Preservation Hall Jazz Band/My Morning Jacket: Louisiana Fairytale

Wade Luquet

CD/DVD Reviewer since 2008

Wade is Associate Professor of Sociology and director of the Institute for New Orleans History and Culture at Gwynedd-Mercy College.

Recent articles (38 total)

Published: May 15, 2011

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This film is both a documentary and a concert film. It shows how musicians from opposite ends of the music spectrum can come together and make something special. It illustrates that you do not have to throw out the old to make way for the new. One actually can build on the other, and the influence can go in both directions. It's not an easy fit, but it works. It is a visually beautiful film, entertaining, and educational at the same time. It will no doubt appeal to both Preservation Hall and My Morning Jacket fans.

During the credits, an important event occurs, though most will not understand its significance—Jaffe makes red beans and rice and gumbo for the members of My Morning Jacket. In New Orleans, this is akin to making someone your blood brother. You become a New Orleanian through your ears and your stomach—the music you hear and the foods you eat bring you into the culture of this city from a young age. You think and act differently than anyone else in the world because of this influence. When a New Orleans native likes you, they invite you to their home for dinner. They feed you into the culture.

At the conclusion of several Greek mythologies, the gods recognize certain mortals who should be elevated to gods and give them a mixture of ambrosia to bring about that transformation. In New Orleans, that ambrosia is red beans and rice. For My Morning Jacket, this meal was a transformative ending to their Louisiana Fairytale.

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