Happy Birthday, Terence Blanchard!

Trumpeter, composer and music educator Terence Blanchard was born in New Orleans on March 13, 1962, and began playing piano at age five, and trumpet at eight. His childhood friends in eluded Wynton and Branford Marsalis, and he studied at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts. His composition teacher there was none other than Ellis Marsalis. Blanchard started his career in 1980 as a member of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra, then Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers. He has composed more than forty film scores and performed on more than fifty. He received his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Score on Spike Lee's 2018 film BlacKkKlansman. From 2000 to 2011, Blanchard served as artistic director of the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz. In 2011 he was named artistic director of the Henry Mancini Institute at the University of Miami. In the fall of 2015 he was named a visiting scholar in jazz composition at Berklee College of Music. In 2019, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), named Blanchard their Endowed Chair in Jazz Studies, where he will remain until 2024. The Metropolitan Opera announced it will stage Blanchard's opera Fire Shut up In My Bones in their 2021-2022 Season, which will be the first production by a black composer staged by the Metropolitan Opera in the organization's 136-year history. Let’s wish the amazing Terence Blanchard a very happy birthday!

Photo by: jhderojas

Celebrating the Birthday of Fats Domino

Pianist and singer-songwriter Antoine "Fats" Domino Jr., also known as “The Fat Man”, was born in New Orleans on February 26, 1928. A rock’n’roll music pioneer, Domino sold more than 65 million records, including the first million-selling rock’n’roll song, “The Fat Man” in 1949. Between 1955 and 1960, he had eleven Top 10 hits including "Blueberry Hill" and “Ain’t That A Shame”. He was one of rock’s biggest stars in the 1950s, but he described his music as the same rhythm and blues he had played in New Orleans. His style of music made him one of the firs R&B artists to become popular with white audiences. Domino also had a significant influence on the music of the 1960s and 1970s, as acknowledged by some of those he influenced, including Elvis Presley, John Lennon and Paul McCartney.

Domino was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 1987, and was awarded the National Medal of Arts in 1998. Four songs of Domino's have been named to the Grammy Hall of Fame for their significance in music history: “Blueberry Hill” in 1987, “Ain’t It A Shame” in 2002, “Walking to New Orleans" in 2011 and “The Fat Man” in 2016.

Domino's home was badly flooded during Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and since he had remained in his house with his wife, they were feared lost in the flood. However, on September 1, he and his family were rescued. Domino lost most of his possessions in the devastation, but the irrepressible artist still managed to release the album Alive and Kickin’ in 2006, with a portion of sales going to a local charity for musicians. This kindness was returned in 2007 when friends and rock stars (including Elton John, Willie Nelson, Robert Plant, Tom Petty, Neil Young, Paul McCartney, Norah Jones, Lenny Kravitz, and Lucinda Williams) recorded Goin’ Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino, to raise money for repairs to his home. Domino died on October 24, 2017, at his home in Harvey, Louisiana, at the age of 89, from natural causes. On this day we celebrate the birthday of the man, the legend, Fats Domino!

Photo: Ronzoni

Celebrating the Birthday of Ernie K-Doe! 2/22

Rhythm and blues singer drummer, broadcaster, and club-owner Ernest Kador, Jr., known by the stage name Ernie K-Doe, was born in New Orleans on February 22, 1933. He was best known for his 1961 hit single “Mother-in-Law”, which was written by Allen Toussaint, and went to number 1 on the Billboard pop chart..His song "Te-Ta-Te-Ta-Ta" reached number 21 the same year, and "Later for Tomorrow" reached number 37 in 1967, but he never had another top 40 pop hit.

In the 1980s K-Doe did radio shows on New Orleans community stations, occasionally causing problems for the noncommercial stations with his frequent self-promotion.  In the 1990s K-Doe began to call himself "The Emperor of the Universe" and wore a cape and crown, becoming a famous local eccentric in New Orleans. Always an elaborate showman, one of K-Doe's most notable later performances ended with him performing seven continuous renditions of "Mother In Law" while dancing in front of the Aquarium of the Americas’ shark tank dressed in a green plumed cape. "Here Come the Girls", written by Allen Toussaint and recorded by K-Doe, was released in 1970, but was not a hit until it was used in an advertising campaign in 2007 and re-released. In 2008, a cover by the Sugarbabes reached number 3 on the UK charts, and in 2017 it was covered by Trombone Shorty. In 1994 The Mother-in-Law Lounge was opened by Ernie K-Doe, and it became an icon in the local community. K-Doe continued performing and occasionally recording until shortly before his death on July 5, 2001.

Happy Birthday, Irma Thomas!

Singer songwriter Irma Thomas, known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans", was born on February 18, 1941, in Ponchatoula, Louisiana. She got her start as a teen singing in a Baptist church choir, and later sang at New Orleans’ Pimlico Club where she worked as a waitress … until she was let go for spending more time singing than waiting tables! Pimlico Club bandleader Tommy Ridley helped her land a record deal, and in 1960 her record “You Can Have My Husband (But Don’t Mess with My Man)” reached number 22 on the Billboard R&B chart. Thomas went on to collaborate with legendary New Orleans songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint, and later recorded “Break-a-Way” which was a huge radio hit in New Orleans. She also recorded “Time Is on My Side”, a cover of which became a massive hit for the Rolling Stones. Hurricane Camille hit, and Thomas relocated to California in 1969, ultimately returning to New Orleans in 1976. She and her husband opened the Lion’s Den club in New Orleans, where she headlined regularly while also accelerating her live schedule, including touring Europe. In 2007, Thomas won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album for After the Rain. In 2008, she released Simply Grand, featuring preeminent piano players Dr. John and Ellis Marsalis. While she may not have achieved the commercial success of some of her contemporaries like Aretha Franklin, her talent is undeniable, and she has ascended to the pantheon of great American soul artists. Irma Thomas is one of New Orleans’ greatest musical ambassadors and has certainly earned the title of Soul Queen of New Orleans. Happy Birthday, Irma!

Photo by: ETownHall

Celebrating the Birthday of Earl King

Singer-songwriter and guitarist Earl King (Earl Silas Johnson) was born in New Orleans on February 7, 1934. King started playing guitar at 15, entered local talent contests, and met his idol, Guitar Slim, at one such contest at the Dew Drop Inn. In 1954, King toured with Guitar Slim's band, representing himself as Slim, after an automobile accident had sidelined Slim.King ultimately became a regular at the Inn, and made his first recording in 1953 as Earl Johnson. In 1955 his hit song “Those Lonely, Lonely Nights” reached number 7 on the BillboardR&B chart. The legendary Dave Bartholomew invited King to record for Imperial Records in 1960, and it was there that he recorded his signature songs “Trick Bag” and “Come On”.

While King did not record for much of the 1960s, he was very productive producing and songwriting for local labels, including the iconic “Big Chief” recorded by Professor Longhair. He recorded a few tracks for Motown Records in the mid-1960s, and in 1972 he recorded the album Street Paradewith Allen Toussaint and the Meters, which was ultimately released in 1982. King appeared on the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival 1976, recorded the album That Good Old New Orleans Rock ‘n Roll, released in 1977. His 1986 album Glazedwas nominated for a Grammy Award. He released two more albums in the 1990s featuring such luminaries as Snooks Eaglin, George Porter, Jr., and David Torkanosky. King performed off and on locally until his death. 

Earl King passed away on April 17, 2003, just a week before the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. And in typical New Orleans style, his funeral was held during the festival with many musicians in attendance, including Dr. John, Aaron Neville, and Leo Nocentelli. On this day we remember one of the greats of New Orleans Blues!

Photo by: Masahiro Sumori

Happy Birthday, Sonny Landreth!

Guitarist Clyde Vernon "Sonny" Landreth was born on February 1, 1951, in Canton Mississippi, but lives in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. Known as the “King of Slydeco”, Landreth has developed a unique technique that has dubbed him as one of the world’s most advanced, and under-appreciated, guitarists by none other than Eric Clapton. Today and every day, we appreciate this gifted musician … happy birthday, Sonny!

Photo by: Truejustice