Exciting things are happening in the world of Deacon John. On August 29, "Going Back To New Orleans, The Deacon John Film" premieres on Fox's MyNetworkTV at 8 ET. (Check local listings for time and channel.) Also, starting on August 29 the film will be promoted and available on AOL at AOL True Stories. I'll also be doing a blog here about the film, the people in it, the story of New Orleans music in the 50s and early 60s, the impact of Katrina (and other relevant topics like LSU football!) Then, beginning on Sept. 2nd, the PBS HD channel will replay "Deacon John's Jump Blues," the concert of music from the film, and the rotation is: 9/2/07, 9pm ET & PT, and on 9/4/07, 3pm ET, and 9/5/07, 11am ET. So I hope you'll tune in to the film and I hope you find it interesting and enjoyable. Those of us fortunate enough to have been at the concert of music from the film know how much we all enjoyed that night. And with all that's happened since, that night seems like a distant and much less complicated time....


In the days and weeks to come, I'll be talking about the points I wanted to make in the film especially how influential the writers and performers from this time and place were in creating the conventions of the genre of rock and roll. Like most American music, rock and roll is an amalgam of many cultures and places. But the seminal recordings made in New Orleans in the 50s by artists like Lloyd Price, Fats Domino, Little Richard and many others established some very important traditions and conventions of the genre. My favorite example is Earl Palmer, the drummer. Earl really "invented" rock and roll drumming. His solid backbeat on the 2 & 4, his syncopated bass drum licks and his staccato fills were from his own imagination...made up and made the standard to which all other recording and performing drummers aspired. So thanks to AOL for this forum and this opportunity to write about a subject very dear to me. My film features 2007 Grammy winners Irma Thomas and Cosimo Matassa, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee Dave Bartholomew, Allen Toussaint and Dr. John...those are some of the recognizable names but we also spotlight some lesser known and equally important writers, performers and producers. "Going Back To New Orleans" is history, it's musical anthropology, but most of all, it's great fun. I hope you enjoy the film and this blog... Cy