MUSIC

    Beale Street Caravan: Alan Toussaint

    Beale Street Caravan: Alan Toussaint Image gallery

    Presented by Beale Street Caravan at 89.9 WEVL

    March 17-March 24, 2010

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    Feature Artist: Alan Toussaint 03/16/2010 Location - New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana Feature Artist(s) - Allen Toussaint Producer, songwriter, arranger, session pianist, solo artist -- Allen Toussaint has worn all these hats over the course of his lengthy and prolific career, and his behind-the-scenes work alone would have been enough to make him a legend of New Orleans R&B. Thanks to his work with numerous other artists, Toussaint bore an enormous amount of responsibility for the sound of R&B in the Crescent City from the '60s on into the '70s. His productions kept with the times, moving from rollicking, earthy soul in the '60s to gritty, rambunctious funk in the '70s. As a composer, Toussaint proved himself a consistent hitmaker, penning more than a few gems that have since become R&B standards and been covered by countless artists working in many different styles. In keeping with that across-the-board appeal, Toussaint has worked in some supporting capacity for a wide variety of rock and blues legends, particularly from the '70s on. On top of all that, Toussaint waxed his own records from time to time, enjoying a creative peak in the '70s with several albums that highlighted his laid-back vocals and elegantly funky piano work. Even if he wasn't always the most visible figure, Toussaint's contributions to New Orleans music -- and to rock & roll in general -- were such that he earned induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1998. Soul singer/songwriter Eddie Floyd scored one of the defining hits of the Memphis soul sound with "Knock on Wood," a number one R&B smash that typified the Stax house style at its grittiest. When his close friend, Al Bell, accepted a job as promotions director at Stax, Floyd followed to Memphis, where he signed on with Stax as a staff writer and producer. He worked chiefly with Carla Thomas and William Bell at first, and often wrote in tandem with house guitarist Steve Cropper. In early 1966, their composition "634-5789" became a number one R&B hit for Wilson Pickett. That summer, Floyd cut "Knock on Wood," another song he'd written with Cropper. Initially intended for Otis Redding, the tune wasn't big with Stax management. However Atlantic Records smelled a hit, and released the song nationally; their instincts proved correct, as "Knock on Wood" became Stax's third number one R&B hit by the end of the year. Floyd followed his instant soul classic with several more Top 40 R&B hits over the next four years, including "Raise Your Hand," "Love Is a Doggone Good Thing," "On a Saturday Night," "I've Never Found a Girl (To Love Me Like You Do)" (his second biggest hit), and a cover of Sam Cooke's "Bring It on Home to Me." Guest Host, Poppy Tooker, tells us about Food and The Blues.


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        89.9 WEVL

        89.9 FM
        Memphis, TN 38103

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      • Dates & Times

        Dates:
        March 17-March 24, 2010

        Times:
        WEVL-FM 89.9 Tuesday 11:00 AM
        WUMR-FM 91.7 Wednesday 6:00 PM
        WTPL-FM 89.3 Sunday 7:00 PM

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