William James "Count" Basie was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and their first recording. He led the group for almost 50 years, creating innovations like the use of two "split" tenor saxophones, emphasizing the rhythm section, riffing with a big band, using arrangers to broaden their sound, and others. Many musicians came to prominence under his direction, including the tenor saxophonists Lester Young and Herschel Evans, the guitarist Freddie Green, trumpeters Buck Clayton and Harry "Sweets" Edison, plunger trombonist Al Grey, and singers Jimmy Rushing, Helen Humes, Thelma Carpenter, and Joe Williams.
In jazz, comping is the chords, rhythms, and countermelodies that keyboard players, guitar players, or drummers use to support a musician's improvised solo or melody lines. It is also the action of accompanying, and the left-hand part of a solo pianist.
Allen Richard Toussaint was an American musician, songwriter, arranger, and record producer. He was an influential figure in New Orleans rhythm and blues from the 1950s to the end of the century, described as "one of popular music's great backroom figures." Many musicians recorded Toussaint's compositions. He was a producer for hundreds of recordings: the best known are "Right Place, Wrong Time", by longtime friend Dr. John, and "Lady Marmalade" by Labelle.
James Carroll Booker III was an American New Orleans rhythm and blues keyboardist and singer. Flamboyant in personality and style, and possessing extraordinary technical skill on the piano, he was dubbed "the Black Liberace".
Anthony John Medeski is an American jazz keyboard player and composer. Medeski is a veteran of New York's 1990s avant-garde jazz scene and is known popularly as a member of Medeski Martin & Wood. He plays the acoustic piano and an eclectic array of keyboards, including the Hammond B3 organ, melodica, mellotron, clavinet, ARP String Ensemble, Wurlitzer electric piano, Moog Voyager Synthesizer, Wurlitzer 7300 Combo Organ, Vox Continental Baroque organ, and Yamaha CS-1 Synthesizer, among others. When playing acoustic piano, Medeski usually plays the Steinway piano and is listed as a Steinway Artist.
Clarence "Gatemouth" Brown was an American singer and multi-instrumentalist from Louisiana. He won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Blues Album in 1983 for his album, Alright Again!.
Wild Bill Davis was the stage name of American jazz pianist, organist, and arranger William Strethen Davis. He is best known for his pioneering jazz electric organ recordings and for his tenure with the Tympany Five, the backing group for Louis Jordan. Prior to the emergence of Jimmy Smith in 1956, Davis was the pacesetter among organists.
The Maple Leaf Bar is a music performance venue in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. It is also a bar and hosts other events.
Stanton Moore is an American funk, jazz, and rock drummer from New Orleans. Most widely known as a founding member of Galactic, Moore has also pursued a solo recording career and recorded with bands as diverse as jazz-funk keyboardist Robert Walter and heavy metal act Corrosion of Conformity.
Oh, My NOLA is an album from Harry Connick Jr. with his big band. The album was released in 2007, and contains well-known songs associated with New Orleans, as well as 4 new songs composed by Connick, who sings and plays the piano, conducts, arranges and orchestrates the album.
Scott Billington is an American record producer, songwriter, record company executive and blues musician.
Rick Allen is an American blues, rock and R&B Hammond organist and pianist. In the 1960s, he played organ trio gigs in Los Angeles and did session work with singers and guitarists such as Jerry McGee and Rick Vito. In the 1970s, he toured with Don Preston, and recorded with Delaney & Bonnie. Allen moved to New Orleans in the 1980s, where he played and recorded with a number of blues and cajun performers including Ernie K-Doe, King Floyd, Freddy Fender, Marcia Ball.
Jonathan Michael Batiste is an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, bandleader, composer, and television personality. He has recorded and performed with artists including Stevie Wonder, Prince, Willie Nelson, Lenny Kravitz, Ed Sheeran, Lana Del Rey, Roy Hargrove, Juvenile, and Mavis Staples. Batiste, with his band Stay Human, appeared nightly as bandleader and musical director on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert from 2015 to 2022.
Alfred "Uganda" Roberts was an American conga/percussion player.
Walter "Wolfman" Washington was an American singer and guitarist, based in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. While his roots were in blues music, he blended in the essence of funk and R&B to create his own unique sound.
David Russell Batiste Jr. was an American drummer based in New Orleans. Batiste played drums for the bands the funky Meters, Papa Grows Funk, and Vida Blue.
John "Johnny" Sansone, also known as Jumpin' Johnny Sansone, is an American electric blues singer, songwriter, harmonicist, accordionist, guitarist and piano player. He was nominated for seven music awards in 2012, including a Blues Music Award which he won. To date, he has been involved in the release of twelve original albums.
Nathaniel Leonard "Nat" Perrilliat was an American jazz, blues, and R&B saxophonist.
Sanford Hinderlie is an American jazz pianist, composer, educator, and record producer. He currently serves as the Conrad N. Hilton Chair of Music Industry Studies at Loyola University New Orleans, a position he has held since 1981.
