Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Services for Ralph Johnson

Ralph Johnson
1938 - 2009

Services to be held at
St. Peter Claver Church
1923 St. Philip Street
Friday, December 11

Viewing from 9am - 11am
Mass at 11am
CLICK FOR DIRECTIONS

Monday, December 7, 2009

Rest in Peace, Ralph Johnson (1938-2009)

Sad news today. A much-loved member of our family has passed. Ralph Johnson, clarinet player here at Preservation Hall and on the road with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band for nearly twenty years, died early this morning. He was a wonderful human being and will be missed very much.

Please follow this link to listen to Mr. Johnson's lovely playing on a recent rendition of the Sidney Bechet classic, Le Petit Fleur...

Ralph Johnson, clarinet
Born August 24, 1938
Died December 7, 2009

Played with: Jerry Butler, the Impressions, Dr. John, Wallace Davenport, Johnny Adams, Chuck Carbo

Musicians teemed through the Sixth Ward district where Ralph Johnson was raised. His father, Son Johnson, was a clarinetist; when he handed the instrument to his son when Ralph was seven years old, the moment embedded itself in Ralph's memory as a solemn rite of passage. Still, making music proved anything but solemn for the young artist, who has since spent decades onstage with New Orleans artists of every style. Playing all reed instruments as well as flute and piano, he performed on his first gig at thirteen -- he had to lie about his age to even be allowed into the 21 and over venue. His connection to Preservation Hall dates back to appearances there with drummer Chester Jones and other bandleaders. For more than ten years Johnson has been a beloved member of the Preservation Hall band, in which he carries on the great traditions of clarinet artistry established in years past by Willie Humphrey and George Lewis.

"Preservation Hall is a place where you can play what's in your soul and make people happy. It's not about playing for yourself; it's playing to see a smile. The more smiles I see, the happier I am. When you play this music, you let your spirit go. You let your spirit say what it has to say. You play your heart out for the people because it makes you happy, just like it makes them happy. That's all that you can do. Why waste this precious time in your life doing anything that doesn't make people smile?" "I've played it all -- rock & roll, straight-ahead -- because all of it, all music, is made by God, not man. That's why I love the whole picture."

We will post information regarding memorial services as that information becomes available.

Friday, December 4, 2009

Del McCoury Band with PHJB in NYC- Jan.9 2010!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

TURDUCKEN

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A turducken—the name is a portmanteau of turkey, duck, and chicken—is a dish consisting of a partially de-boned turkey stuffed with a de-boned duck, which itself is stuffed with a small de-boned chicken. The thoracic cavity of the chicken and the rest of the gaps are stuffed, sometimes with a highly seasoned breadcrumb mixture or sausage meat, although some versions have a different stuffing for each bird.


The result is a fairly solid layered poultry dish, suitable for cooking by braising, roasting, grilling, or barbecuing. The turducken is not suitable for deep frying Cajun style (to deep fry poultry, the body cavity must be hollow to cook evenly).

Claims that Cajun-creole fusion chef Paul Prudhomme created this dish as part of the festival Duvall Days in Duvall, Washington in 1983[1] are unverified. A November 2005 National Geographic article by Calvin Trillin traced the American origins of the dish to "Hebert's Specialty Meats" in Maurice, Louisiana. They have been commercially producing turduckens since 1985, when an unknown local farmer brought in his own birds and asked Hebert's to prepare them in the now-familiar style. The company prepares around 5,000 turduckens per week around Thanksgiving time.[2]

Turducken is often associated with the "do-it-yourself" outdoor food culture also associated with barbecueing and shrimp boils, although some people now serve it in place of the traditional roasted turkey at the Thanksgiving meal. As their popularity has spread from Louisiana to the rest of the Deep South and beyond, they have become available through specialty stores in urban areas or by mail order.

The popularity of turducken is mostly limited to the United States and Eastern Canada.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Preservation Hall's Fourth Annual Creole Christmas: TICKETS NOW ON SALE!

A CREOLE CHRISTMAS AT PRESERVATION HALL,
SUNDAY, DECEMBER 20th @ 4:30pm
CHRISTMAS EVE, DECEMBER 24th @ 2:00 & 4:00pm

ADVANCE TICKETS AVAILABLE! (504) 522-2841

Bring the family, we’re Decking The Hall!

It's time for Preservation Hall's fourth annual Creole Christmas celebration. Join Preservation Hall's St. Peter Street All-Stars, led by Lars Edegran and featuring special guest vocalist Big Al Carson in a special presentation featuring some of New Orleans' best-loved holiday selections. This year, we're adding a special performance on Sunday, December 20th at 4:30pm. Immediately following our presentation, make your way to the front of St. Louis Cathedral for the annual Caroling in Jackson Square, a 63-year-old tradition sponsored by New Orleans' Patio Planters. It's a perfect holiday out for the entire family! Call (504) 522-2841 during business hours for tickets.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

VOODOO Press Redux!

Ladies and Gentlemen, if you were in New Orleans for Halloween weekend, we hope that you were able to come visit us at the 2009 VOODOO Experience in City Park. It was another wonderful festival, with another amazing roster!

If you weren't able to make it in person, here's a small taste of what you missed:

Preservation Hall gets plugged in front of an unlikely audience at Voodoo
By Keith Spera, The Times-Picayune
October 31, 2009, 9:58PM
"As soon as Jane’s Addiction crashed to a close at the Playstation/Billboard.com Stage, thousands of folks turned around and headed toward the main Voodoo Stage across the field. Facing them was a black curtain spelling out “KISS” in enormous silver letters – and, on the video screen affixed to the left speaker stack, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s creepy-cool new animated video..."

Voodoo Experience / 10.30-11.01 / New Orleans
c/o JamBase / New Orleans
Words by: Wesley Hodges

Images by: Dino Perrucci & Adam McCullough
"...The vendor street is the backbone and spinal center of the Voodoo Experience, adding some local color and the "Voodoo Eats" area was an olfactory overload of Cajun goodness beckoning the streaming crowds to come sample. Nearby local bluesman Little Freddie King was preaching about a bad women who done him no good, so we dropped in for a minute. In a 180 you could only pull off at a festival, after a few minutes singing the blues with Little Freddie, it was time to leave the Preservation Hall Tent to check out the Euro club scene...
FULL ARTICLE HERE

VOODOO'S SIDE STAGES MAKE FOR AN INCREDIBLE AFTERNOON MUSICAL ADVENTURE
www.neworleans.com
Written by Carolina Gallup
Saturday, 31 October, 2009

"After listening and grooving to Ledisi I found myself at the Preservation Hall Tent listening to Lil Brian and the Zydeco Travelers. They were awesome. The Pres Tent is one of my favorite tents on the ground. At this point I cannot stop moving. You walk from one stage to the next and you have great music, art & food at every turn..."

"...Walked back to Preservation Hall Tent and heard the Preservation Hall Stars do their thing. OMG!!! If you get a chance to hear the band play, please go. I always feel as if though my soul has been cleansed when I hear them play...."

A slow march around the grounds reveals Voodoo's range
By Alison Fensterstock
October 30, 2009, 4:06pm


"In one march, we heard the full range of Voodoo's carefully curated booking pastiche. At the Preservation Hall tent, Lil Brian and the Zydeco Travelers funked up the traditional Creole rub board and squeeze box with hints of hip-hop and soul, plus a cover of Parliament's "Up for the Downstroke" reimagined as "Up for the Zydeco..."
FULL ARTICLE HERE


Tao Rodriguez-Seeger Band :: Preservation Hall :: 4:15pm
From Breakfastontour.com
Words by Eggs

"While still awaiting the arrival of our other BOTheads, Toast and I headed closer to the main entrance to meet up. While waiting, though, we meandered towards the Preservation Hall where the Tao Rodriguez-Seeger Band were a few songs into their set. Simple folk melodies matched with clever instrumentation were the backbone of Rodriguez-Seeger's group, and it was a nice change of pace from the hip-hop set we just witnessed. Grandson to famed folk singer Pete Seeger, Tao is carrying on the family torch with an updated form of his grandfathers music. We didn't have the chance to stay long, but I left impressed with his work and with the plan to check out more upon my return home."

Words by Toast
One thing you can always expect at Voodoo is an excellent mixture of traditional and modern local music. The Preservation Hall-Stars are a perfect example of that. Their Friday set at the Preservation Hall stage (Of course it was) was a booty shaking good time. As the crowd began to form under the tent, the set began with a New Orleans styled parade that continued throughout the majority of the set. This got the crowd moving as rain began, which would be steady throughout the rest of the night, making things a little sloppy. I stuck around for a little while, but had to cut out a little early to make it to The Black Keys. The large group took turns putting their skills on display as each of them performed skilled solos. My short time at the show was good way for me to get into the swing of New Orleans, sending me off into the cold, wet night.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

PHJB's St. James Infirmary Cartoon - ON THE BIG SCREEN!

That's right! Beginning this weekend, The Prytania Theater in New Orleans will be screening the PHJB/King Britt remix of St. James Infirmary cartoon before their midnight movies! If you've only seen it on your computer, you ain't seen nothing yet!