JF2020 wk2 draft

Po Boy Views

By

Phil LaMancusa

Night and day

Or

Catch a Beat

Ask anyone who lives in New Orleans, ask a visitor, a doctor, a lawyer and Indian Chief why New Orleans is such an important factor feature in their lives; what is it about New Orleans that has the ability to cast and hold them in its spell? The answer might include: food, culture, history, music and/or life itself here? The dichotomy between living in grave danger and playful creativity? The fecundity of artistic expression in a crumbling infrastructure? Alacrity in the face of abstract hopelessness? A warm bubble bath with a martini and a snake? Maybe. I say take those and hold them in your hands, mold them into one ball, malleable, palatable, edible and what do you have? The pulse of New Orleans, the heartbeat, the rhythm, the beat; the pattern formed by the stress and unstressed functions of this city, our city. Or maybe they’ll just say “there’s no place like New Orleans”. Same thing.

`           I say it’s the drums. The drums that keep rhythm to our heart strings: the brass bands, the marching bands, the Carnival beat, our heartbeats and the beats you will hear coming out of doorways, on street corners, clubs, from passing cars and in the tents and on the stages of Jazz Fest. And, it’s to Jazz Fest that you go.

            Who’s the person that lays down the beat, keeps the rhythm and doesn’t take a break the whole set? Who’s the last person to get a solo while the rest of the group drinks their bottled water and rests? Who’s the person in the group that’s always in the back and hardest to see? Yep, the drummer. Buddy Rich, Gene Krupa, Ginger baker, Charlie Watts, Elvin Jones, Mick Fleetwood, Bob French, Cindy Blackman, Smokey Johnson, Baby Dodds, Max roach, Mitch Mitchell, Buddy Miles; some names you know, others perhaps you better ask somebody.

            Jazz Fest this year will amaze you if you consider the role that drummers play (literally) in all of the venues from Mardi Gras Indians to The Brubeck tribute. Zak Starkey, son of the most famous R&R drummer of all time Ringo (that is, if you don’t count Danny Mihm) will be playing with the Who. Dead and Company will have Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart. They’ll be drumming they assets off at the pavilion that’s featuring the music and culture on Puerto Rico. Stanton Moore Johnny Vidacovich, Jason Marsalis, Will Dave Weckl be there? Will Willie Green? Will Peter Thomas be with Elvis Costello? Who’s gonna back up Irma ?

            By far this is not just a boys club; it goes beyond Keith moon, Clyde Stubblefeild, Nick Mason, Bobby Roninelli and John Bonham. Take Moe tucker, Sue Hadjopoulos, Sheila E., Nikki Glaspie, Gina Schock and you got the sisters doin’ it for themselves!

And it takes all ages; Jeremiah Travis already has a college scholarship waiting for him based on his talent and ability as a drummer (at six years old) you may have seen him in marching with the High School band from St. Helena, Louisiana (he’s the little guy). They were here for Carnival and I’m sure that that’s not the last we’ll hear from him. Add that to Roy Haynes performing at 95 years old in New York City and Viola Smith who began her career in the 1920s is still performing at 107 years old!

            All of these names are known and then there’s some that you don’t know but that you’ll be seeing especially if you look for them, note them and see that it is really they that control the performance, the ones that the leads look to to begin and end each song and strut. The backbone of the band is the drummer, the percussionist, then the bass, then the lead, the rhythm guitar (if there is one) and then the lead singer (the icing on the cake and the one who usually gets the most attention). Backup singers, tambourine shakers, triangle and horns all add to the beat set by and controlled by the drummer and then the drummer will get their solo, the lead will raise their eyes and finger to the drummer to end the song and the final beat will be played… by the drummer! Keep your peepers peeled, watch it happen, make me a liar. Or not.

            In New Orleans, if you’re not aware, we have public ‘drum circles’ that meet at Congo Square. What do we do there? Drum. We bring our drum (you don’t have one?) and join the circle and lay down a beat, we call forth the spirits of our ancestors, we raise vibrations, we form psychic policies. If you don’t have a drum with you, perhaps someone has brought a spare. Or play your thighs, your knees, the beat is IN YOU, feel it, follow it, be it. It’s as primal as your pulse, drum beats pounding rhythm to the brain, and the beat goes on.

            So I’m unofficially declaring this festival The Festival honoring those unsung (unless you count Phil Collins) performers who, if we were without them, there would be no real performances. The drummers.

            And now I charge you to