Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » The Wild Magnolias: Life Is A Carnival

The Wild Magnolias: Life Is A Carnival

By Jim Santella
May 1, 1999
View read count

Mardi Gras is party time for New Orleans. The Wild Magnolias sing a popular form of rock music with ties to jazz and blues. Dr. John guests on four tracks to lend solid piano accompaniment for lead singer Big Chief Bo Dollis. Although the Mardi Gras "Indians" don ornate Native American costumes, they’re not Native American tribesmen, but rather New Orleans street bands who love to party. The tradition has been around for about a hundred years; whenever there’s a party goin’ on...

The Wild Magnolias released their first hit single, "Handa Wanda" in 1970. Complete information about The Wild Magnolias is available at http://www.metroblue.com . Metro Blue, the five-year-old sister label to Blue Note Records, enlists artists from around the world. Their roster looks to pop culture for an eclectic mix, and what better way to blend the roots of many cultures than with New Orleans street music? Drawing a distinct line between art and entertainment, The Wild Magnolias offer party time fun. Their "Peacepipe" depicts marijuana jargon and careless attitudes, including the lyric "just a few puffs make you feel all right."

"Party" describes the recording session in general terms as the band joins Big Chief Bo Dollis in characteristic call & response vocal lines and exciting rhythms. The sounds of electric rock guitar, congas, electric bass and keyboard dominates the scene. The Black Bottom Brass Band of Osaka, Japan joins the party for Dr. John’s "All on a Mardi Gras Day," with DcCoy’s sousaphone riff leading the street band. A Bo Diddley beat heralds "Herc-Jolly-John" with lyrics that say they’re "gonna party all night long." For Mardi Gras fun, The Wild Magnolias are guaranteed to entertain.

Track Listing

Pock-A-Nae; Coochie Molly; Who Knows; Life Is A Carnival; Party; Old Time Indian; All On A Mardi Gras Day; Shanda Handa; Cowboys & Indians; Black Hawk; Pocket Change; Herc-Jolly-John; Battlefield; Hang Tough; Tootie Ma; Peacepipe.Collective

Personnel

Bo Dollis- vocals; Monk Boudreaux- vocals on "Shanda Handa" and "Battlefield;" Marva Wright- vocals on "Hang Tough;" June Yamagishi, Dr. John, Robbie Robertson- guitar; Davell Crawford, David Ellington- B-3 organ; Chizuko Yoshihiro- synthesizer; George Rossi, Bruce Hornsby, Dr. John, Glenn Patscha, Allen Toussaint, Davell Crawford- piano; Brian Quezerque, Mark Brooks, Nick Daniels- bass guitar; Cornell Williams- electric bass; Russell Batiste- drums, timbales, percussion; Jerry "Jellybean" Alexander- drums; Norwood "Geechie" Johnson- bass drum; Willie Green- drums, percussion; Leon Alexander- drums, congas, steel drums; Michael Ward- congas, bongos, percussion, whistle; Rockin

Album information

Title: Life Is A Carnival | Year Released: 1999 | Record Label: Metro Blue

Tags

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.