Hot on the heels of the release of his first album since 2004, the keyboardist/singer/songwriter will be appearing with his longtime band, the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, Thursday evening. Charmaine Neville opens.
Jazz in the Park brings killer New Orleans talent to Armstrong Park free every Thursday afternoon through the week before Halloween. The full schedule is available here.
Acclaimed Grammy-award winner, John Porter, produced Go Go Juice. Porter has become a New Orleans cottage industry of sorts since relocating here. He has produced a wide variety of new projects including Rickie Lee Jones (another new New Orleans transplant), Stanton Moore and the Honey Island Swamp Band.
Cleary’s album features nine new songs, adding depth to an already impressive discography. “Bringing It Back Home” sounds like a post-Katrina Cleary manifesto. Its ebullient chorus belts out the musical genres that define New Orleans, “jazz, funk, R&B and soul.” “Boneyard” uses the local vernacular term for cemetery to suggest some fun must be had before we die with the Dirty Dozen Brass Band horn section—Kevin Harris, Roger Lewis, Efrem Towns, and Kirk Joseph—laying down their patented sound. Lewis’ baritone percolates and Harris’ tenor squawks creating the classic Dirty D template.
The rest of the musicians on Go Go Juice represent the best of at least three generations of local and transplanted talent. Allen Toussaint arranges the rest of the horns with recent transplant, Eric “Benny” Bloom on trumpet, not-so-recent transplant Charlie Halloran on trombone, and Ryan Zoidis on sax.
The core band features drummer Terence Higgins and bassist Calvin Turner. Derwin “Big D” Perkins and Shane Theriot play guitar. Nigel Hall on keys and backing vocals and Danny Sadownick on percussion round out the lineup. Ivan Neville even makes an appearance on backing vocals on the aforementioned “Bringing It Back Home.”
Cleary’s vocals demonstrate the power of so many years on stage. He growls gritty, sings sweetly, and hits a couple of impossibly high notes over the full length of the album. The songs mine the deep well of New Orleans music, but also have hints of outside influences, particularly other socially conscious songwriters on “Brother I’m Hungry,” with its telling line, “This song begs the question, how long before, maybe, you or I.”
Go Go Juice is a welcome addition to an already impressive resume. Can’t wait to hear the songs live!
