The Jackals ride again-Circle Bar Wed Aug 7-10pm(that's tonight!)

Hard as it's been to get some time where we can all make it, we finally did.  If you are unfamiliar with The Jackals, it was the sequel to 007 which became 00-Doug when drummer Jeffrey Clemens wasn't around.  Lip service had to be paid to those voices that attempt minor potential gains through strict name recognition, so we changed the name to The Jackals.  Now it is vastly distinguished from 007.  You'll see!

Anyway we are at The Circle bar this Wednesday at 10pm.  

Be there or don't. But...

As Louis Armstrong said "I never was born to be a Square about anything, no matter what it is..."   

How about you? 

The lineup is:

joe cabral

joe cabral

Alex Mcmurray

Alex Mcmurray

Alex Mcmurray-guitar, vocals
Jonathan Freilich- guitar
Joe Cabral-bass, vocals
Doug Garrison--drums

 

Part 1 of Interview with Jimmy "King James" Horn of the Special Men is up

 Jimmy Horn is a fascinating musician with one of the greatest neighborhood regular gigs around: Mondays at BJ's.  That band plays great R'n'B music from all across a wide blues time span.  The band does not come off like a museum piece at all but does give the feeling that you are outside time in another rockin', blues alterverse.  Get right to the interview here...

As Jimmy explains here, the driver of that is a comfortability and fascination with all kinds of music, and especially the blues, since he was four years old.   And "all kinds of music" is really what it means- Chinese Opera to Muddy Waters, Kurdish music to Kiss.  He sees connections everywhere but really seeks to communicate with people and be in line with the sort of energy that will give them what they need on their night out.

      Here he discusses openly, his winding road toward the current King James scenario, from Utah to BJ's, time in Mississippi around Jesse Mae Hemphill and other great Mississippi musicians, Sun Ra saturation.  Playing on the street with the Royal St bunch in the 90s, The Photon Band.  Jimmy plays saxophone, bass, piano, guitar, piano and has a natural feel on each.  How does this happen?  Check out this interview with a musician who is currently picking up pace in the local scene and, probably has a lot to say to it. 

       The interview, in line with the rest on this site, is informal but informative.  You will hear the sounds of BJ's day shift in the background as well as words from harmonica player Bobby Lewis.  The interview shows again what level of interest and love musicians can take in every kind of sound phenomena and how it can cut to a very deep kind of communication that puts people together in fascinating ways.  Enjoy!

 

Upcoming audio interview with Jimmy Horn a.k.a King James (leader of the Special Men)

jimmy horn.jpg

Just before King James and the Special Men took off for shows in New York City, including at The Lincoln Center, I sat down with their leader, Jimmy "King James" Horn, at BJ's bar in New Orleans for a relaxed audio interview. There, at BJ's, his band, The Special Men, have been holding down one of the greatest weekly gigs in town for quite some time now.  I felt quite lucky to be able to catch some words by a bandleader riding at a crest of the project's development.

The power and delivery that make for attention grabbing music always have stories in the background that are supplying the power.  It is scarcely possible to create depth in music by mere emulation.  Imitators can be very good but they can't supply the hidden mysterious qualities in music.  King James is not an imitator but his drives musical and otherwise do come from somewhere. He has possibilities and there are reasons why the sound takes this form right now.

Transformation is discussed. 

You may figure some of it out on the interviews page.  The same place you can get the ideas of so many key New Orleans players in need of more attention.

Part 1 of new audio interview with saxophonist Dan Oestreicher

The interviews are back!

This interview was recorded during jazzfest (5/2/12) and Dan, riding high on the Trombone Shorty wave, ponders, philosophizes, and argues about music and what he is doing with it.  

This has much of interest about New Orleans music and the burdens and freedoms of its positive and negative associations.  There is also a good deal of general chatter about the art form in general and some intriguing particulars.

If you are interested in the music around New Orleans, you'll want to take a listen.

The interview is here...