Professor Longhair: My Intro to NOLA Rhythm & Blues
I picked this up the other night because the cover was so captivating. Who was this smirking man, sitting in his hip, holding a pair of sunglasses? A Professor Longhair? I don’t know what this name means, but I like it. And what is this scene he is campaigning? Indeed a crawfish fiesta if I’ve ever seen one.
I got home late and put this on because I just had to know who this mysterious man was and when the first track “Big Chief” came on, I knew I had stumbled across something special. I couldn’t stop smiling and laughing because the sound teleported me to a parade of keys, drums, horns, whistles, and soul. In my living room, on a Friday night, it turns out I had met the “heart and soul” of New Orleans. Thee Professor Longhair!
NOLA Rhythm & Blues Continued: Hugh Laurie Documentary
After being blown away by Crawfish Fiesta by Professor Longhair, I gave him a Google and found a tribute that Hugh Laurie wrote for him. I grew up watching House, so I was curious to see what Hugh wrote and it turned out to be the most endearing collection of words. His admiration and love for New Orleans Blues and Rock & Roll cannot be summed up in a few words but it made me want to look more into Hugh.
I found a performance he did covering Fess’ “Tipitina” and was then recommended a documentary he made showing his pilgrimage to New Orleans as he calls it. It is a beautiful, witty, and rich peak into the music culture there and how it’s been influenced by the greats. That is what these videos are from.
Source: A Celebration of New Orleans Blues with Hugh Laurie on YouTube
In the above clip, we are gifted by the presence of Irma Thomas, one of the greats who have represented New Orleans in the best of ways. Her voice is like butter and I just love how she says “Polly Ann” (f*** Polly Ann!) Her voice is indeed rich and mesmerizing. I look forward to listening to the rest of her discography.
Planet Drum
I’ve been enjoying this book for the past several months. I got it at the library for like $4 a while ago! It was created by Grateful Dead’s drummer Mickey Hart and Fredric Lieberman in 1991. Titled “Planet Drum,” this graphic novel follows the history of percussion “ranging from the Big Bang to the present, from Mesopotamia to Bunker Hill.” This book is a celebration of percussion and highlights the healing nature of rhythm and how our ancestors have used the beat of life to sustain them and how we now use that beat to communicate a multitude of things to one another.
I’ve listened to a little bit of Grateful Dead but this is the most acquainted I’ve gotten with Mickey Hart and before posting this I looked up more about this book and it turns out this was also an album. I’m listening to it now, and it’s beautiful. I’m definitely going to listen to it while I continue flipping through this book. The sound of percussion is timeless. The song playing is “Island Groove” off of the album sharing the title “Planet Drum”. Speaking of the last slide, it is a story of where the drum came from as believed by the Dan people in West Africa *allegedly. There is a section in the book with a handful of these Drum Origin stories.. this one was my favorite.
Keeuha 
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