Hailing from New Orleans, where Latin and Caribbean music have a long and glorious history of interaction with R&B, blues and jazz, The Iguanas was formed in 1989 by guitarist/accordionist Rod Hodges and Joe Cabral. Within a few years, bassist Rene Coman and drummer Doug Garrison joined the band and The Iguanas emerged as one of the most popular bands in one of the world's most musical cities.
It's been a tumultuous 9 years since The Iguanas released the eclectically classic Plastic Silver 9-Volt Heart back in 2003. Hurricane Katrina scattered the band to the four winds and displaced them from New Orleans, a city that is as much the band's creative muse as its physical home. But in the intervening years the city and the band have regrouped, stepping back onto the cultural landscape refreshed, re-energized and newly dedicated to spreading their gospel of heartfelt, hand-crafted music to the world.
The pan-cultural rhythms of New Orleans' musical heritage still course through the heart of The Iguanas and their music. Latin shuffles, gritty funk, dark cinematic jazz and Basin Street horns all join hands to create world music in the true sense of the term. New Orleans is the singularity of the universe that is American Music and The Iguanas are some of its most skilled ambassadors.
"We hung on to the band for dear life. The band itself was a part of the city that we could still preserve. The music, like the food and the vibe of New Orleans was like some small flame we could carefully protect and nurture as we fanned out into the wilderness. Those seminal elements, the second-line, the mambo... the way we feel the beat. All of that was in us. It went with us across the country." -RENE COMAN, The Iguanas
The best and only boogaloo band to hail from New Orleans, Los Po‐Boy‐Citos are two time Best of the Big Easy winners for Best Latin Band. Their 2008 album, New Orleans Latin Soul, and the 2010 album, Brand New Dance, both received glowing reviews for their mix of Latin soul and New Orleans funk.
Los Po‐Boy‐Citos has played every major festival and venue in New Orleans, including Jazz Fest and French Quarter Fest, Tipitina’s and House of Blues. They have opened for Sharon Jones and the Dap‐Kings, Grupo Fantasma, Tower of Power, Dr. John, Rebirth Brass Band, etc. In 2012, audiences outside of New Orleans will finally be able to hear the band, as they travel to SXSW in Austin, Le Poisson Rouge in New York, and beyond.
Dr. John, or Mac Rebennack as known to friends and family, is universally celebrated as the living embodiment of the rich musical heritage exclusive to New Orleans. His very colorful musical career began in the 1950s when he wrote and played guitar on some of the greatest records to come out of the Crescent City, including recordings by Professor Longhair, Art Neville, Joe Tex and Frankie Ford.
A notorious gun incident forced the artist to give up the guitar and concentrate on organ and piano. Further trouble at home sent Dr. John west in the 1960s, where he continued to be in demand as a session musician, playing on records by Sonny and Cher, Van Morrison, Aretha Franklin and The Rolling Stones' infamous Exile On Main St. to name a few.
During that time he also launched his solo career, developing the charismatic persona of Dr. John The Nite Tripper. Adorned with voodoo charms and regalia, a legend was born with his breakthrough 1968 album Gris-gris, which established his unique blend of voodoo mysticism, funk, rhythm & blues, psychedelic rock and Creole roots.
Several of his many career highlights include the masterful album Sun, Moon and Herbs in 1971 which included cameos from Eric Clapton and Mick Jagger and 1973’s In The Right Place, which contained the chart hits “Right Place Wrong Time” and “Such A Night.” Dr. John garnered Grammy award wins in 1989, 1992, 1996 and 2000. In 2004, his musical love letter to the city of New Orleans, “N’awlinz Dis Dat or D’udda,” was awarded the prestigious Académie Charles Cros 57ème Palmarès award in France. It was the first time since the 1970s that an artist from North America received the award.
He has also received six other nominations over the years. In 2007 he was nominated for a Grammy for “Sippiana Hericane,” his Hurricane Katrina benefit disc. Other awards include the American Society of Young Musicians 2007 Trailblazer Award. After Hurricane Katrina and government bungles bashed New Orleans in 2005, Dr. John immediately stepped up to the plate with both generous relief fund-raising concerts and recordings and angry public words of protest. In 2008 he released “City That Care Forgot,” an album winning him a Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album.
2010’s release, TRIBAL, has Dr. John revisiting that classic, swampy gris-gris style that put him on the map. After a half century of creating music for others and himself, Dr. John continues to write, arrange, produce and interpret with a passion that has yet to wane. He continues to dazzle and delight audiences across the globe touring consistently.
On the heels of playing his own national tour dates, Jon Cleary will join Dr. John’s (a.k.a. Mac Rebennack) Locked Down tour across the U.S. as a featured player in Mac’s band, The Lower 911. “Having fun with the songs of Allen Toussaint” is how Jon Cleary describes his sixth solo record, Occapella, a celebration of great songs put through Cleary’s unique set of funky filters. Featuring Mac Rebbenack (Dr. John), Bonnie Raitt and The Absolute Monster Gentlemen, there are unexpected twists and turns on this journey through the Toussaint songbook that will keep surprising you till the last piano glissando fades away.
"Inventive, detailed, emotionally straightforward, poetic and plainspoken," are how Detroit Music Hall of Fame member Dick Siegel has described the songwriting of Michigan-born and New Orleans-resident singer/multi-instrumentalist Natalie Mae. Natalie Mae's voice is known to carry each melody with power and ease, while her lyrics prove to be crafted with great care. After releasing her first solo album, "Waiting on You" in 2009, Natalie Mae hasn't waited a minute to challenge and grow her craft of songwriting. For the past 3 years, Natalie Mae has included 4 highly acclaimed and talented musicians to her live performance, making the group Natalie Mae & Her Unturned Tricks. With Josh Wexler on keys, Patrick Fee on drums, Ted Long on bass, and Alex Bachari on lead guitar, Natalie Mae's repertoire now includes the entertaining mix of original tunes inspired by Dinah Washington, Hank Williams, Bob Wills, Nina Simone and Patty Griffin. NM and her Tricks recently recorded her new double-handful of tunes, planning the release of her second album, "More Than You Know," for September 2012. Natalie Mae is a natural-born performer, able to jive and groove with her beloved Tricks onstage while never missing a beat or single pitch.
Johnny Sansone was born in Orange, New Jersey. "I was about eight years old when I started taking saxophone lessons and understanding music," Sansone says. "I also know that an alto saxophone was almost as big as I was, and I had to carry it to school every day, and I thought, hmmm, I don't know about this."
Although Sansone released several records on King Snake Records it wasn’t until he released "Crescent City Moon" on Rounder/Bullseye Blues when he began winning numerous awards in the Crescent City, including Offbeat magazine's annual "Best of the Beat Awards" where he won four awards - Song of the Year, Best Harmonica Player, Best Blues Band, and Best Blues Album of the Year.
He joined THE VOICE OF THE WETLANDS ALLSTARS, a band that featured the who's who in New Orleans and Louisiana music. Tab Benoit, Dr John, Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne, Waylon Thibodeaux, George Porter Jr., Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, and Johnny Vidacovich formed the Voice of the Wetlands to bring attention to coastal erosion issues that plague the Gulf Coast. In 2008 he appeared at both the Democrat and Republican conventions with the Voice of the Wetlands Allstars.
Veteran bluesman Johnny Sansone had done his share of traveling, honing his craft in the Austin, Colorado, North Carolina, and Kansas City blues scenes, but after he set up camp in New Orleans in 1989, you'd swear he was born on the bayou.
Between the sheer force and potent lyricism of his guitar playing, the riveting depth of his songwriting and the straight-from-the-soul conviction of his vocals, New Orleans’ Anders Osborne is among the most original and visionary musicians writing and performing today. OffBeat magazine recently named Osborne the Crescent City’s Best Guitarist for the second straight year, and also awarded him with the Best Roots Rock Artist title. Guitar Player called him, “The poet laureate of Louisiana’s fertile roots music scene.”
Since the release of his 2010 Alligator Records debut, American Patchwork, Osborne has toured virtually non-stop, performing with his own band, solo with Keb Mo, with The Stanton Moore Trio, alongside Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe and with Luther Dickinson as well as with The Voice Of The Wetlands All-Stars.
Recorded at the famed Dockside Studio in Maurice, Louisiana and released in 2012, Black Eye Galaxy, was produced by Anders along with engineer Warren Riker and Galactic’s Stanton Moore. Sounds on the album range from heavy electric mayhem to joyous acoustic melodicism, lyrics move from the darkest depths to the healing power of love. Black Eye Galaxy is a personal record for Osborne, but one with universal themes. “It’s about being on the other side of chaos and putting things back together,” he says. The title is an unambiguous metaphor for Osborne’s life as a traveler, a musician, an immigrant, a recovering addict, and as a husband and father.
Live, Osborne is a force to behold. His wildly energetic, physical performances find him ripping notes out of his guitar, forcing out intense steel-on-steel slide solos, pouring his entire soul into his vocals. His piercing guitar playing, slide work and fluid finger picking (oftentimes happening simultaneously) are simply unmatched. His influences range from Ry Cooder and Robert Johnson to the great horn players like Miles Davis and John Coltrane.
Past gigs include repeated appearances at The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, stops at Bonnaroo, The High Sierra Festival, The Telluride Blues Festival, The Hollowbaloo Music & Arts Festival in Honolulu, The Voice Of The Wetlands and an appearance at the 2008 Democratic National Convention. He has toured North America and Europe extensively, and is constantly in demand as a guitarist, songwriter and producer.
The Bonerama Horns have made a name for themselves as one of the most called upon horn sections in New Orleans today. It's the tight fitting arrangements and unique sounds of Mark Mullins, Craig Klein and Greg Hicks playing together in one voice as the Bonerama Horns that make them special.
Their deep credit list continues to grow as word spreads about this unique sound from the Big Easy. From day one Bonerama has described itself as being unlike anything you've ever heard before and as their sound continues to evolve and change, rest assured the Bonerama Horns will take you on the most memorable ride on the slide!
For more than thirty years Dave Malone was best known as the guitarist/vocalist and one of the songwriters, of the New Orleans band The Radiators. Over those thirty plus years, Dave also worked with a wide variety of other musicians, in and out of New Orleans. He has recorded more than a dozen albums with The Radiators, including their last studio album Dreaming Out Loud. Now that The Radiators have stopped touring, Dave will be doing a lot more of these side projects – notably the Malone Brothers with his brother Tommy of the subdudes and also as guest guitarist/vocalist with Bonerama.
Mia Borders has captured both local and national audiences with her energetic blend of blues, funk, soul, and contemporary songwriting. Offbeat Magazine's Alex Rawls writes "Note to self: Pay more attention to Mia Borders" and USA Today named the "young soul strutter" as one of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival's hidden surprises. Keith Spera of the Times Picayune commented, "she has in the last few years come into her own in her native New Orleans as a songwriter, singer and frontperson, confident in all three roles."
Her latest album - "Wherever There Is" - was released on April 18, 2012 and features Mia's most ambitious collection of original material thus far. Since performing at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in April, Mia has continued to play at a variety of impressive venues such as Wakarusa Music Festival, Long's Park Amphitheater, Bayou Boogaloo, and Levitt Shell in Memphis. The new album, Lyndon Jones of New Orleans Unplugged says, represents "a more complete Mia Borders...that reveals emotional and musical maturity." Mia will continue to light up the stage all year long as she promotes her new cd.
Born into a family with generations-old roots in rural Florida, JJ Grey was raised with a combination of backwoods wisdom and old-school blue-collar values. He heard music at barbeques and in local juke joints, all the while developing a deep love and respect for the land and its culture. Grey’s original songs are inspired by legendary musicians, including Southern rockers Lynyrd Skynyrd, soul greats Otis Redding and Toots Hibbert, country stars George Jones and Jerry Reed, as well as by Grand Ole Opry comedian Jerry Clower. Whether it is a narrative passed down to him from his grandmother or the tribulations of a childhood friend, Grey’s ear for detail rings through in true storyteller fashion.
Debuting in 2001 with Blackwater, following up in 2004 with Lochloos, Grey steadily built an intensely loyal following. In 2007 Grey released his Alligator debut, Country Ghetto, followed by 2008’s Orange Blossoms, further growing his already large audience. With the release of 2010’s Georgia Warhorse, Grey stepped further into the mainstream with the AAA radio breakout single The Sweetest Thing.
Grey has played countless festivals, including Bonnaroo, Wakarusa, Austin City Limits Festival, Byron Bay Blues Festival (Australia), Montreal Jazz Festival and Fuji Rock (Japan). Over the course of his career, Grey has shared stages with the likes of B.B. King, The Allman Brothers Band, The Black Crowes, Los Lobos, Jeff Beck, Ben Harper, Lenny Kravitz, Booker T. Jones, Mavis Staples and many others. In 2011 the band invaded the UK, leaving blissful fans and overwhelming praise in their wake. Also in 2011, Grey embarked on his first-ever solo tour, playing packed-to-capacity clubs, getting more personal and up close with his audience.
Colin Lake’s career began a few years ago in Portland, Oregon. Long captivated by blues and roots music but raised without any formal musical training, Lake was out of high school before he began spending rainy days and nights alone with a guitar. Lake developed a strong individual style marked by innovative lap-slide guitar playing and soulful, pleading vocals. In 2007, Colin began recording and touring and in September of that year, he won the Telluride Blues Competition. Influenced heavily by the late Chris Whitley, Lake has also become known for mature songwriting and honest, dynamic delivery.
In Early 2009, Lake left Portland, embarking on a one-way tour that would end in New Orleans, Louisiana. Lake arrived late one evening with no place to live and few prospects. It wasn't long, however, before his powerful voice could be heard regularly at venues throughout the city and over the airwaves of WWOZ fm. Heavily informed by the blues, Lake's music incorporates elements of soul, rock and folk to create a sound and feel that is strongly original and disarmingly familiar. Shows with his band have become known as high-energy, gospel-infused house-rockers, while Lake’s poignant solo performances can silence audiences of any size. In 2011 Lake recorded and released the album "The Ones I Love", which was soon named one of the top ten local releases of the year by Keith Spera of the New Orleans Times Picayune. As his reputation for authentic, down-home presentation continues to grow, Lake can be found on a variety of stages performing for captivated audiences and alongside some of the biggest names in New Orleans music.
Growing up in Mississippi near Memphis, TN, Luther and Cody Dickinson have had a life-long experience in music. The brothers soaked up the music of their father, acclaimed musician and renowned producer Jim Dickinson, and absorbed the North Mississippi Blues legacy while playing and shaking it down at the juke joints with their blues ancestors. In 1996, inspired by the Mississippi Hill Country blues tradition of local heroes RL Burnside, Fred McDowell, Junior Kimbrough, and Otha Turner, the Dickinson brothers formed the North Mississippi Allstars.
After more than a decade touring together and releasing five studio albums, three of which were Grammy nominated, the brothers decided to branch out and pursue other projects. In 2008, Luther played guitar and mandolin on the Black Crowes release “Warpaint” and soon became a full time member of the band. In 2009 he formed the South Memphis String Band with Alvin Youngblood Hart and Jimbo Mathus, touring moderately and releasing an album Home Sweet Home.
Meanwhile, Cody formed his own group Hill Country Revue, which released its debut record “Make A Move” in May 2009. They followed up with the release of “Zebra Ranch” in the fall of 2010. The band toured heavily behind the release and has shared the stage with a number of lauded musicians including the Dave Matthews Band, Gov’t Mule and Big Head Todd & the Monsters.
As a duo, Cody and Luther have toured extensively with Robert Plant & the Band of Joy and played many major festival stages. In early 2010 they released a live record, entitled ‘Live in the Hills’, and followed up with ‘Live in the Hills Volume II’ in August 2012.
Known as a "musician's musician," Alvin Youngblood Hart's praises have been sung by everyone from Bob Dylan to Brit guitar gods Eric Clapton & Mick Taylor. Since the release of his 1996 debut recording, the all-acoustic BIG MAMA'S DOOR, Hart has relayed his eclectic musical message around the world.
The 2003 release of DOWN IN THE ALLEY garnered a Grammy nomination. Despite critics' recurring attempts to suggest Hart was "best enjoyed when performing solo", Hart continued to diversify his audience by extensively touring as a member of Job Cain, a hard-rocking side project he assembled with guitarist Audley Freed (Cry of Love/Black Crowes) and Nashville musician Robert Kearns (The Bottle Rockets/Lynyrd Skynyrd). In 2004, Hart received a Grammy for his philanthropic contribution to the compilation BEAUTIFUL DREAMER: THE SONGS OF STEPHEN FOSTER.
In 2010 Hart joined forces with friends Luther Dickinson (North Mississippi Allstars, Black Crowes) and Jimbo Mathus (Squirrel Nut Zippers, Tri-State Coalition) to form "The South Memphis String Band". The fun-loving and regaling trio was quickly dubbed by the media as an "acoustic super group". Recorded in a borrowed radio station studio while the band was on its first road trip, their debut record HOME SWEET HOME was received with rabid enthusiasm. The 2011 Blues Music Awards (The Blues Foundation) nominated the record for "Best Acoustic Album". The group plans to release a second album in the spring of 2012.
Lightnin’ Malcolm has come to exemplify the modern day Deep Blues Guitar groove. It is a sound which traces back to the origins of blues, when a single guitarist rocked the house all night long. When these ancient droning patterns consisting of bass, rhythm, and lead syncopated together are plugged into modern sound systems and teamed up with driving drum beats, Malcolm’s guitar becomes larger than life, bringing state of the art primal Mississippi Juke Joint Blues to the big stage.
Born in Missouri in mid 70s, Malcolm started playing his music and traveling on the road in his late teens. He lived his music, playing night and day where ever the road took him, surviving off his versatility. “Music had been on my mind since 6 or 7, but it took till my teen years to start getting around on my own, and you know, put it into action. I played mostly solo then, playing guitar, singing, and kick and snare drums with my feet as a 1 man band.”
In 2009 Malcolm won Blues Music Award for Best New Artist and toured the world with Burnside on drums. In 2011 he released the critically acclaimed album RENEGADE, a true showcase for Malcolm’s developing songwriting and vocals, infusing soul, reggae, hip hop and rock into his hill country sound. 2011 also saw Malcolm serving as “musical director” on Hubert Sumlin and Honeyboy Edwards final tour of their lives, which also included rock band Big Head Todd and the Monsters.
Malcolm’s new album BRAND NEW OLD SCHOOL is scheduled for release in mid/late 2012, featuring slide great Luther Dickinson and Memphis rapper Larry P. The 14 originals continue Malcolm’s signature melodic genre blending sound and direct lyrics, all deeply rooted in the Hill Country.
The Young Pinstripe Brass Band brings the energy from the streets of New Orleans, combining jazz, funk, soul, rock and hip-hop for your listening pleasure! YPS is led by Herbert A. McCarver, IV, a fourth generation musician, who commands only the most professional and enthusiastic of musicians. The band's cutting edge style makes any occasion a unique experience, leaving a lasting impression. Formed in 2009, YPS is motivated by a passion for music and expression to bring a traditional brass band sound into the modern era. YPS transcends a music club to a celebratory second line. From classic songs to modern funk renditions, a band for every occasion.
Simply put, The Rebirth Brass Band is a New Orleans institution. Formed in 1983 by the now infamous Frazier brothers, the band has evolved from playing the streets of the French Quarter to playing festivals and stages all over the world. Rebirth is committed to upholding the tradition of brass bands while at the same time incorporating modern music into their show. Their signature brand of heavy funk has not only won over several generations of music lovers, it has become the soundtrack to an entire city. In the wake of the sometimes-stringent competition amongst brass bands, Rebirth is the undisputed leader of the pack, and they show no signs of slowing down.
Retelling the ghost stories, love songs, and murder ballads of the American South, Mississippi Rail Company channels the contagious energy of their rowdy, yet prolific, musicians. Formed in New Orleans, Mississippi Rail Company has been crafting their unique sound for two years. The rootsy power trio blends blues, rock and bluegrass into a style with an energy that is less about "Old Time Music" and more like something that might result if Huck Finn wandered into the hood.
