For all of us, the news was horrific, even unthinkable. And for music lovers, there was an added sense of dread.
After the levees broke, and much of the city of New Orleans was submerged in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, we wondered who got out in time.
Websites and news reports speculated on the fate of some of America’s finest music makers. I read that early rock pioneer Fats Domino, blues singer Irma Thomas, rocker Alex Chilton and influential music impresario Allen Toussaint were missing. How could this be? We wondered if the historic Preservation Hall, the sacred temple of traditional jazz, survived.
There was some relief in the knowledge that Domino had been rescued from his home, where he had decided to wait out the storm. Thomas surfaced with relatives in Baton Rouge; Chilton popped up in Memphis. Reports had Toussaint temporarily holed up at the Superdome, and that he has since relocated to safer surroundings. And Preservation Hall apparently still stands, relatively unharmed in the French Quarter.
As I write midweek, the whereabouts of the entertaining R&B singer Clarence “Frogman” Henry, known for his greatest hit, “Ain’t Got No Home” are unknown. Let’s hope he has been found safe and sound by the time you read this.
But as the heartbreaking images of post-Katrina New Orleans are made available, it’s clear that the landscape of the birthplace of jazz has been altered. Lives have been lost and livelihoods destroyed.
One of the city’s greatest resources has always been its unique musical community, and there are a few things Coloradans can do to help those displaced by the storm. The Jazz Foundation of America (jazzfoundation.org) is accepting donations to help replace musicians’ lost instruments. The New Orleans Musicians Clinic is looking for shelter for their musicians.
To contribute, call 337-989-0001. Preservation Hall has a similar project; visit it at preservationhall.com.
New Orleans trumpeter Wynton Marsalis will headline a Sept. 17 benefit concert, aided by Paquito D’Rivera, Diana Krall and more, to raise funds for hurricane victims. XM satellite radio will air the concert and Blue Note Records will release highlights on a CD soon, with proceeds going to relief funds.
From the storied cornetist Buddy Bolden, through Louis Armstrong, Professor Longhair and the Marsalis family, New Orleans has served as a breeding ground for much of the most liberating and irresistible music the world has come to know. In light of the city’s cultural history, you hope the spirit will endure and creative triumph will emerge from tragedy.
Sonny Rollins, rightfully billed a “saxophone colossus” nearly 50 years ago, turned 75 Wednesday. Only a handful of pioneering improvisers capable of breathtaking performances remain, and Rollins is a contender for the top of that list, along with Max Roach, Ornette Coleman and Cecil Taylor.
Four years ago this morning, Rollins heard a low-flying plane above his apartment six blocks from New York’s World Trade Center. He was evacuated from his home by the National Guard during the horrifying aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, determined to play as scheduled a Boston gig three days later. The results of that concert can be heard on the new “Without a Song (The 9/11 Concert)” (Milestone).
Rollins plays like a man bent on celebrating life to its fullest throughout. He shouts and serenades through his tenor, with an inexhaustible supply of gleeful declarations.
I don’t know what his Boston audience expected that day, but there’s no doubt they were elevated by the inventiveness of Rollins, a musically ecstatic force of nature. The album is a privilege to hear.
Set list
Friday brings the Sun Ra Arkestra to the Boulder Theater, pianist Eric Gunnison to Dazzle, the Hot Tomatoes Jazz Orchestra to the Broomfield Auditorium, and violinist Regina Carter to the University of Wyoming in Laramie. … Singer Rene Marie at Dazzle on Saturday. … Saxophonist Maceo Parker tears up the Fox on Sept. 18. … Elea Plotkin sings at Evergreen’s Little Bear at noon Sept. 24.
Bret Saunders’ column on jazz appears every other Sunday in A&E. Saunders is host of the “KBCO Morning Show,” 5:30-10 a.m. weekdays at 97.3-FM.
