Music lovers from 'round our way and far beyond were saddened this week to hear the news that trumpeter Warren "Porgy" Jones has passed away at the age of 74. Growing up in the French Quarter and Treme, Jones cut his musical teeth on the city's brass band tradition but branched out far beyond his Crescent City roots, adding sophisticated brass to records by such artists as Ray Charles, Marvin Gaye, Gladys Knight and a dizzying discography of others.
While his early performances and recordings with artists like Ernie K-Doe and Lee Dorsey were typical New Orleans R&B fare (a good example is his record "Catch Mr. Potato"), in 1974 he recorded what was to become a highly influential song, DAP Parts I and II the tight, sophisticated arrangement of which (scored by John Berthelot), became a model for many 1970s soul records thereafter.
A traditional second line will be held for Jones this weekend.
The press of personal business prevented me from noting here the passing of record man extraordinaire Jim Russell last month. Russell, probably best known for his New Orleans store, where some of rock and rolls biggest names searched the bins for rare treats, had a legacy in rock far bigger than just a fellow with an amazing record store.
Fired as a DJ in the 1950s for playing "race" records, Russell knew the real market for these records weren't really the African-American audience, but the far larger group of white kids who loved them. Russell teamed up with Allen Freed and convinced him to spin the records from the Southern African-American market. Soon, the two began promoting concerts together, including Freed's famous "Moondog Matinee" which exploded the music called rock and roll into the American consciousness.
Russell moved to New Orleans and opened his famed record store, where he lived and worked happily for decades. In 2004, OffBEAT Magazine awarded Russell its Lifetime Achievement in Music Business award, a recognition well-deserved and long overdue.