Alternative Mardi Gras Kruisin’ da Krewes Vol. II, issue 2 1 Dave Malone from The Radiators Photo / Pat Jolly Where is Beat Street? There is a place in New Orleans, a figurative address that is home to all that is real. New Orleans Beat Street is the home of jazz. It is also the residence of funk and the blues; R&B and rock ‘n’ roll live here, too. When zydeco and Cajun music come to town, Beat Street is their local address. Beat Street has intersections all over town: from Uptown to Treme, from the Ninth Ward to the French Quarter, from Bywater to the Irish Channel, weaving its way through Mid-City and all points Back o’ Town. Beat Street is the Main Street in our musical village. It is where we gather to dine and to groove to live music in settings both upscale and downhome. Beat Street is where we meet to celebrate life in New Orleans with second line parades, festivals and concerts in the park. Beat Street is lined with music clubs, restaurants, art galleries, recording studios, clothing shops, coffee emporiums and so much more. New Orleans Beat Street is a mythical street in New Orleans surrounded by water and flooded with music. 2 NEW ORLEANS BEAT STREET MAGAZINE Vol. II, issue 2 3 Photo Michael P. Smith In This Issue... Beat Street takes a look at Carnival from an alternative perspective. Broderick Webb explores the East-West connections. David Kunian investigates the origins of some of the most fascinating “underground” krewes. Spike Perkins gets up close and personal with the Krewe Du Vieux. Timothy Beckstrom peeks into the world of the gay krewes. Robyn Loda visits with Mondo Kayo and the Jefferson City Buzzards. Rob Rudner exposes the Krewe of Kosmic Debris. Jerry Brock takes us back to the golden era of the Baby Dolls and celebrates 20 years of the FI YI YI. Warren America gives us a tour of new gadgetry. contents The Million Dollar Baby Dolls By Jerry Brock 7 Krewe Du Vieux Music and Mayhem By Spike Perkins 9 Jefferson City Buzzards The Oldest Marching Club in New Orleans By Robyn Loda 12 Mardi Gras Essentials By Jerry Brock 15 Box of Wine By David Kunian 17 In the Spirit! - With FI YI YI By Jerry Brock 19 That Jewlu That You Do By David Kunian 23 Bass Parade By David Kunian 26 Sub-Woofers and a Six-Foot Banana Krewe-sin’ with Mondo Kayo By Robyn Loda 32 Are You Ready to Tumble? The Krewe of Kosmic Debris By Robert V. Rudner 36 The Year of the Monkey By Broderick Webb 44 MP3 Confidential NAMM Show New Gear Report By Warren America 50 4 NEW ORLEANS BEAT STREET MAGAZINE Vol. II, issue 2 5 The Million Dollar Baby Dolls By Jerry Brock Miriam Reed is the last of the streets. Batiste family Baby Dolls. She admits, “I don’t get around like I used to.” The Batiste clan held and holds The Million Dollar Baby Dolls were some characters. The incomparable her family and friends. She laments, charm of “Uncle” Lionel Batiste 8403 Willow Street “The young people don’t seem to of the Treme Brass Band and his New Orleans, La. 70118 know what fun is today.” brothers Precisely, Norman and 504.314.0710 Arthur were the core of the original [email protected] The Million Dollar Baby Dolls have Dirty Dozen The sisters included slowly faded from the streets. An Miriam and Felicia. The Dirty Dozen exotic and romantic celebration featured snare drum, bass drum, Publisher Writers of Carnival and womanhood tambourines, triangle, ukulele, banjo, Stephen Novak Warren America encouraged by life in Storyville. The kazoos and voices. Everyone sang. Timothy Beckstron Editor Baby Dolls have caught the attention Jay Mazza Jerry Brock of artists, photographers, filmmakers We paraded from 8 AM Fat Tuesday David Kunian and writers since the 1920s. until 2 AM the following morning. Robyn Loda There was a loosely organized Sales Director Jay Mazza Melisa Coby Spike Perkins When the Baby route with Robert B. Rudner Dolls arrived, the rest periods. Art Director Andy Schulz Broderick Webb party began. They We strutted struck a profile though huge Cover Art that conjured crowds on Photo Editor Mike Williamson Bob Compton cute, beautiful, Claiborne Beat Street Logo fine and sexy. with ease and Business Diplomat Jerry Brock Mike Williamson They sewed grace. They precious satin played old baby doll outfits ribald songs, in a Victorian jazz tunes and style with Creole songs. large bonnets, Everyone eloquent tops loved the with lace, Baby Dolls over-size linen and thousands drawers and lace of revelers bobby socks. cleared a path They carried for the Baby with them baby Dolls and the bottles and Dirty Dozen. pacifiers. Despite the raucous In the middle atmosphere, of a gigantic creativity, dignity crowd, a and respect Million Dollar Baby Doll with Jerry Brock. space would were expressed magically Information for and returned by the masses that open and there would be a three- witnessed their parade. legged card table barely standing with a fifth of Jack Daniels for In 1980 and 1981 I paraded with the the Baby Dolls and Dozen. It was LOVING Million Dollar Baby Dolls and the more surreal than any Fellini film. Original Sixth Ward Dirty Dozen The next stop might be gumbo and LIVING Kazoo Band. We met at 7 AM at sandwiches. in Felicia Shezbie’s house on Orleans Avenue. A huge breakfast with eggs, The Baby Dolls predate many New Orleans pork chops, gumbo, biscuits, gravy, Carnival traditions. In 1929, Fox greens, rice and deserts was the Movie Tone Newsreel filmed them Subscribe to FYI - $18 a year morning meal. strutting across Canal Street. In 12 issues + special Jazz Fest issue 1933, Caroline Durieux, the Head Following breakfast, Precisely Batiste of the Louisiana WPA Art Program, Send a note with your check to led a prayer for our safety and to rendered them in a charcoal Subscription Department have a beautiful day. Then we hit the drawing. Bradley Smith printed two 8403 Willow Street, New Orleans, LA 70118. definitive photos he took in 1938. “Skeletons” Lyle Saxon interviewed Beatrice Hill. Photo Michael P. Smith 6 NEW ORLEANS BEAT STREET MAGAZINE Vol. II, issue 2 7 “I was the first Baby Doll, “ Beatrice saying “Satin and Sinners” and the Hill asserted firmly. “Liberty and Baby Dolls followed three abreast Krewe Du Vieux Perdido was hot back in 1912 when strutting in red satin baby doll that idea started. Women danced outfits. on bars with green money in their Music and Mayhem stockings, and sometimes they The meetings of the Million Dollar By Spike Perkins danced naked… a gal named Althea Baby Dolls and Satin & Sinners are Johnson jumps up and says, ‘Let’s be legendary. They would meet in the ourselves, let’s be Baby Dolls. That’s 6th Ward and throw down in the streets. “Everyone thinks the Krewe Du Vieux theme set for the what the pimps always called us. …” is way out there, but at the same whole parade. time, we’re the most traditional “… And that Mardi Gras Day came Others have claimed that the Baby krewe around,” says Keith Twitchell. Clones paraded and we hit the streets. I’m tellin’ Dolls were just prostitutes who Twitchell, the krewe’s publicity from 1978 to you; we hit the streets lookin’ forty, masked on Mardi Gras Day. But that captain, points out that Krewe Du 1985 and then was fine and mellow. … We had stacks of seriously oversimplifies it They were Vieux is the only krewe that still denied a permit in dollars in our stockings and in our hard working people caught up in parades in the French Quarter and 1986. The official hands. We went to the the life they were dealt makes their own floats which are krewe history Sam Bonart playground but made the most of. pulled by mules. states that this was They stuck together due to, “…infighting among the on Poydras Street and krewe/CAC leadership, combined bucked each other to and created an ironic with pressures from the city see who had the most twist unlike any other. due to the parade occurring the money. …” night before the Super Bowl…” Put into context Former krewe captain Ray Kern “Know what? We went consider that in 1912, says more specifically that he on downtown, and talk Louis Armstrong was believes the city feared the about puttin’ on the 10 years old. The Zulus krewe’s raunchy humor would ritz! We showed them were just starting offend Super Bowl tourists. out as a ragtag, black- whores how to put it Several of the sub-krewes on. Boy, we was smokin’ faced collection of decided to march anyway. The cigars and flingin’ ten gentlemen. The Baby Krewe of Underwear and the and twenty dollars Dolls, Louis and the Krewe of Mama Roux dubbed through the air. Sho, Zulus came from the Photo Pat Jolly their celebration a “Clone we used to sing, and Felicia Shezbie. same neighborhood. Funeral” and held a short march Photo Michael P. Smith Music is provided only by traditional boy did we shake it on Jazz had emerged and New Orleans brass bands marching in mid-city. The Seeds of Decline and down. We sang ‘When the Sun Goes was blasting from every corner of in between each parading unit. The Krewe of C.R.U.D.E. (of which Kern is a member) joined up with the Pair- Down’ and ‘When the Saints Come the city.