Singer, songwriter, musician, arranger, and producer Dr. John—one of the most colorful characters to come from New Orleans, Louisiana—is interviewed here by Nick Spitzer, producer and host of the syndicated radio show “American Routes.”
During the 2013 interview, Dr. John, aka Mac Rebennack, shares stories of growing up in New Orleans, learning boogie woogie piano from family members including his aunt, and connecting with records via his father, who sold then-called “race records,” spiritual, hillbilly, and jazz.
The conversation includes a discussion of Professor Longhair, Huey Piano Smith, and other piano players who would influence Dr. John’s style, and of the artist’s musical path, starting as a studio musician when he was thirteen or fourteen, and eventually becoming a talent scout and an arranger and producer working with artists including Charles Brown and Joe Tex.
At the piano, Dr. John demonstrates the piano styles of Professor Longhair and Huey Piano Smith, and performs “Lowdown, Worried, and Blue” from his 1982 album “Dr. John Plays Mac Rebennack: The Legendary Sessions, Vol. 2.”
FOR MORE
Find out more about our public programming: https://countrymusichalloffame.org/plan-your-visit/exhibits-activities/public-programs/
FOLLOW THE MUSEUM
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/OfficialCMHOF/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/countrymusichof/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/countrymusichof
In conversation with the Museum’s Peter Cooper, Lee Ann Womack talks about her album “The Lonely, the Lonesome, and the Gone” (recorded at Houston’s legendary SugarHill studios, where Lightnin’ Hopkins, George Jones, Willie Nelson, and many others recorded), and about songwriting, her East Texas ...
For his book “Dylan: Disc by Disc,” music critic and author Jon Bream talked with fifty-five musicians, journalists, and scholars about every album recorded by Bob Dylan. Here, Bream hosts a conversation about the albums Dylan recorded in Nashville, including “Blonde on Blonde,” “John Wesley Hard...
Marshall Chapman takes the stage at the Museum to share stories and perform songs from a decades-spanning career as a singer-songwriter, including “Betty’s Bein’ Bad,” which was recorded by country group Sawyer Brown and taken to #5 in the country charts in 1985.
Throughout her 2020 Songwriter ...
