HumidCity

(Here is a guest post from my friend Bethany Butman, President and CEO of the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic. She is a dynamic force for good in the city and I am proud that she was kind enought to write this for us. -Loki, HumidCity Founder)

New Orleans’ warm, erotic humid climate, the wild foliage, the sensuous aroma of sweet olives and rifts of Jazz and funk combine to evoke a unique place and a culture, not unsympathetic to the weaknesses of the flesh. At The New Orleans Musicians Clinic (NOMC est. 1998), the United States’ only comprehensive health clinic for musicians, we are faced with sustaining a unique population during the hard times we all wrestle with since the 2005 floods.

For more than ten years, we have proudly served a “challenging’ population of musicians who personify a cluster of characteristics including “creative” and “sensitive” with shades of “deviant” and “non-conforming.” Add to this a predilection for risky behavior and a lifestyle with a wide acceptance (and even reliance) on illicit drugs, alcohol and sex. And lastly, a historical low priority on personal health and a distrust of conventional medical care. Although New Orleans musicians are celebrated around the world, at home they have a history of living hand to mouth, outside mainstream social and economic systems. Many of them pride themselves in existing in a cash-only economy, not having a bank account or paying taxes. Hence they are in effect excluded from the American health care delivery system. Read the rest of this entry »

This is a guest posting by Rob Cambre, mastermind of Anxious Sound Productions and musician par excellence! (Rob may soon be joining the Humid City team as a local music correspondant):
I hate sending out more death notices, but as many of you now know the great clarinetist and educator Alvin Baptiste died this weekend, just 13 hours prior to his scheduled performance at the JazzFest.

Many writings are out there by those who know far more about him than I do, but I was fortunate enough to see Alvin play many times over the years and spend some time talking with him at various workshops and conferences over the years, mostly through my connection to Kidd Jordan and Alvin Fielder.

The memory that looms largest however, is one of the very first jazz concerts I ever attended, which was a reunion performance of the American Jazz Quintet (which included Alvin, ED BLACKWELL on drums and Ellis Marsalis on piano) at the old
Riverboat Hallelujah on Tulane Avenue.  It was a double-bill with Alice Coltrane’s Quartet (with Roy Haynes, Reggie Workman + George Coleman), and it was my first time seeing players of that caliber in person.  A real eye-opener for this then-19 year old…especially hearing Batiste’s majesterial clarinet interacting with the dancing
drums of the great Blackwell.  I won’t forget it.

While there are no news articles to link to as yet, the entire production krewe here at the fest is abuzz with it: Alvin Baptiste, legendary jazz composer passed from a heart attack in the early hours of the morning.

EDIT: Judy Wood will do a tribute to Alvin Batiste from 5 to 6 PM on Jazz from the Market this Wednesday, May 9. It will include excerpts from her interview with him on August 31, 2006. LIsten online at WWOZ.ORG or tune in on the radio at 90.7fm if you are in the New Orleans area.

Slip sliding away on a wave of funky goodness, Funky T is slapping some Rocky Charles platters on to get people in a giving frame of mind.

Now I’m sure you’ve already heard a lot about the different membership levels if you’ve been tuning in, that is just the icing on the cake. The real benefit is the ability to tune in New Orleans music from anywhere. Thanks to the internet you can pull up a live stream anytime and from anywhere. For the wife and I it was our lifeline while we were in exile.

Thursday after the storm we were a long way from home, stuck in NY, and suddenly the music returned. Just hearing the sounds of the Crescent City again did wonders for our state of mind. For the next 5 1/2 weeks it was part of the glue that held my own sanity together. The New Orleans sound gets in your blood, it is intoxicating and addicting. It is essential for the care and feeding of New Orleanians everywhere in the diaspora and at home. It is a divine elixir for the ears, and WWOZ is the only institution that can provide it.

Show some love, Defend New Orleans Music, join WWOZ!

“Peace, Love, and Soul!” - Funky T “You didn’t get my good side!” -Joe “Defend The Humid City! Support ‘OZ!” -Loki

xposted on DefendNewOrleans (LJ)

Alright out there Irma Thomas is in the studio, interviewing on Crossroads with Big D, it’s been a great one so far. George Ingmire is hanging out with them and asking some very incisive and penetrating questions.

WWOZ is one of our most important cultural resources. If you’re anything like me you found their stream to be a lifeline while in exile after the Storm. I almost broke out in tears when the stream came back up and suddenly a taste of home sounded from the tinny speakers of my laptop.

Everyone from here understands on a primal level that the two things that most resonate to New Orleanians are food and music. ‘OZ has been a bastion for the musical roots of our unique culture.

This is not just a radio station, it is a non profit engaged in the most important battle we face: the preservation of The New Orleans Sound in an era when it is in danger of becoming a conservatory lesson rather than an organic and growing tradition. Please consider picking up the phone and calling in a contribution. Even if it is a small one it will help. Donations can be made online here.

xposted on DefendNOLA (LiveJournal)

Continuous Liveblogging on a show by show basis will be going on at the above xpost link….

EDIT: Okay, its the second most important battle. The first is and always will be LEVEES.

Articles will be somewhat sparse for a bit, I have been drafted by WWOZ to assist on the computer end with the pledge drive. Drop by and help preserve New Orleans Musical Culture!