September
2002
Musical
gumbo from the Crescent City
By
Michael Gartlgruber
Pianist
and vocalist Dr. John will be bringing a bit of New Orleans, along
with his signature walking stick and gruff voice, to Conduit in
Trenton on September 25.
His
innovative sound, infused with everything from psychedelia to
R&B, blues, jazz, funk and rock 'n' roll, live shows-complete
with Mardi Gras costumes and voodoo incantations, no less-and
colorful character has won him a devoted cult following.
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Born
Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack, he began his career in
the 1950s and 60s as a session musician for the likes of Professor
Longhair, Paul Gayten, Frankie Ford, Lee Allen, Sonny and Cher,
and many others. The already highly respected Rebennack created
his Dr. John Creaux, the Night Tripper persona, on the critically
acclaimed album "Gris Gris" in 1968.
That
album, along with the follow-ups "Babylon" in 1969 and
"Remedies" in 1970, brought him worldwide recognition
for his inventive jazz arrangements and sounds that mixed psychedelia
with jazz and blues. The 1971 album "The Sun, Moon, and Herbs"
featured rock heavyweights Eric Clapton and Mick Jagger.
With
"Gumbo" in 1972 he dropped the "Night Tripper"
tag and much of the psychedelia and returned to his New Orleans
R&B roots with songs popularized by Professor Longhair, Ray
Charles and Earl King.
His
biggest selling album, "In the Right Place," followed
in 1973, which included the top-ten title track and the hit "Such
a Night."
He
recorded an album a year in the 70s-ma ny of which were instrumental-but
slowed his pace in the 80s. He returned in 1989 with "In
a Sentimental Mood," an album of standards which included
"Makin¹ Whoopee," a duet with Ricky Lee Jones which
won a Grammy and was also prominently featured in the "Sleepless
in Seattle" movie and soundtrack.
Most
recently, he has recorded "Duke Elegant," a reverential
collection of Duke Ellington covers, and "Anutha Zone,"
which featured collaborations with Paul Weller (who had a 1996
hit in Great Britain with Dr. John's "I Walk on Gilded Splinters"),
Squeeze keyboardist Jools Holland and members of Supergrass, Portishead
and Primal Scream.
In
addition to the music, Dr. John also appeared in the movie "Blues
Brothers 2000," and has penned his autobiography, "Under
a Hoodoo Moon," published in 1995 by St. Martin's Press.
Dr.
John's September 25 show will be for patrons 21 or older. Conduit
is located at 439 South Broad St., across from the Sovereign Bank
Arena. Tickets are $40 advance or $45 at the door and are available
at any Ticketmaster location or ticketmaster.com, as well as the
Urban Word Cafe (609-989-7777), and Compact Disc World on Rte.
1 in Lawrenceville.
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Michael
Gartlgruber is a Trenton Downtowner special writer
