It’s not often that I see four-inch "I Love New Orleans" tattoos on the shoulders of people I hang with.
I saw one of ‘em and lots of other evidence of profound love for Louisiana music last week on the first-ever "Zydeco Cruise" organized by Seattle-based Carol Schreitmueller and Lafayette-based travel agency The Travel Machine.
There were T-shirts proclaiming: "Give me zydeco or give me death!", "If zydeco was a controlled substance, I’d be doing life," "ZYDEHOLIC: One Dance At A Time"—and a lot more. Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie, and special guests JoJo Reed and Leo Thomas played every day of the cruise (several times a day). There were zydeco dance lessons given throughout the cruise: beginner, intermediate and advanced. I haven’t seen such music fanatics since Jazz Fest—but I guess this is just a continuation of the craze for Louisiana music that’s becoming predominant throughout the country.
As a business person, it’s interesting to see the market for Louisiana music. Most of the zyde-cruisers were not from Louisiana; a great majority came from either the east or west coasts of the US; they’re older, usually between 35 and 55; they have money and time to spend on leisure activities. Most are highly computer literate and have professional jobs. For a business like OffBeat, they’re pretty ideal—Gen Xers they’re not, but there are a lot of ‘em and they have money to spend. OffBeat subscribers fit the same profile: they love Louisiana music, food and culture; they’re hip; and they have the money to indulge their passions (44% of OffBeat subscribers make over $75,000 a year).
But back to the cruise…these zyde-cruisers danced non-stop ‘til 2 a.m. every morning between stops in Cozumel, Grand Cayman and Montego Bay. They were two-steppin’ and waltzin’ around the pool on the boat like there was no tomorrow. If they could’ve stayed on the boat and danced instead of leaving the boat for the tourist traps on shore, they probably would’ve. Rounder Records was selling zydeco and Cajun CDs in the "Zydeco Store" (with producer Scott Billington dancing and partying down his share); Michael Tisserand’s new book, The Kingdom of Zydeco sold briskly; Rock ‘N’ Bowl bowling shirts and ties went for big premiums (Mid-City Lanes seems to be the zydeco dance mecca of New Orleans) and OffBeat magazine was welcome reading material indeed. It’s definitely a phenomenon.
OffBeat subscriber Steve Tonnini, who won this year’s Zydeco Cruise contest, seemed happy as a clam to be on the cruise, and managed to dance a few two-steps with his squeeze, Vlada Miceli.
It’s a shame that the people who have created the Louisiana culture that produces such rabid fans doesn’t seem to appreciate the appeal it has all over the world. But just ask some of the bands that tour constantly because of the world’s love of Louisiana music: BeauSoleil, Geno Delafose, The Neville Brothers, the Funky Meters, Wayne Toups, The Radiators, and many, many more.
"Interest in Cajun and zydeco music is really amazing to me," says David Doucet of BeauSoleil, who also annually publishes the Louisiana Datebook. "It dropped off a bit in the late seventies and early eighties, but really picked up again in the late eighties and nineties," says Doucet. "It’s really weird, but the interest is not from the middle of the country—it’s from both coasts." It’s weird, because that’s where OffBeat subscribers are too, for the most part. Could it have something to do with water??
Tipitina’s is following up with a "Rhythm & Blues Cruise" in mid-March 1999 that sails to the same ports. The musical entertainment will feature Marva Wright and Henry Butler. Call Vacations at Sea at 504-482-1572 for more information.
They’re Pickin On Us AGAIN! Department
In our last issue, we chronicled problems at Donna’s (we understand Donna’s was raided again on account of a complaint when the club wasn’t even open…go figure). In November, Jimmy’s Club and the Funky Butt were also both targeted by the NOPD (Jimmy’s was closed down in mid-performance) because the proper permits weren’t being displayed. According to Richard Rochester (see this month’s Straight No Chaser column) and Jimmy Anselmo, Jimmy’s Club owner, permits had been purchased, but city finance departments had not mailed the proper paperwork to the clubs, despite repeated requests. I have two things to say: 1) If the mayor expects us to support his proposed property taxes that supposedly will pay city workers, he’d better get competent people to pay before he expects us to support the new taxes; and 2) all the music clubs in town need to form an association to represent their interests to government. I’ve made this latter point to club owners for years; maybe now if they feel that they’re being singled out, they’ll get together and do something about protecting their businesses’ interests. ‘Nuff said.
OffBeat Moves To The Marigny…
As OffBeat moves to 421 Frenchmen Street in the Marigny (out of the CBD), the Jazz Fest producers Festival Productions Inc. (FPI) are moving from their digs at 2200 Royal Street in Bywater to 336 Camp Street, Suite 250 in the CBD. Their new phone number is 504-410-4100. If you want info on the Jazz Fest itself, please continue to call 504-522-4786.
Our official date in the new OffBeat digs is December 1. We’ll be setting up our new OffBeat Free Music Info Center at the corner of Decatur and Frenchmen during December: we’ll have bulletin boards for gig and personnel postings, free music brochures, and more; look for it in January, or call 504-944-4300 for more information.
