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Dr. John joins Showboat's Mardi Gras celebration at House of Blues

By Sandy Warren

Add Comment | Comments: 0 | Posted Feb. 19, 2009

You can bet on it. Dr. John will transform the House of Blues at Showboat into St. James Infirmary Saturday night, Feb. 21. He'll heal what ails you and have you begging for more even when you're feeling fine.

So flag down the ambulance with lights flashing and sirens screaming, strap yourself down, and go wherever the Night Tripper takes you. It'll be a wild ride with no braking for caution or red lights. The Neville Brothers -- Art, Aaron, Charles, and Cyril -- will be at the controls with Dr. John, who says they do a lot of concerts together -- as many as they can. That's lucky for the rest of us mortals because they're all part of that funky New Orleans magic you can't find anywhere else on the planet.

Dr. John will brew you a steamy tonic of blues, R&B, Nawlinz traditional, boogie-woogie, gospel, jazz, rock, and even a dose of pop when necessary.

And don't take your eyes off him on Saturday night. He'll be sitting at the piano one microsecond and standing up at the organ the next. His playing is as take charge and powerful as ever. He still wails in that unique, raw, emotionally charged voice nobody's ever come close to duplicating. Then when you think he's already brought everything out of the bag, he just might break into a little not-quite-dirty dancing.

Simultaneously, he'll mesmerize you with his paraphernalia. No, not that kind of paraphernalia; the doctor hasn't self-medicated since 1990. I'm talking about his colorful body ornamentation and the exotic accouterment he lines up on the piano.

By the third tune, you and everybody else will be dancing, clapping, and looking for something white to wave Nawlinz-style in your left hand. Best to bring a hanky so you won't have to scrounge around for a soggy, used napkin or something even less desirable.

Check out a vintage clip of Dr. John doing "Right Place, Wrong Time":

Dr. John has been prepping for Saturday's gig at the House of Blues for more than 60 years. He started ditching school in third grade to hang out at R&B joints on Canal Street in New Orleans. When he was 15, Malcolm John Rebennack, the student, traded New Orleans Jesuit High School French and history classes for club and recording dates. That move would change and enrich American music forever.

During a recent interview about the upcoming Atlantic City concert, upon being asked if we will ever hear Dr. John sing the song "World I Never Made" live -- perhaps the most poignant of all Rebennack's compositions, which appears on the Our New Orleans 2005 CD -- his decisive reply comes swiftly: "No."

As I recover, Rebennack smiles and explains, "It's not in the band book. There [are] over 200 songs in the band book, but that one's not in there. If I put everything in, there'd be over 400."

"When do you make up the playlist, and do you ever change it once you're on stage?" I ask.

His answers: "I just sit down and make it the day of the gig," and an emphatic "No!"

As he leans back and smiles again, Rebennack volunteers, "I'm going to mix it up in Atlantic City."

And that shouldn't be difficult for the doctor. Nawlinz music comes in many shapes, from the traditional sound of the song "When the Saints Go Marching In" to familiar Rebennack classics such as "Right Place, Wrong Time" and "Such a Night," or something from City That Care Forgot, his 2009 Grammy-winning album for Best Contemporary Blues Album.

Dr. John doesn't talk much during performances. He takes time out from singing and playing only to introduce the band and whatever composition he has chosen from the new album.

Rebennack's band, the Lower 911, fits him like a pair of custom-made, soft, leather shoes already broken in. Drummer Herman "Roscoe" Ernest, guitarist John Fohl and bassist David Barard are just what the doctor ordered. The musicianship, respect, and rapport that flows both ways between the sage and his band permeates the whole room.

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