9th Ward Daily Photo via rl reeves jr

Oh to have been alive and on the streets of New Orleans in the late 50s when Sister Dora Alexander was working up crowds with her tambourine and acapella vocals.

Bible in hand, the old street evangelist prowled the alleys of the Vieux Carre in search of sinners who could be turned from their rowdy ways by a godly woman with bullhorn vocals.

‘Times Done Changed’ was recorded by Samuel Charters on March 8th 1958 at 638 St Peter St. in the French Quarter.

9th Ward Daily Photo via rl reeves jr

Put some Jelly Roll Morton on this afternoon.

9th Ward Daily Photo via rl reeves jr

Listening to Awood ‘Mr. Magic’ Johnson this afternoon. Mr Magic was a 9th Ward legend before his untimely passing in a car accident in Mississippi back in 2013.

Johnson’s debut LP ‘Sky’s the Limit’ went to no. 15 on the Billboard charts when it came out back in 1998.

9th Ward Daily Photo via rl reeves jr

Bobby Charles’ ‘Street People’ dropped way back in 1972 on his self-titled debut LP on Bearsville (Bearsville BR2104). Continue Reading

9th Ward Daily Photo via rl reeves jr

Listening to Doc Paulin’s Marching Band’s ‘Baby Face’ this morning. Early in the roaring 20s, Doc Paulin put together a group of New Orleans all-stars musicians to breathe life into his Dixieland Jazz Band. That outfit would go on to play together, in one form or another, for 70 years.

Paulin was about to turn 74 years old when his Doc Paulin’s Marching Band LP came out on May 23rd, 1980. This document is required listening for anybody who wants to dig on old-school second line music.

Doc Paulin passed away on Tuesday, November 20, 2007 but you can still hear his music in his children’s band, The Paulin Brothers Brass Band. They’re for hire, and once in a while you’ll see them take to the streets for the occasional second line.