October 2020
Cover Story
- Bon Bon Vivant’s creativity and savvy expands and succeeds
When Life Gives You Lemons Through conflict and turmoil, Bon Bon Vivant’s creativity and savvy expands and succeeds Spring 2020 was…
Features
- The Cosmic Virtual Galaxy — Festivals Acadiens et Créoles reinvents itself
Ed. Note: Due to Hurricane Delta, Festival Acadiens et Créoles announced on Wednesday, October 7 that it has been rescheduled to… - Shades of Katrina: Hurricane Laura’s impact on South Louisiana musicians
Jo-El Sonnier knew the 4:30 a.m. phone call in late August couldn’t be good news. A friend told the Cajun and… - Shine A Light: Kelly Lee Blackwell is determined to honor her father’s legacy
Robert “Bumps” Blackwell helped Little Richard and Sam Cooke grasp stardom. Blackwell’s daughter, Kelly Lee Blackwell, is on a mission to… - Stealing Mosquitoes: Debbie LaGrange swats down evil music
Debbie LaGrange’s life changed four years ago when she googled for jobs for stay-at-home retirees. Up popped a gargantuan list of… - Threadhead Foundation architect Chris Joseph’s journey of cancer recovery
Life is a Ride Threadhead Foundation architect Chris Joseph’s journey of cancer recovery In March of 2017, Chris Joseph sat…
Fresh
- Faux Mac — Singer Greg Hardy unmasked himself
A longstanding Dr. John mystery was solved online just a few months ago. It concerns a strange album called Zu Zu… - A Special Place in Her Heart for Ellis: Filmmaker hopes to bring Marsalis documentary about the beloved pianist to the big screen
Filmmaker Sascha Just has a special place in her heart for New Orleans. Not only is it a place where the…
Letters
- Letters to the Editor: OffBeat Magazine, October 2020
Digital OffBeat Receiving OffBeat, be it digital or hard copy, is one of the highlights of my month. Stay strong and…
Obituaries
- Sylvester “Hawk” Francis (1946-2020)
“It's better to be two hours early than two minutes late to a second line,” was one of Sylvester Francis' oft-repeated… - Frederick Nathaniel “Toots” Hibbert (1942 -2000)
Jamaican reggae artist Frederick Nathaniel “Toots” Hibbert of Toots and the Maytals passed away on September 11, 2020 at age 77.… - Sidney Noel “Morgus” Rideau (1929-2020)
Sidney Noel Rideau, best known to thousands of New Orleans baby-boomers as Dr. Morgus, the well-meaning, colorful genius/mad scientist of the… - Ronnie Kole (1931–2020)
New Orleans pianist, Ronnie Kole who performed for six presidents and a pope, died at age 89 on Thursday, August 27.… - Stanley Crouch (1945-2020)
Stanley Crouch, the provocative speaker, music and cultural critic, musician, and brilliant writer, died on September 16, 2020 following nearly a… - Willis Prudhomme (1931-2020)
Willis Prudhomme never told the often-heard, childhood story of zydeco accordionists who had fathers that forbid them to touch their cherished…
Reviews
- Shawn Williams, The Fear of Living, The Fear of Loving (Independent)
Plenty of people have made Covid-era albums so far, but most of them avoid the elephant in the proverbial room and… - Adonis Rose, Piece of Mind – Live at Blue Llama (Storyville Records)
In the spring of 2019, drummer Adonis Rose gathered some of his very talented peers and musical cohorts to record Piece… - The Lena Prima Big Band, Live in Concert (Basin Street Records)
Lena Prima’s last studio album, Prima La Famiglia, was the one she was born to make. It wasn’t the first time… - PJ Morton, Gospel According to PJ Morton (Morton Inspiration/Tyscot Records)
Through a series of remote recording sessions, keyboardist, vocalist and composer PJ Morton, the son of Bishop Paul S. Morton (senior… - Slugger, Eclipse (Bubble Bath Records)
A local supergroup, Slugger co-stars George Porter Jr. drummer Terrence Houston, Naughty Professor bassist Noah Young, keyboardist Joe Johnson and guitarist… - Warren Storm with Herb Landry & The Serenaders, Live 1957 (Swamp Pop Records)
It has certainly been a banner year for 83-year-old swamp pop legend Warren Storm. In December, fellow musician and admirer Yvette… - Davy Mooney & the Hope of Home Band, Live at National Sawdust (Sunnyside Records)
It’s such a blessing that this talented collective headed by guitarist Davy Mooney with drummer Brian Blade, saxophonist John Ellis, pianist… - Eddie Floyd with Tony Fletcher, Knock! Knock! Knock! On Wood: My Life in Soul (BMG Books)
What else could you entitle an Eddie Floyd biography? His signature song, from Stax Records in 1966 has long been a…
