New Orleans in the News is a blog dedicated to moments when the city is the focus in the national spotlight. From issues concerning culture to politics to corruption, we try to cull stories from national news outlets, blogs and all kinds of sources that talk about this great city. If you have a link that we'd be interested in, send it to webteam@wwltv.com.
Like few other cities the music scene in New Orleans is built upon collaboration, with sets featuring surprise guests, rappers hopping from one album to the other, and artists of all types jamming into the same studio.
That's clear now with the release of three different albums this year that have enough names among them to hold a small festival:
- The album "Ya-Ka-May," Galactic's latest concoction of genres, isn't short on New Orleans star power: Trombone Shorty, Allen Toussaint, Irma Thomas, John Boutte and Walter "Wolfman" Washington, among others, contribute on the record.
Like always Galactic fuses rock, rap and funk in the album, and rarely is the sound tighter than here.
"There are so many amazing artists that inspire us," Ben Ellman, Galactic's sax man and harmonica player, told The Oregonian. "This is a modern New Orleans record, not (just) who's hot right now. We've included everyone that's doing something interesting."
For reviews, head to Metacritic, where "Ya-Ka-May" has a high 78 composite ranking.
- The new benefit album by the Preservation Hall Jazz Band brings musicians from all kinds of different genres together, as American Songwriter points out: Tom Waits, Merle Haggard, Steve Earle and Louis Armstrong.
Can you imagine that? You're sitting on the bench in the cramped Preservation Hall, getting ready for what you expect to be a traditional New Orleans jazz show, and then Tom freaking Waits comes up to the mic. Had to be an interesting show, to say the least, and the album looks to be an intriguing blend of talent and a breath of fresh air for the band.
- Trombone Shorty has a special power of turning complacent jazz rooms into dance halls, as The Boston Globe points out. And for a 24-year-old prodigy-turned-icon, he also has a surprising knack of bringing people together.
In his latest album "Backatown," Shorty brings Lenny Kravitz, Marc Broussard and Allen Toussaint into the recording studio. The album is set to be released on April 20, and its named after his neighborhood Treme.
Huntsville: New Orleans is on a big roll - and Harry's cheering it on
In other music news, Harry Connick Jr. had one word for Mardi Gras following the Saints' Super Bowl win: unbelievable.
"It's insane. The city is on fire," he told The Huntsville Times. "It's just if the Saints didn't exist, I think the city was on its way to rebuilding. But the fact they exist, it's exacerbated the whole thing. The community is uplifted, and there's something to talk about and reason to celebrate. The whole outlook of the whole community has changed."
Connick also talks about his new album "Your Songs," which has covers of classic pop hits like Elton John's "Your Song" and The Beatles' "And I Love Her."
Times-Standard: Where to eat in N.O.
Stories like these remind me of how lucky we are to live in New Orleans. Suzie Owsley of California's Times-Standard writes of hot spots in the city where tourists can find the best food -- and as usual, the recommendations run long.
"When I asked [chef John Besh] for culinary recommendations for the first time visitor, he remarked that it is difficult to get a bad meal in New Orleans," Owsley writes.
She went to the staples like Café Du Monde, Central Grocery, Commander's and Arnaud's. She also managed to get a recipe from Besh of his grandmother's biscuit, so jump over to their page for that and more on her trip.
