington
It’s a big year for Walter “Wolfman” Washington. In August and September, the classic New Orleans rhythm-and-blues artist toured with… - SOUNDCHECK: Five Questions with M.A.Q. of "Supreme Beings"
M.A.Q. is a champion of New Orleans hip-hop, though he has mostly relegated himself to realms below the radar. After nurturing…
Features
- The Best High: Jonathon Long puts his songs and singing up front
Sometimes it’s time for a change. Despite being known as “Boogie” since he was two, Baton Rouge singer-guitarist-songwriter Jonathon Long recently… - Dear New Orleans: Visual artist Ceaux Young pens stories without words
Underneath the bridge where Claiborne Avenue meets Orleans Avenue, a mural devoted to New Orleans footwork electrifies what is otherwise a… - New Orleans Continues To Digest the National Food Hall Trend
In 2013, Jennifer Sherrod-Blackwell, Martinique Bistro’s veteran GM and sommelier, and her husband, Brandon Blackwell, a former sous chef at Upperline…
Obituaries
- In Memoriam: G.G. Shinn (1939-2018)
Gregg Martinez, the soul-singing bus driver from Opelousas, Louisiana, has rubbed shoulders with the late Ed Bradley of 60 Minutes fame,… - In Memoriam: Lazy Lester (1933-2018)
“They call me lazy, goodness knows I’m only tired.” Leslie Johnson, better known as Lazy Lester, the last member of the…
Dining Out
- Dining Out: Restaurant R'evolution
With so many new restaurants opening up all the time all over New Orleans, a first visit anywhere can be accompanied…
In The Spirit
- Matt Ray and Sonali Fernando at Ace Hotel
Matt Ray (MR): “We wanted to create a cocktail that would honor the spirit of Three Keys, our bar and performance…
The Dish
- The Dish: Chef Kelly Fields on Willa Jean’s BBQ Shrimp Toast
Which dish on your Willa Jean menu says the most about you? Our BBQ Shrimp Toast. Why is that? We all…
BackTalk
- Shemekia Copeland Talks Back
She’s a second-generation blues artist with a lot to say. In August, Shemekia Copeland released America’s Child, her ninth album. Her…
Reviews
- Wess “Warmdaddy” Anderson, Mark Rapp, Chris Burroughs and David Ellington, Natural History (Jangly Records)
Natural History gets off to a happy start with the members of this collaborative ensemble—saxophonist Wess “Warmdaddy” Anderson, trumpeter Mark Rapp,… - Neslorchestra, The Primordial Epiphany (Album Review)
Not all records can combine gonzo, dystopian conspiracy narratives and heartfelt pretty playing, but somehow long-awaited Neslorchestra record makes these seeming… - Fabulous Poodles, Mirror Stars: Complete Pye Recordings 1976-1980 (Cherry Red, UK)
Okay how many of you remember the Fabulous Poodles opening for Tom Petty at the Warehouse in 1979? That was the… - Tom Hambridge, The NOLA Sessions (Album Review)
Grammy-winning blues and roots music producer Tom Hambridge’s eighth solo album, The NOLA Sessions, brought him to the Parlor Recording Studio… - Shemekia Copeland, America’s Child (Alligator Records)
Shemekia Copeland is a full-scale blues/R&B diva in her prime, the inheritor of a tradition that stretches back to Bessie… - Jonathon Long, Jonathon Long (Wild Heart)
Jonathon Long, the Baton Rouge singer, guitarist and songwriter formerly known as Jonathon “Boogie” Long, did his homework. After learning… - Lil’ Nathan & the Zydeco Big Timers, Live at El Sid O’s
Hot on the heels of Lil’ Nathan’s late-2017 Unpaused release comes this CD/DVD recorded live at his uncle Sid Williams’… - Steve Murrell, Elysian Fields (Independent)
Steve Murrell’s Elysian Fields was a long time in the making and features all original songs from Murrell and company. Things… - Jamie Lynn Vessels, Storm Coming (Independent)
Among his other talents, Paul Sanchez is quite a talent scout, and when he told me to check out Jamie… - Dr. C & The Gris Gris, Hexes With Axes (Doctor C Music)
Never try to outguess a band’s music solely based on its name. Dr. C & the Gris Gris isn’t the… - Charles Lloyd & The Marvels + Lucinda Williams, Vanished Gardens (Blue Note)
At first glance, it might seem that pairing jazz artist Charles Lloyd with Lucinda Williams was a decidedly eclectic choice,… - Buddy Guy, The Blues Is Alive and Well (Silvertone/RCA)
Blues star Buddy Guy reunites with producer, songwriter and drummer Tom Hambridge for their sixth album together. The title—The Blues… - Keith Stone with Red Gravy, Blues with a Taste of New Orleans (Album Review)
You can’t argue that New Orleans is world famous for its tantalizing cuisine, but as Keith Stone points out with… - Jon Batiste, Hollywood Africans (Verve)
A homage to his musical heroes Those who only know Jon Batiste as the gregarious leader of the band…
