Happy Birthday, Jason Marsalis!

Jazz and funk drummer and vibraphonist Jason Marsalis was born in New Orleans on March 4, 1977, into the Marsalis family of musical royalty. He is the youngest son of the late pianist and music professor Ellis Marsalis, Jr., and brother to jazz musicians Branford, Wynton and Delfeayo, as well as Ellis Marsalis III and Mboya Kinyatta. Marsalis started playing drums at age three when his parents purchased a toy set of drums. By age six, he had a real drum kit, at seven he sat in with his father’s group, and by nine he was a consistent performer at his father’s engagements. Jason had also taken up violin at age five, but drums and percussion were his primary focus. In 1991, he was accepted to the acclaimed New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts High School (NOCCA), and he continued playing gigs with his father and brothers. In 1995, Marsalis joined the Marcus Roberts Trio, while still attending Loyola University in New Orleans. He made appearances with international jazz luminaries and remained on the New Orleans music scene, working with a diverse cross section of bands. In 1998, he co-founded the Latin-jazz group Los Hombres Calientes, recording two albums with the group, and also producing two albums under his own name. He also produced reissues and current recordings of his father on their self-owned label, ELM Records. Marsalis and his brothers and their father were named NEA Jazz Masters, and he is one of the artists featured in Tradition Is a Temple, a 2013 documentary film about New Orleans. Marsalis continues to grow and develop as both a composer and performer, and all who are fortunate to hear his music and see him perform become loyal fans. Happy Birthday to an amazing musician!

Photo: Infrogmation

Celebrating the Birthday of Fats Domino

Pianist and singer-songwriter Antoine "Fats" Domino Jr., also known as “The Fat Man”, was born in New Orleans on February 26, 1928. A rock’n’roll music pioneer, Domino sold more than 65 million records, including the first million-selling rock’n’roll song, “The Fat Man” in 1949. Between 1955 and 1960, he had eleven Top 10 hits including "Blueberry Hill" and “Ain’t That A Shame”. He was one of rock’s biggest stars in the 1950s, but he described his music as the same rhythm and blues he had played in New Orleans. His style of music made him one of the firs R&B artists to become popular with white audiences. Domino also had a significant influence on the music of the 1960s and 1970s, as acknowledged by some of those he influenced, including Elvis Presley, John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Domino was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1998. Four songs of Domino's have been named to the Grammy Hall of Fame for their significance in music history: “Blueberry Hill” in 1987, “Ain’t It A Shame” in 2002, “Walking to New Orleans" in 2011 and “The Fat Man” in 2016.

Domino's home was badly flooded during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and since he had remained in his house with his wife, they were feared lost in the flood. However, on September 1, he and his family were rescued. Domino lost most of his possessions in the devastation, but the irrepressible artist still managed to release the album Alive and Kickin’ in 2006, with a portion of sales going to a local charity for musicians. This kindness was returned in 2007 when friends and rock stars (including Elton John, Willie Nelson, Robert Plant, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Paul McCartney, Norah Jones, Lenny Kravitz, and Lucinda Williams) recorded Goin’ Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino, to raise money for repairs to his home. Domino died on October 24, 2017, at his home in Harvey, Louisiana, at the age of 89, from natural causes. On this day we celebrate the birthday of the man, the legend, Fats Domino!

Photo: Ronzoni

Celebrating the Birthday of Ernie K-Doe

Rhythm and blues singer drummer, broadcaster, and club-owner Ernest Kador, Jr., known by the stage name Ernie K-Doe, was born in New Orleans on February 22, 1933. He was best known for his 1961 hit single “Mother-in-Law”, which was written by Allen Toussaint, and went to number 1 on the Billboard pop chart..His song "Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta" reached number 21 the same year, and "Later for Tomorrow" reached number 37 in 1967, but he never had another top 40 pop hit.

In the 1980s K-Doe did radio shows on New Orleans community stations, occasionally causing problems for the noncommercial stations with his frequent self-promotion.  In the 1990s K-Doe began to call himself "The Emperor of the Universe" and wore a cape and crown, becoming a famous local eccentric in New Orleans. Always an elaborate showman, one of K-Doe's most notable later performances ended with him performing seven continuous renditions of "Mother In Law" while dancing in front of the Aquarium of the Americas’ shark tank dressed in a green plumed cape. "Here Come the Girls", written by Allen Toussaint and recorded by K-Doe, was released in 1970, but was not a hit until it was used in an advertising campaign in 2007 and re-released. In 2008, a cover by the Sugarbabes reached number 3 on the UK charts, and in 2017 it was covered by Trombone Shorty. In 1994 The Mother-in-Law Lounge was opened by Ernie K-Doe, and it became an icon in the local community. K-Doe continued performing and occasionally recording until shortly before his death on July 5, 2001.

Today we celebrate the Emperor of the Universe’s birthday, and remember this talented artist … Ernie K. Doe.

Happy Birthday, Big Sam!

Trombonist and band leader Sammie 'Big Sam' Williams was born in New Orleans on February 20, and in his youth, he studied at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts and with saxophonist Kidd Jordan, and was a founding member of the Stooges Brass Band in his teens. He joined the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, allowing him to perform with luminaries such as James Brown, Karl Denson, Dave Matthews, and Widespread Panic. A year after joining the Dirty Dozen, he began a side project broadening his musical ambitions, and in 2006, he played with Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint on their album The River in Reverse and tour.

Big Sam's Funky Nation, a funk and rock band, became his main band, and incorporated elements of traditional jazz, contemporary jazz, acid jazz, dance, hard rock, and punk into their music. They performed at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Voodoo Music Experience, Bonnaroo, South By Southwest, and Austin City Limits. Williams had a recurring role in the HBO series Tremé, and in 2014, he proposed to his wife on stage at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. He learned in adulthood that he is the great-grandson of cornetist Buddy Bolden. Happy birthday to this energetic and supremely talented musician!

Photo: bigsamsfunkynation.com

Happy Birthday, Irma Thomas!

Singer songwriter Irma Thomas, known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans", was born on February 18, 1941, in Ponchatoula, Louisiana. She got her start as a teen singing in a Baptist church choir, and later sang at New Orleans’ Pimlico Club where she worked as a waitress … until she was let go for spending more time singing than waiting tables! Pimlico Club bandleader Tommy Ridley helped her land a record deal, and in 1960 her record “You Can Have My Husband (But Don’t Mess with My Man)” reached number 22 on the Billboard R&B chart. Thomas went on to collaborate with legendary New Orleans songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint, and later recorded “Break-a-Way” which was a huge radio hit in New Orleans. She also recorded “Time Is on My Side”, a cover of which became a massive hit for the Rolling Stones. Hurricane Camille hit, and Thomas relocated to California in 1969, ultimately returning to New Orleans in 1976. She and her husband opened the Lion’s Den club in New Orleans, where she headlined regularly while also accelerating her live schedule, including touring Europe. In 2007, Thomas won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album for After the Rain. In 2008, she released Simply Grand, featuring preeminent piano players Dr. John and Ellis Marsalis. While she may not have achieved the commercial success of some of her contemporaries like Aretha Franklin, her talent is undeniable, and she has ascended to the pantheon of great American soul artists. Irma Thomas is one of New Orleans’ greatest musical ambassadors and has certainly earned the title of Soul Queen of New Orleans. Happy Birthday, Irma!

Photo by: ETownHall

Happy Birthday, Kirk Joseph!

R&B and Jazz Sousaphone player Kirk Joseph was born in New Orleans on February 16, 1961, and is the son of trombonist Waldren "Frog" Joseph, Kirk Joseph began playing the sousaphone in middle school, and took part in his first professional gig at the age of fifteen when his brother Charles invited him to play a funeral with the Majestic Band. In 1977 he became one of the founding members of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, a group which is credited with reviving the brass band tradition in New Orleans. He has played with the Treme Brass Band and Forgotten Souls Brass Band, and currently leads his own group called Kirk Joseph's Backyard Groove.

Described as a "modern sousaphone pioneer", Joseph claims inspiration from renowned New Orleans tuba player Anthony "Tuba Fats" Lacen, who made it sound like bass. The style of playing created by Lacen and Joseph was instrumental in establishing the modern New Orleans brass band sound, which combines traditional marching band and Dixieland traditions with strong jazz and funk influences. Joseph developed his innovative approach to the sousaphone, replacing the instruments limits, as perceived by his predecessors, with a rich musical vocabulary. Never before had such a creative and stylistic range been demonstrated. But the new standards set by Kirk Joseph have prompted many since to follow his lead.

Kirk Joseph has earned his seat at the table of New Orleans’ greatest musicians and will surely claim his place in music history as perhaps the greatest innovator of his instrument, the sousaphone. Today we wish this innovative artist a very Happy Birthday!

Photo: Derek Bridges