They don't want to see me with you....

Good news [at this point, I'll take whatever I can get]. This morning's forecast is a little less alarming than last night's. 80 mph winds with gusts up to 100, then slowing back down a bit.

The weather service reported that Isaac hit Cat. 1 hurricane status a couple of hours ago....which means it's reached sustained winds of 75 mph.

The storm's forward movement is slowing down, which as I understand it, increases the amount of rain it'll drop. I believe the current projection is something around 18 inches...up an inch or two over yesterday.

Looks like some storm surge estimates are down. As far as I know, the city has either already closed all floodgates or is the process of doing so.....including the first closing of the huge not-quite-finished Lake Borgne surge barrier.

I have ultimate faith in My Boy. He can def take care of himself.....and he knows he's gonna catch living hell if my dad so much as stubs a toe. I imagine the party will begin soon enough. They've a portable generator and are well stocked with food, water, and 14 different varieties of alcohol.

Anyway, this goes out to both my husband and my dad. A bit of an in-joke.

One of two recordings Earl King made of this song. It was meant to be included on King's unreleased "Street Parade" album. Production by Allen Toussaint.

Hope ya'll enjoy.......

My mama done told me....

Took a nice stroll down to catch some of the brass band action at the French Quarter Festival earlier today. In case ya'll don't know, Quarter Fest is totally free and fairly easy to navigate, especially if you're staying close by. If I were planning to spend a long weekend in New Orleans I'd def schedule around it rather than Jazz Fest. Much better representation of local artists, none of that BS about putting a man like Allen Toussaint on stage before the totally barf inducing Bon Jovi, and the money you save will literally pay your hotel bill.

Just sayin'.

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I'm a fool for Earl King, especially when he plays a guitar solo so sharp it makes me worry about getting cut. The whistling at the end is pure icing.

Hope ya'll enjoy....it's from 1959.

That's the way it goes....

This is one of the few released cuts from Earl King's aborted "Street Parade" sessions with Allen Toussaint and the Meters. It's also one of my favorite songs, one I can't help but dance to every time I hear it.

"Street Parade" really should have been The Great New Orleans Album, but the project was cancelled after Atlantic backed out of the deal.

Apparently no one else wanted the album. Only four of the songs [including this one] were picked up by the Wand label in New York. The two singles issued as a result did not sell. King ended up issuing one other cut from the sessions, "Street Parade Pt's 1 & 2", on his own Kansu label, which I can't imagine was distributed much outside of Orleans Parish.

And that was that....until 12 years later when some of the previously unheard session tapes surfaced on the Charly label as "Street Parade". In my opinion, it's a must-have collection, but then I'm a bit nutty about Earl King. Proud of it, too.

Hope ya like.......the record's from 1970.

Way you been acting is such a drag...

Just in case ya'll haven't figured it out yet, Earl King RULES....

I'm pretty sure the record is from 1961, but that's just from off the top of my head.

Sometime in 1963, King signed with Motown, who wouldn't issue any of his records. Thus you have the fabulous 'Professor Longhair' recordings on the Watch label, which were always meant to be Earl King singles, but could not be issued as such.

Enjoy

Love is nice when it's understood..

Oh, what the hell....might as well let the big dog out of the yard.

Watch it...sucka will knock ya down and steal your wallet.

I never knew what love could be..

Here's the first version of what most people know as, Come On [Let The Good Times Roll].

Cosimo Matassa issued it on his short-lived Rex label in 1959, only to see King re-work the song and put it out, again, on Imperial, one year later.

The Imperial version is, of course, definitive...but this earlier recording has it's own charm, not the least of which is a waaay cuter title.

Enjoy

Everybody got to cry..

I mentioned Earl King in the last post.

Here's a song he did as "Handsome Earl'. I have no idea why he chose that name for this recording. Perhaps he was under contract elsewhere??? Or maybe he just thought Handsome Earl sounded better than Earl King???

Vin was a subsidiary of Ace records.

Cool song, ain't it?