“Doctah Jawwwn, known as the Night Trippah…”

Listen/Download – Dr John – Big Chief MP3

Greetings all.

If you checked in to the recent (10/6) edition of the Funky16Corners Radio Show, in which I went into one of my musical obsessions, that being the New Orleans/LA Connection – of which our hero Mr Rebennack was a HUGE part – you will have heard me refer to the good Doctor as close to a genuine national treasure as we have.

He is a towering sequoia in the world of modern music (generally) and one of the last links to the old school of New Orleans giants (specifically), and the piano tradition therein (very specifically).

He has been playing and recording since the 1950s, and has also inhabited the guise of the Night Tripper since the late 60s.

He has appeared in this space (and on the podcast) many times, as leader and sideman, and today’s selection sees him returning to his roots and giving props to another giant.

Another king of the New Orleans sound, Roy Byrd, aka Professor Longhair, aka Fess, is the man who among other things, went into the studio with Earl King in 1964 and laid down one of the greatest pieces of music ever to explode from the grooves of 45RPM record, ‘Big Chief’.

When Dr John whipped out ‘Dr John’s Gumbo’ in 1972, with a cast of NOLA runnin’ pardners, working it out on a grip of Crescent City classics, ‘Big Chief’ is one of the songs he chose to do.

Dr John’s version of the song takes the piano of the original and moves it over onto the organ, and while he slows the pace somewhat, that second line swing is still there in all its glory.

Featuring some groovy rhythm guitar by none other than Alvin Robinson, an arrangement by Harold Battiste (with Dr John) and production by Battiste and Jerry Wexler, this version of ‘Big Chief’ has a sort of early 70s, smoked out vibe to it, which is cool, and it presents a nice, relaxed counterpoint to the piano-led atomic bomb of the original.

That said, if’n you don’t got you no Dr John, go and git you some.

Keep the faith

Larry

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