University of New Orleans ScholarWorks@UNO Wavelength Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies 4-1987 Wavelength (April 1987) Connie Atkinson University of New Orleans Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.uno.edu/wavelength Recommended Citation Wavelength (April 1987) 78 https://scholarworks.uno.edu/wavelength/64 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Midlo Center for New Orleans Studies at ScholarWorks@UNO. It has been accepted for inclusion in Wavelength by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks@UNO. For more information, please contact [email protected]. 1685 C0550 12/31/99 EARL K. LONG LIBRARY ACQUISITIONS DEPARTMENT UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS NEW ORLEANS LA 70148 ...· ..· ...· .. ·~ •.· .. ·..· .. ' ..._ .. _•. •... "'. ·.. ·. •. ·.. ... ' ... ·.' •.' . UNITED COLORS OF BENETION. "I'm 1101s ure, but I'm almost positive, that all music came from New Or/ea11s. " -Ernie K-Doe, 1979 Features .. Jazz Is the Sound •.' of New Orleans. .29 Frogman Henry . .33 Departments April News . .. 4 Jazz Fest Schedule.. .13 Allan Jaffe.. .15 Chomp Report .16 Film ...... .18 Caribbean. .20 U.S. Indies . .22 Reissues ... .24 Rare Record . .26 Reviews .... ..26 April Listings .36 Classifieds .41 last Page .42 Puhli~ hu . N<.1UI11JO s s ..·ntL Editor . Cnnntc:" Zc:.mah Atkin-.nn ;\,,,,ociate F.dilor . Gent: Sc:munuu'' Ad\<ertising. Elltahcth h1111o.unc. ll1an;,a Nt.u.l••'· Contributors. Steve Armbn"tcr. Buh C<tl:.llltUII. R1ck C'nkman. Tum ~Allan. C'arnl Gni<.~dy. Gm<t Guc· l'lom:. Kouhy ll:.mr. Lynne H:my. Pat Jnlly. Jan~:-. Lum. Bunny M:llthcw'. Rll'k Olivier. Ja,~un Pallcr:-.on. Hammond Seem. Almn.. t Sinn. Ourrc Stn:cL Bryan Way:-.nn. Lauren Zanunhu. 'lty po~raphy. l)cvlm/Wcngcr A,,l'k:aatc:-.. \Vrm•h•11gth i' puhli,hctJ nmnlhly tn N!!w Orlean:-.. Tclcphon~: l~tl-41 Xt}~·:!.'-1-2. M:ul 'uh,niplmn,, atldrc~:-. c.:hungc~ In H'rll'r·h·uwh. P 0 Hux I~Cl67. Nc\\ Orlc:m!-. LA 70175. Suh· "-'npttun r.nc ~I::! per }Ci.tr ($20 hm:i~n ... urff..lt'C). Fir-.1 da1<o' 'ulN.:rtptton' ':!X ~r ~car !dotnc,ltt· and Canada). AO ;urnutl ra11.' ;II $411 per )'C;trtu\'cr...ca,t. The cnltrc cun1cn1' nf \Vm•(•/t•n.a:tlt ;an,: l'ttpynghlcc.J 1 IYK7 Wun•lt>u,&:,th. lt..td., '''"c' arc .tv.nl.tbk hy "'rnmg 10 Bad 1!-.,UC\. P.O Bmt l'iM7. New Orlc;..m,, LA 70175. 8ccau...c t)f a limiled ... upply. h;,td. '"Ut:., arc ;,tYailahlc lor S4 each Plc01'e <.tlluw J lt'W 'Wed., fur pmcc.,~mg <.tnd dchvcf) uf urdcl". Nl'"' Suh'4:nhcr-.: Pka...c 01llnw up tu .,.X week:-. f\lf rel·cipt uf lir.t • '"Ul' due In our .. m.. ll. non-cumpu1cnzcd :-.ub:o.cnptmn depan­ tncnl ftW"Cign cu.. ltm\Cf' m:.ay P"Y by I.M.O. ur check dr.swn una U.S h.ml. lkl'OIU\4! nl cxnrhuanl banl prcx·e:-.Mnl! charl!e:-.. we cannot OCl'Cpt chcch m Canadtan dullar. or uther forcigri currency. I'H' d"~cl., f.lr-awn on a f,tn:tgn hank. Suh...cnhcr-. mu.,t O\lltly u.. immt.'lhately of :my change uf addre:-.~ . JACKSON BREWERY (504) 522-3013 WITH CHILDREN'S LINE: 012 BENE'ITON It noltlicahun j, nut n."t:ctvc~. m<.~gazinc:-. ~nt It) incorrect a~­ drc'\C' Will nut he repla~..·eU. u.S. l'U1<olumcrs include 7ip cude. CANAL PlACE MALL (504) 524-7656 WITII SISLEY J-.-..or-• "'lwantit You want Videow<>tks. Hanc:t&-on and tut(, ~ video production and editing., ~~~and VHS) , Training also avail8t>le. This time catl VideoWorks. 525--2497 822Perdklo APRIL • Waveleft!lll• 3 ·.· Key Player Two of New Orleans' finest piano players helped groom 19-year-old Harry Connick Jr. for success. arry Connick, Jr. is like one of those young East German H swimmers who rake in the gold medals every Olympics - he's been perfectly groomed for success. Instead of swimming laps Rediscover • . and taking steroids he's run scales and practiced chord changes for 13 A Classic years and at age 19 is at the beginn­ ing of a brilliant career in jazz Nightclub, piano. A duet album with bassist Home of The Ron Carter has just been released on Columbia Records; it could like­ DUKES OF ly make Connick the best-known contemporary Crescent City jazz DIXIELAND pianist. Connick has achieved this status through hard work under the best 309 Rue Bourbon teachers a New Orleanian could New Orleans have. He started fooling around at Reservations: the piano at age 31/2, began lessons at age six (his classical mentors in­ 525 .. 5595 cluded Betty Blancq and Dr. John Murphy) and by age eight he was playing the last movement of Be­ ethoven's Third Piano Concerto sing like him and walk and talk like could have learned all this in such a with the New Orleans Symphony. him. But Connick realizes the need short time, and where he'll go from Around this time Connick started to go beyond vocal imitation. "I here. Will he develop into a mons­ studying with the two pianists who still sing too much like James, but ter funkster like Henry Butler, or a would shape his playing the most. my own style is coming around. I super-eclectic like Jaki Byard? My Ellis Marsalis is the finest of New used to sound like Stevie Wonder prediction (and Connick would dis­ Orleans' modem jazz pianists; in but that's fading too." agree) is that while a player like addition to educating his celebrated So with Marsalis opening up the Butler has tended to keep his mod­ sons Wynton and Branford he gamut of jazz piano history for him em jazz and his New Orleans funk taught Connick while he matricu­ and Booker instilling a profound sides separate, Connick will en­ lated at NOCCA. "Ellis stressed sense of New Orleans funk, what gineer a fusion; the funk and bebop gigging the most, and knowing do you hear when Connick plays? will coexist in most of what he music theory and history" explains The first impression is incredible plays. Connick. ''He really wanted his chops. Even by the virtuosic stan­ For the past I 5 months Connick students to be well-rounded, not dards of modem jazz, Connick is has been hanging out in New York, just able to play what was pop­ exceptional. And he intends to get going to school (Manhattan School ular." much better. "By the time I get to of Music and Hunter College), Pianist James Booker was Con­ where I want to be I'll be able to playing a lot of jobs (95% of them COMpliMENTARY nick's other professor, and a man play like Tatum or anyone who's piano solo gigs) and making new he talks about with unabashed re­ ever played, but I'm not there yet. I friends (fellow pianist David Tor­ verence. "James was the finest haven't got anything to brag kanowsky calls him "the Dale Car­ GlAss of housE musician I've ever heard," Connick about." He intends to continue his negie of Jazz.") One special ac­ recalls. "He could make music on a classical studies, and perhaps to quaintance he's made is George wiNE wiTh '8 7 cardboard box if he had to." They record a classical album in a couple Shearing, "an amazing individual" got together "hundreds of times" of years, maybe the Chopin etudes. who has "taught me a lot, musical­ JAzz FEsT TickET over a period of seven or eight "I feel especially close to Chopin ly and otherwise." If the album years, and yet "I can only remem­ among the classical composers," does well he hopes to start touring; OR TiCkET STUb ber one specific lick that James Connick confides, "because melody he is especially interested in sam­ (Good r~mu ENd of MAy) taught me .' He didn't say, ' Now this is all-important. Well, melody and pling the European festival scene. is how you do this,' for instance. rhythm, that is." And what does Harry Connick, My hands were too small to copy When looking beyond the tech­ Senior, New Orleans' district attor­ what he was doing anyway. I just nique, one must conclude that Con­ ney and celebrity of sorts, think of absorbed it by being around him so nick has not completely found his his son's meteoric rise? "Dad's much. James was so special. He style. He is, after all, only 19; his complete behind me. He calls me and my mom were very close - he playing is a pastiche but a dazzling and tells me tunes to learn. He used bouliGNY grieved when she died and needless pastiche. Bluesy Oscar Peterson to drive me to gigs and pick me up to say, James' death was one of the licks fly by, skid to a halt for some at three or four in the morning. RESTAURANT saddest events of my life.'' Monkish minor-second humor and He's one of the best fathers a guy By whatever way he learned it, then rev up again for a ferocious could have." And surely Harry 4100 Magazine at Marengo luncheon 11:30-2:30 Daily Connick's ability to recreate Book­ Booker shuffle or some stride. The Senior could not have expected e 891-4444 er's sound is almost eerie. In addi­ effect is dizzying and a bit awe­ more from his teen-aged son. tion to playing 'like Booker, he can inspiring. One wonders how he - Tom McDermott 4 Wcnrelellllfllll • APRIL How to Get On MTVYrdhout a Video The Dino Kruse Band may go down in MTV history as the only band to perform on the 24-hour music video channel without a video.