The COVID pandemic continued in 2021, making the presentation of live music difficult, and during a spike in infections, nearly impossible. Over the course of the year, fewer albums than usual were released with musicians more often issuing singles and EPs instead of full-length records. Nevertheless, in 2021 there were more than 150 album releases (that we are aware of) some of which contained outstanding performances.
Some of our Best of the Year picks were nominated for Grammy awards. Jon Batiste received eleven Grammy nominations—more than any other Louisiana artist since the awards began in 1958. The album We Are received eight nominations—Album of the Year, Best R&B Album, Record of the Year for Freedom, Best Traditional R&B Performance for “I Need You,” Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song for “Cry,” Best Music Video for Freedom, and Producer of the Year for “Sing.” The remaining three nominations were for the motion picture Soul composed by Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. Other albums from Louisiana artists that were nominated include Ledisi for Ledisi Sings Nina, Harry Connick, Jr. for Alone With My Faith, Sean Ardoin and Kreole Rock and Soul for Live in New Orleans!, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux for Bloodstains & Teardrops, Cha Wa for My People and Corey Ledet for Corey Ledet Zydeco.
As usual, we’ve polled our writers and editorial staff and have gathered 50 of OffBeat’s most highly recommended albums of the year. We didn’t include reissues or albums recorded many years ago, but only those recorded and released in 2021. Some titles released in December 2021 will be considered for the “Best of 2022” list.
We understand the difficulties in ranking, and we only rank the Top 10. We hope that the readers use this list merely as a guide to the best music that Louisiana has to offer in 2021, keeping in mind that the list is only the opinion of a small group of music writers and fans.
The Top 10 Albums
1. Jon Batiste: We Are (Independent)
“We Are, is an incredible album that stands as a classic of this era and a triumph for the joyfully talented, New Orleans own, Jon Batiste.”
—reviewed January 2022 by Geraldine Wyckoff
2. Big Chief Monk Boudreaux: Bloodstains and Teardrops (Whiskey Bayou Records)
“Combining Indian music, blues, and reggae in Jamaica has been a goal of Boudreaux’s for years, and he pulls it off with excellent results on this collection.”
—reviewed June 2021 by David Kunian
3. Oscar Rossignoli: Inertia (Rossignoli Music)
“Inertia is somehow reminiscent of the wind when, without warming, it changes from calm to blustery. It explodes into gale force on the fiery, brilliant closing cut, ‘Perpetual Motion.’ It prompts an excited ‘Bravo!’ for the mastery of Oscar Rossignoli.”
—reviewed July 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
4. Dumpstaphunk: Where Do We Go From Here? (The Funk Garage)
“Although Dumpstaphunk recorded the new album during a span of four years, it’s musically and thematically cohesive. ‘The recording process was scattershot,’ Ian Neville admitted. ‘But we were all together in between the studio time, so there wasn’t a gap in our cohesion.’”
—feature May 2021 by John Wirt
5. Dwayne Dopsie and the Zydeco Hellraisers: Set Me Free (Louisiana Red Hot Records)
“Dwayne wrote 11 of these dozen songs with varying textures and tempos that fit together seamlessly without all sounding alike. It’s a 21st-century continuation of first-generation zydeco pioneered by Founding Father Clifton Chenier and his contemporary, Dwayne’s father, Rockin’ Dopsie, Sr. … Somewhere high above in the heavens, Chenier and Rockin’ Dopsie, Sr. must be shaking their heads in disbelief, muttering: ‘Egad, we created a monster.’”
—reviewed September 2021 by Dan Willging
6. Bo Dollis Jr. and the Wild Magnolias: My Name Is Bo (Gallatin Street Records)
“Chief Bo Dollis Jr. and the Wild Magnolias continue traveling forward on the path that unites the Mardi Gras Indian Nation with artists from throughout the New Orleans music community that is, after all, one big family.”
—reviewed August 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
7. Jon Cleary: So Swell (Newvelle Records)
“This is a true celebration of the party spirit of New Orleans music. Cleary shows his total assimilation of the New Orleans tradition, rolling out the pianistic barrel on the Stephen Foster Rosetta Stone of ‘Swanee River Boogie,’ following with his own R&B shuffle ‘Two Wrongs,’ then charging on into Stevie Wonder’s ‘I Call It Pretty Music,’ everything played the way he learned it listening to James Booker at the Maple Leaf.”
—reviewed February 2021 by John Swenson
8. Pell: Floating While Dreaming II (Independent)
“The new record is not just a homecoming but a return to form, embracing the ‘dream rap’ style that set him apart. Pell’s refined the style with his years on the road, but he’s brought back state-of-the-art production a glossy sheen over the project that pushes his impressive lyrics and flow to new heights.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Dalton Spangler
9. George Porter Jr. and Runnin’ Pardners: Crying For Hope (Independent)
“For a band that is known for its stop-on-a-dime tightness when performing live, this album proves over and over that with the right musical ingredients the magic can actually be bottled.”
—reviewed May 2021 by Jay Mazza
10. Nicholas Payton with Ron Carter and Karriem Riggins with special guest George Coleman: Smoke Sessions (Smoke Sessions)
“Though it took close to four decades, trumpeter, keyboardist and composer Nicholas Payton’s dream of playing with legendary bassist Ron Carter finally came true on the recording of his latest album, Smoke Sessions. About the same number of years separates the two hugely talented musicians: Payton is 48 and Carter is 84.”
—feature November 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
The Next 40
(not ranked, listed in alphabetical order)
Adonis Rose and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra featuring Cyrille Aimee: Petite Fleur (Storyville)
“Petite Fleur remains bright due to the great local talent that makes up the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. These guys are hip and you can hear it.”
—reviewed January 2022 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Bad Operation: Bad Operation (Community Records/Bad Time Records)
“Bad Operation, which is filled with all-original material from the pen on Dominic Minix, provides a welcome return of ska in New Orleans and the kind of album that stands up to repeat playing especially when one needs a lift.”
—reviewed April 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Boma Bango: Étranger (Valcour Records)
“It’s not hard to imagine an only slightly alternate world in which a brand of rumba took root and flourished in the heart of Acadiana, just as it did in the heart of the Congo. Lafayette-based Boma Bango imagines just that, with loping Congolese rumbas, frisky merengues, lilting beguines and frisky soukous variations given a (slight) Cajun accent.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Steve Hochman
Camile Baudoin: This Old House (Independent)
“Radiators superhero guitarist Camile Baudoin … new album pays tribute to the dance groove of the band’s live performances. This Old House showcases Camile as an affable frontman accompanying himself on guitar while touching on some wonderful Radiators moments.”
—reviewed January 2022 by John Swenson
Carmela Rappazzo: Love & Other Difficulties (Independent)
“For Love & Other Difficulties she focused on her own musical history and strengths, enhanced by Rossignoli’s Latin-jazz acumen, particularly on three songs he co-wrote with her. His playing meshed perfectly with her style, honed from her obsessions from an early age with classic female jazz singers.”
—feature December 2021 by Steve Hochman
Cha Wa: My People (Independent)
“My People is the band’s most fully developed and wide-ranging recording. The backing tracks are played by a crack band of young musicians in the funk/rock/brass band/R&B hy-brid. It’s really a kind of a supersession of talented players on the New Orleans scene.”
—feature April 2021 by John Swenson
Charlie Halloran and the Tropicales: Shake the Rum (Independent)
“Halloran seems to prefer exploring all the permutations of genres where the trombone is central to the sound. He has played and recorded choros from Brazil and beguines from Martinique. Shake the Rum explores early calypso sounds from Trinidad in the 1950s. This fine album is well worth seeking out.”
—reviewed May 2021 by Jay Mazza
Corey Ledet: Corey Ledet Zydeco (Nouveau Electric Records)
“Besides writing eight originals, he’s also one of zydeco’s best accordionists, as evidenced by the dizzying rendition of Big Joe Turner’s ‘Flip Flop and Fly’ where fingers sprint up and down the black and whites.”
—reviewed February 2021 by Dan Willging
Daniel Coolik & K.C. Jones: Spirited Melancholy (Valcour Records)
“Coolik plays guitar and mandolin with seemingly endless effects and tones while Jones sings lead and background vocals. Both complemented their parts with various harmony lines for added depth.”
—reviewed April 2021 by Dan Willging
Derrick Shezbie: The Ghost of Buddy Bolden (Clubhouse Records)
“The band, led by the enthusiastic trumpet of Shezbie and filled with New Orleans musicians, makes it work because the artists have grown up with the improvisational spirit of the city that surely propelled Bolden himself.”
—reviewed April 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Ellis Marsalis with Jason Marsalis: For All We Know (Newvelle Records)
“The record closes with Marsalis by himself, playing a medley of ‘My Funny Valentine’ and ‘Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen,’ which fit together hand-in-glove despite their thematic differences. I don’t know if these two songs have ever been recorded together before, but it’s instructive to hear the whimsical, tears-through-smiles love song transform into the noble lament of a culture.”
—reviewed February 2021 by John Swenson
Irma Thomas: Love Is the Foundation (Newvelle Records)
“The coda of this wonderful recording comes with Thomas covering the timeless hit from 1962 for Ruby and the Romantics, ‘Our Day Will Come,’ a drummer-less ballad about under-age love elevated from the teenage angst that it originally served into a timeless lament for love-lost heartache.”
—reviewed February 2021 by John Swenson
Joe Dyson: Look Within (Independent)
“Look Within stands as Dyson’s debut release under his own name and reveals his huge talents as a composer. While many tunes feature ensemble work with his strong band, pianist Oscar Rossignoli, saxophonist Stephen Gladney, trumpeter Stephen Lands, bassist Jasen Weaver and percussionist Daniel Sadownick, it is not difficult to grasp that the brilliant Dyson is at the helm.”
—reviewed March 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Jon Batiste: Music from and Inspired by the Disney’s Soul (Walt Disney Records)
“Soul, the amusing and affecting new film from Pixar Animation Studios, adds another stellar credit to Kenner native Jon Batiste’s resue. Batiste wrote the movie’s original jazz compositions and arrangements. He’s also the model for Soul principal character Joe Gardner’s piano performances in the film.”
—feature January 2021 by John Wirt
Keith Frank & the Creole Connection: The Resurrection of The Creole Connection (Soulwood Records)
“Keith Frank has endured as one of the genre’s leading envelope pushers. The Creole Connection re-recorded most of the original album with a few new songs and omitted others for a total of 16 tracks.”
—reviewed December 2021 by Dan Willging
Kid Eggplant and the Groovy Melatauns: Peace, Love and Donuts (Independent)
“When I popped the new album from Kid Eggplant and the Groovy Melatauns into my disc player and hit play, I had to check twice to make sure I wasn’t still tuned into WWOZ. The first several songs on the album sound like they would be perfectly at home on Billy Dell’s legendary ‘Records from the Crypt’ program or any of the other 1950s rhythm and blues programs on the local independent station.”
—reviewed August 2021 by Jay Mazza
Kyle Roussel: Church of New Orleans (Independent)
“That Kyle Roussel hails from New Orleans remains evident throughout this fine album full of his original material. On Church of New Orleans Roussel continues this city’s rich piano lineage while as a talented and diverse next-generation musician, he offers new flavors and his inspiring individual voice.”
—reviewed March 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Ledisi: Ledisi Sings Nina with the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra (BMG)
“Ledisi Sings Nina is a tribute to Nina Simone, the mesmerizing singer, songwriter and pianist known as the high priestess of soul. Ledisi was in her early 20s, living in Oakland, when Simone’s voice, playing on San Francisco Bay Area radio station KPFA, lifted her up and turned her around. Simone has been a recurring presence in Ledisi’s career since her show-stealing performance of the Simone classic, ‘Four Women.’”
—feature July 2021 by John Wirt
Lilli Lewis: Americana (Louisiana Red Hot Records)
“There’s hurt and solace to be found on this album. And like on the closing track, ‘My American Heart,’ Lewis is making sure people have this difficult conversation and answer the big questions.”
—reviewed November 2021 by Dalton Spangler
Loose Cattle: Heavy Lifting (Low Heat Records)
“The molten core of Loose Cattle—two-time Tony and Grammy award winner Michael Cerveris and his partner-in-crime Kimberly Kaye—have never sounded tighter on their trademark close harmonies and give each other free rein when the other takes the spotlight. They’ve also got a crack team behind them: bassist Rene Coman and drummer Doug Garrison of the Iguanas and free-ranging fiddler Rurik Nunan.”
—reviewed July 2021 by Cree McCree
Lynn Drury: Dancin’ In the Kitchen (CSB Roxy Music)
“In the final analysis Drury’s greatest strength is the soulfulness in her voice. Whether she’s singing of relationship breakdowns, the search for identity or the sheer joy of being alive she is always a convincing messenger for the human condition.”
—reviewed December 2021 by John Swenson
Maria Muldaur and Tuba Skinny: Let’s Get Happy Together (Stony Plain)
“Digging into the tradition, playing vintage material for young hipsters, making musicology fun—Maria Muldaur started doing that in the Boston coffeehouses five decades ago, and Tuba Skinny is doing it in New Orleans now. Muldaur’s persona has always been a bit bawdy—it was she who made a ’70s hit out of Blue Lu Barker’s ‘Don’t Feel My Leg’—so Tuba Skinny can play loose and be respectful at the same time.”
—reviewed May 2021 by Brett Milano
Michot’s Melody Makers: Tiny Island (Nouveau Electric)
“[Leyla] McCalla’s cello playing provides a rich, thick bottom end that’s otherwise uncharacteristically quasi-orchestral in Cajun music. Michot’s Melody Makers’ Mark Bingham adds a trippy underlayer by playing his guitar using foot pedals through a tiny amp to shadow the melody lines.”
—reviewed December 2021 by Dan Willging
Monogram Hunters: Blood Sweat and Tears (Independent)
“Blood Sweat and Tears, which is wonderfully packaged and includes comprehensive liner notes, should certainly be filling the air during Carnival season and would be an excellent resource for teachers and those seeking further knowledge on the Black Indian Nation. It’s the real deal.”
—reviewed May 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Nigel Hall: Spiritual (Regime Music Group)
“Hall says he made the album for himself, and that may be so, but this album has something for anyone interested in an artist creating himself anew”
—reviewed August 2021 by Jay Mazza
NOLA String Kings: Dream Palace (Independent)
“The NOLA String Kings have delivered a fine product; recorded right before the plague shutdown began. It shimmers with instrumental prowess, has a strong vocal presence and offers something for virtually every listener with ears for music rooted in the past but very much of the present.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Jay Mazza
“For all the lovers out there, queer or otherwise, this album has a relatable song (or five) that will get you to know yourself, love yourself, or at least dance your night away.”
—reviewed August 2021 by Tyree Worthy
Paasky: In Times Like These (Independent)
“In Times Like These is a 27-minute journey into the lifestyle of a young and successful New Orleans hustler. The musicality and texture here show the scope of hip-hop knowledge Paasky and his team have. The album is a sonic highlight for the city this year. It says that in times like these, in the midst of a pandemic, one can still stunt.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Tyree Worthy
Ricci/Krown: City Country City (Gulf Coast Records)
“These two artists are clearly simpatico players and they have crafted an album that walks around two different musical genres—the blues and soul jazz—breathing life into what might be heard as hackneyed in lesser hands.”
—reviewed November 2021 by Jay Mazza
Ryan Hanseler: Live at Snug (Independent)
“Live at Snug wasn’t meant to be released as an album. It was simply a recording captured by the club of another great night of music in New Orleans being enjoyed by an obviously enthusiastic crowd. Gratefully, that show is now available to a much larger and what should be an equally appreciative audience of jazz lovers.”
—reviewed December 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Sean Ardoin and Kreole, Rock and Soul: Live in New Orleans! (Independent)
“A live recording from last July’s inaugural NOLA Zydeco Fest. What’s on tap here is an off-the-charts performance that showcases Ardoin’s consummate showmanship, underrated vocals and his band’s ability to sprint with its tireless frontman.”
—reviewed January 2022 by Dan Willging
Seán Johnson and the Wild Lotus Band: Mystery (Be Still Records)
“Though Mystery isn’t even close to being a reggae album, it brings many of the elements of that genre together including positivity, consciousness, soul and self-awareness into a modern-day musical curry.”
—reviewed December 2021 by Jay Mazza
Ted Hefko & the Thousandaires: Down Below (Independent)
“The tunes on the album reflect a deep curiosity in a variety of genres from Americana, blues and country to roots rock and of course, jazz. Yet they all coalesce into a powerful individual statement. This is an album from a songwriter fully inhabiting his creations.”
—reviewed January 2022 by Jay Mazza
Terence Blanchard featuring The E-Collective and The Turtle Island Quartet: Absence (Blue Note)
“When Blanchard faces the genius of [Wayne] Shorter as he does on Absence, the trumpeter bows down while making the music ring out with his own brilliance.”
—reviewed November 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
The Cookers: Look Out! (Gearbox Records)
“The Cookers have again served up a batch of supreme hard-hitting jazz…these cats that make it sizzle. The legendary musicians here were some of the creators of the new sound that followed jazz’s bebop era. Their improvisational powers remain dangerously potent as warned by the album’s title, Look Out!”
—reviewed October 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
The Junior League: Bridge & Tunnel (Independent)
“This is one absolute honey of a pop album, and if your collection is full of jangly guitars and haunting chorus hooks, it will hit you right where you live. The reference points go back to vintage Big Star, but a gifted songwriter can make it all fresh again, and Covington resident Joe Adragna—who effectively is the Junior League with occasional help—proves to be one.”
—reviewed December 2021 by Brett Milano
The Secret Six: Secret Six (Independent)
“Grab this album if you want to be uplifted by timeless good-time music created by a band dedicated to presenting it unfiltered through a unique lens.”
—reviewed May 2021 by Jay Mazza
The Wonderful World of Louis Armstrong All-Stars: A Gift to Pops (Verve)
“A Gift to Pops is a package full of delights performed by hugely talented musicians with obvious love of Armstrong, jazz music and each other. In turn, it stands as a gift to us all.”
—reviewed November 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
Tiffany Pollack & Co.: Bayou Liberty (NOLA Blue Records)
“While Pollack shows she has a knack for songwriting, she’s also a stunning vocalist with gale-force power that’s short of hair-parting. While she gets by with a little help from Németh and her merry band of music makers, it’s Pollack who’s firmly in control and is one to keep an eye on.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Dan Willging
Weedie Braimah: The Hands of Time (Stretch Music)
“The Hands of Time ends with Braimah professing his devotion to the drum. ‘You are the source of my strength… I am a vessel of you,’ he says as if in prayer backed by a choir of voices. It’s a spiritual moment with the call of the drum and the names of legendary drum masters offered as an amen.”
—reviewed October 2021 by Geraldine Wyckoff
