DR. JOHN TO LEAD 'INSIDES OUT' RETROSPECTIVE AT BAM IN NEW YORK

By Culturekiosque Staff

NEW YORK, 2 MARCH 2012 — Known as New Orleans’ favorite son and the physician of voodoo funk, legendary singer and pianist Dr. John will lead a three-weekend residency titled Dr. John: Insides Out at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in Brooklyn, New York, 29 March through 14 April 2012. The artistic residency includes an entourage of musical guests offering three distinct perspectives on Dr. John's career over nine nights:

• "A Louis Armstrong Tribute" (29 -31 March), an homage to the legacy and virtuosity of Louis Armstrong by Dr. John and his collaborators.

• "Locked Down" (5- 7 April). Black Keys front man Dan Auerbach joins Dr. John and a handpicked band to premiere new music from their forthcoming album, 'Locked Down' on Nonesuch.

• "Funky But It's Nu Awlins" (12 - 14 April), an all-out funk-infused night of New Orleans music featuring key players from the Crescent City including The Blind Boys of Alabama.

'Locked Down,' stems from a performance collaboration between Dr. John and longtime fan Auerbach at Bonnaroo 2011 and was recorded late last year in Nashville at Auberbach’s Easy Eye Sound. It features Dr. John on keyboards and lead vocals and Dan Auberbach on guitar, percussion and background vocals, along with other young musicians chosen by Auerbach.

Dr. John's (or Mac Rebennack as known to friends and family) colorful musical career began in the 50’s when he wrote and played guitar on some of the greatest records to come out of the Crescent City, including recordings by Professor Longhair, Art Neville, Joe Tex and Frankie Ford. A notorious gun incident forced the artist to give up the guitar and concentrate on organ and piano. Further trouble at home sent Dr. John west in the 60’s, where he continued to be in demand as a session musician, playing on records by Sonny & Cher, Van Morrison and Aretha Franklin to name a few. He then launched his solo career, developing the charismatic persona of Dr. John The Night Tripper. Adorned with voodoo regalia, a legend was born with his breakthrough 1968 album Gris-Gris, which established his unique blend of voodoo mysticism, funk, rhythm & blues, psychedelic rock and Creole roots.

In 2004, "N’Awlinz Dis Dat or D’udda," his musical love letter to the city of New Orleans, was awarded the prestigious Académie Charles Cros 57ème Palmarès award in France—the first time since the 1970s that
an artist from North America received the award. Dr. John’s album with his band, the Lower 911, City That Care Forgot, was written in response to Hurricane Katrina and earned him a Grammy in 2009.

More recently, he was nominated for a 2010 Academy Award for "Down in New Orleans," a song from the soundtrack to Disney’s The Princess and the Frog, and in that same year reigned as King of the Krewe du Vieux for the 2010 New Orleans Mardi Gras season. In 2011 Dr. John collaborated with Gregg Allman on the album Low Country Blues, which was produced by T-Bone Burnett, and he also joined with actor/comedian Hugh Laurie on the song "After You've Gone." In a landmark performance, Dr. John, Allen Toussaint, and The Meters performed Desitively Bonnaroo at the 2011 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, TN as part of the festival's tenth year celebration. His music is also an integral part of HBO’s television series Treme, conveying the passion, resilience, and effervescence that is New Orleans.

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House,
located in the Peter Jay Sharp Building
30 Lafayette Avenue
Brooklyn, NY,

Tickets start at $35

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Louis Armstrong and Little Rock: What Really Happened

Listening to Loss in New Orleans

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