The sounds of New Orleans carry a mood that’s both jubilant and deeply human; it dances and mourns in the same breath. It’s the sound of the street parade meeting the juke joint: syncopated, earthy, and alive with horns, piano rolls, and that unmistakable backbeat shuffle. Unlike the more urban polish of Chicago blues or the rural cry of the Delta, New Orleans R&B has always felt like a conversation between the sacred and the profane, where gospel chords meet barroom swagger. Just beyond the Crescent City’s lights, where the waters of the bayou take form, we’ve got the accordians and fiddles of the swamp, where there’s humor, head and heartbreak woven into the DNA of the deep South. It is joyous and haunted, elegant and raw, as well as endlessly resilient. The music of New Orleans inspired an ethos — that music could be communal, unrestrained, and celebratory no matter the hardship. It taught America how to dance through its troubles, to find rhythm in resilience, and to turn sorrow into sound that still shakes the rafters and demands a communal dance to this day. This week’s show raises the flag of the Crescent City and her environs with a rhythm and bayou romp!
No.
1
Artist
Title
Album
Buy
2
Roomful Of Blues
New Orleans
Best of Roomful of Blues The Alligator Records Years
3
Rusty & Doug Kershaw
Louisiana Man
Louisiana & The Old New Orleans Sound
4
Jimmy Newman
A Fallen Star
Louisiana & The Old New Orleans Sound
5
Alvin Robinson
Down Home Girl
Louisiana & The Old New Orleans Sound
6
Joe Barry
I'm a Fool to Care
Louisiana & The Old New Orleans Sound
7
Rod Bernard
Pardon Mr. Gordon
Chess New Orleans [Disc 2]
8
Barbara George
I Know (You Don't Love Me No More)
Highlights From Crescent City Soul: Sound Of New Orleans 1947-1974
9
Irma Thomas & Marcia Ball
I Just Can't Get New Orleans Off My Mind
Goin' Home: A Tribute To Fats Domino [Disc 2]
10
The Hawketts
Your Time's Up
Chess New Orleans [Disc 1]
11
Sugar Boy Crawford
No More Heartaches
Chess New Orleans [Disc 1]
12
Clifton Chenier
The Big Wheel (Squeeze Box Shuffle)
Chess New Orleans [Disc 1]
13
Clifton Chenier
Calinda
Destination New Orleans
14
Bobby Mitchell
I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday
The History of New Orleans Rhythm & Blues [Disc 2]
15
Fats Domino
The Big Beat
Fats Domino Out of New Orleans
16
Dr. John
Blue Monday
Goin' Back To New Orleans
17
Fats Domino
What's Wrong
Fats Domino Out of New Orleans
18
Theryl De Clouet
I Get Lifted
A Celebration Of New Orleans Music To Benefit MusiCares Hurrincane Relief 2005
19
Sammy Naquin
New Orleans Waltz
Best of Cajun Instrumentals
20
Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie
Canaille
Doctors Professors Kings & Queens: Box New Orleans
21
Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys
La Crhve De Faim (Starvation 2-Step)
Doctors Professors Kings & Queens: Box New Orleans
22
Steve Riley & The Mamou Playboys
New Orleans Beat
La Toussaint
23
Lil' Queenie & The Percolators
My Darlin' New Orleans
Doctors Professors Kings & Queens: Box New Orleans
24
Sunpie And The Louisiana Sunspots
Bunny Bread
Destination New Orleans
25
Johnny Adams
Release Me
Doctors Professors Kings & Queens: Box New Orleans
26
Jimmy Clanton
Another Sleepless Night
Louisiana & The Old New Orleans Sound
27
Jewel King
3X7=21
New Orleans R&B Outbreak
28
Charles "Hungry" Williams
So Glad You're Mine
The History of New Orleans Rhythm & Blues [Disc 1]
29
Archibald
Stack O Lee
Sound Of The City, The – New Orleans [UK] Disc 1
30
Great Day of New Orleans Singers
You've Got To Be Modernistic
Black American Choirs 1926-31
31
Great Day of New Orleans Singers
Shout On
Black American Choirs 1926-31
32
The Red Stick Ramblers
Main Street Blues
Doctors Professors Kings & Queens: Box New Orleans
33
Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Mardi Gras In New Orleans
A Celebration Of New Orleans Music To Benefit MusiCares Hurrincane Relief 2005