throw my baby out the window!

today is called 'lundi gras' in the big easy. the day before mardi gras.
they said it couldn't happen ... shouldn't happen. but how the hell ya gonna stop it?
as fat tuesday approaches we wonder how many families in hot 'lanta, houston, and points beyond are doin' some kinda funky second line? and it's not like it is so bad in the easy that someone would head to st. louis for carnival. it sure seems like everywhere (even in vermont!) people are doin' their own mardi gras thing. we sure have been doin' our share here. packin' and jivin' all the way home.

i have very fond memories of mardi gras. working mardi gras balls and trying to stay awake from friday til tuesday, dressing up as harpo marx for a couple carniavls, riding around town looking for the marching indian tribes, sleeping on the st. charles neutral grounds to have a great spot for the parades of zulu and rex, and marching with 'pete fountain's half-fast walking club' a few years (i was 17 the first time, second lining with my snare drum at 7 am and trying to keep up while being plied with liquor; these guys stop for a drink at every bar along the route, and everyone carries a flask filled with their favorite poison).

with every year it is something, if not everything. too hot, too cold, just plain wet and those wonderfully beautiful spring days that only happen in new orleans not often enough. but this year a little rain wasn't gonna be enough to stop the party, nor would a few skeptics.
of course, it is not all that well all over the easy. parts of town are still completely destroyed and will probably never be the same. it seems my good friend at 'tim's nameless blog' is experiencing a new problem everyday as his family tries to get their shit back together. that is happening to a lot of people up and down the gulf coast.
that is why it was so important to pull this off. as of right now things are flowing like wine. no major problems and everybody's having fun. at least until wednesday when it is time to get back to rebuiling the city and the coast.


cnn is covering fat tuesday live and it appears that the celebration is recieving a lot more press, but there is always gonna be someone who whines about it being to early to party. even to the point of suing to stop 'the krewe of zulu' from parading. yeah, right ... can't stop the indian tribes from hitting the streets early tuesday morning either, after making new suits since all were trashed. it's like all the members of the the krewes from the hardest hit areas feel a need to carry on for those that can't. and so the party goes on ...

'carnival time'
by al johnson

The Green room is smoking, and the Plaza's burning down.
Throw my baby out the window, let the joint burn down ...

All because it's Carnival Time, oooooohhh, it's Carnival Time....!
Oh Well it's Carnival Time and, everybody's having Fun!

The allspeed is rocking from one side to the other.
The joints are jamin, packing, and I'm bout to smother ...

All because it's Carnival Time, oooooohhh, it's Carnival Time....!
Oh Well it's Carnival Time and, everybody's having Fun.

Right Now, it's Carnival Time, oooooohhh, Carnival Time....!
Oh Well it's Carnival Time and, everybody's having Fun.

_Sax instrumental -

Well if you put a nickel, well now, I put a dime now.
we can get together now and drink us some wine!

All because it's Carnival Time, oooooohhh, Carnival Time..!
Oh Well it's Carnival Time and, everybody's drinking wine!

- Sax instrumental -

fade out ............
yeah buddy, let the joint burn down! well this a natural thing for us yats, laughing and giggling about things most normals cringe at. like parading when the place is still reeling like a wounded drunk. sure things suck, but it could always be worse. from the looks of it quite a few revelers agree. the streets appear crowded, more so than i thought they would be ... and how we wish we were there doin' that thing the locals do. boppin' to the beat on the street, hangin' and yakkin' with friends whilst waitin' for the parade, watching the flambeaux as they light the way at night. the sights, sounds and smells of the experience are overwhelming and intoxicating. and mardi gras music fills the air where ever you go. it blares from open windows, passing cars, boomboxes, and marching bands. someone will belt out a chorus from 'carnival time' and have a street corner full of strangers join in, not missing a note. priceless!

and here are a few tunes, in mp3, that we know are being played somewhere in the easy right now at a very loud volume, and we suggest you do the same ... good until lent, via yousendt:

al johnson - carnival time
the hawkettes - mardi gras mambo
fats domino - mardi gras in new orleans
professor longhair - big chief pt 1
professor longhair - big chief pt 2
paul simon - take me to the mardi gras
the wild magnolias - new suit
stop, inc - second line
the meters - hey pocky way
the balfa freres - danse de mardi gras
dr. john - mardi gras day
dave bartholomew - good jax beer
satchmo and the dukes - bourbon street parade
the dukes of dixieland - if i ever cease to love

oh yeah, a thanks to johnno at 'the open mind' for his nod to the w'room. we stumbled onto his blog about a year ago, found these really silly pictures and just had to leave a silly comment. since then it has become one of our fave reads, and we're glad to know he likes to hangout in here now and then. he is an excellent photog, posting wonderful pics from australia of his travels around the country and the coolest birds that inhabit his yard ... and he is very smart and witty too. so johnno, if you ever wake up and find yourself in new orleans, look us up. we'd love to have ya over.