The 50 must-have New Orleans records
Ernie K-Doe - "A Real Mother-in-Law for Ya" - Westside - 2002
Ernest Kador Jr. – self-proclaimed as the Emperor of the World, or Mr. Naugahyde, even the Greatest Boy-Child ever conceived at Charity Hospital, a man with more titles than a heavyweight boxing champ – was best known and beloved as Ernie K-Doe.
Though he only had one #1 record in 1961 with ‘Mother-In-Law’ (A song written by Allen Toussaint), K-Doe never downplayed his importance; if anything he always amplified it.
"There aren't but three songs that will last for eternity," K-Doe, according to his N.Y. Times obit, used to tell patrons at the Mother In-Law Lounge on Claiborne Ave. "One is `Amazing Grace.' Another is `The Star-Spangled Banner.' And the third is `Mother-in-Law,' because as long as there are people on this earth, there will always be mother-in-laws."
Though he was often overshadowed by likes of New Orleans contemporaries like Fats Domino, underneath all of the flamboyant, bragadocious attitude, K-Doe was a classic rhythm-and-blues singer -- "I'm cocky, but I'm good," he was fond of saying.
This 2002 compilation has most his “good” work with, of course, “Mother-In-Law,” along with his other minor hits, "Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta,""A Certain Girl," and "'Taint It the Truth," capturing the Emperor, with playful lyrics and warm melodies, in his prime.
New Orleans is the only place in the world where a man like K-Doe is and was possible, and despite the lack of many chart-topping recordings, no collection of New Orleans music is complete without K-Doe. No doubt, he was good.
– Michael Luke
Video: Ernie K-Doe - "Mother-in-Law"
- Ernie K-Doe - "Here Come the Girls"
- Ernie K-Doe - "Hello, My Lover"
- Ernie K-Doe - "Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta"
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