Shows
Neon Jazz InterviewsJazz Pianist Richard Pellegrin on the 2024 Album TopographyWelcome to a new edition of the Neon Jazz interview series with Jazz Pianist Richard Pellegrin on the 2024 Album Topography .. His new album done with saxophonist Neil Welch on Slow & Steady Records features a collection of compositions and improvisations directly inspired by the landscapes of the American West – especially Whidbey Island, located just north of Seattle, WA. Reflecting “an urge many of us have recently felt to escape the office, social media, or the news, and get back to nature.” We get into the new album, live shows, future projects and so much more. We caught up initially in 2021 during the...
2024-11-2621 min
The Night Train®#266 - Live and drunk on 45s! (6th Feb 2022) We can't quite believe it either, after quite the wait this is it.... the big return to the studio! Has it really been almost 2 years? Will we still be able to deliver the goods on the air? Will anyone call the studio to claim the prize? All these questions and more will be answered in the show.Not only is the show packed to the gills with great music, we decided to give ourselves a bit of a treat in hour 2... a 30 minute guest mix done by us!As always, don't forget to get in...
2022-02-071h 59The Night Train®#251 "Hold up... they're still on the air?!?" (19th Sept 2021) We managed it. The stars have aligned and what are about to listen to is the sound of two people bumbling their way through 120mins of community radio. Yes, as it’s a pre-record we could quite easily make it a slick affair. Also, we did edit it a bit. Can you imagine how bad the stuff was that we took out?!?This week there’s new bits, old bits, bits we’ve been listening to on our summer break and some stuff we’ve played before.To experience the show...
2021-09-201h 59
Trick BagBobby Hendricks of The DriftersAmong aficionados of classic R&B, the legendary Drifters vocal group is divided into two factions -- the "old Drifters" and the "new Drifters." The "old" group is the one that was founded by Clyde McPhatter in 1953 and, with many personnel changes, ran until 1958 with tremendous success. In the spring of that year, the group's manager, George Treadwell, fired the entire group, and, because he held exclusive rights to the name, he hired a group called the Crowns and rechristened them with the Drifters name. This group, also with many personnel changes over the years, is the aggregation that fan...
2021-08-2659 min
Trick BagA CapellaIt's an all a cappella showcase on this installment of Trick Bag. Vocal groups were a hot commodity in the '50s and '60s, but it wasn't common for record labels to release recordings without instrumental backing. Fortunately, many a cappella tracks were recorded and preserved. I've picked out some real gems to share with you on this episode. Your Host,Neil the Night HowlerTrick Bag is presented by Osiris Media. Hosted and Produced by Neil Pellegrin. Produced by Kirsten Cluthe. Edited by Matt Dwyer and Justin Thomas (Revoice Media). Execut...
2021-08-121h 05
Trick Bag016 - An Evening With Dan Penn (Part 2)It's time for Part 2 in a spotlight on Dan Penn, the great R&B songwriter who wrote hits for Aretha Franklin, James & Bobby Purify, Percy Sledge, Joe Simon, James Carr, Conway Twitty and many others. In this episode, we'll hear the biggest hits from the Dan Penn songbook and some great behind-the-scenes stories from the man himself. The depth of soul found in Dan's music combined with his down-home, charming demeanor makes this episode especially captivating and one you'll undoubtedly want to listen to more than once!Your Host,Neil the Night Howler...
2021-07-2959 min
Trick BagAn Evening With Dan Penn (Part 1)An Evening With Dan Penn (Part 1)This episode is Part 1 of a spotlight on one of the all-time great R&B songwriters - Dan Penn. Dan has written hundreds of songs that have been recorded by an array of artists, including Percy Sledge, Aretha Franklin, Conway Twitty, Joe Simon, the Box Tops, Brenda Lee, James Carr, Otis Redding, Irma Thomas, Tony Joe White, Solomon Burke, Etta James and countless others. He's responsible for penning some of the greatest R&B and soul classics ever recorded. I had the pleasure of chatting with Dan live...
2021-07-151h 00
Trick BagIn the Can - Unreleased Gems (New Orleans Edition)In the Can -- Unreleased Gems (New Orleans Edition)In this edition of Trick Bag, Neil takes you on a journey into unreleased gems recorded in New Orleans in the '50s and early '60s. The criteria for the tracks featured on this episode is that all the recordings have to have been left unissued -- or "in the can" -- for at least two decades before they were released. ------songs:Li'l Millet - Rock Around the ClockRoy Brown - I'm Convicted of Love...
2021-07-011h 04
Trick Bag13 - Bobby Mitchell (Part 2)I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday – A Rare Interview with Bobby Mitchell (Part 2) This episode is Part 2 of a showcase on New Orleans R&B man Bobby Mitchell, featuring a rare early '80s interview from the collection of New Orleans historian Rick Coleman. Also thanks to Coleman's archive, we'll hear interview clips from producer Dave Bartholomew, songwriter Roy Hayes and Bobby's wife, Marcie. We'll pick things up from 1957 tonight, the year that Bobby recorded one of his all-time classics -- "I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday." Featured in this installment are some real rarities, including the ori...
2021-06-171h 11
Trick Bag12 - Bobby Mitchell (Part 1)Try Rock and Roll - A Rare Interview with Bobby Mitchell (Part 1) In this episode, Neil the Night Howler shares an extremely rare interview with New Orleans R&B man Bobby Mitchell. Bobby's recording career started in 1953 and spanned only a decade, but in that short time, he undoubtedly left his mark. The recordings he made are beloved in New Orleans. He enjoyed many regional successes and found national fame with 1956's "Try Rock and Roll." His original rendition of "I'm Gonna Be a Wheel Someday" landed him a spot on American Bandstand in 1958. By the mid '60s...
2021-06-0355 min
Trick Bag011 - Mary Jane HooperThis installment of Trick Bag presents a special showcase of New Orleans soulstress Mary Jane Hooper. After releasing only a handful of singles between 1968 and 1970, this brilliantly talented vocalist (whose real name is Sena Fletcher) faded into obscurity. Her music has since garnered a dedicated following among R&B/soul collectors and much speculation has arisen about her recent whereabouts. A CD containing the material from her 45-RPMs and seven previously unreleased recordings -- all cut for New Orleans crawfish king Al Scramuzza's various record labels -- hit the market in 1997, helping to quench the lust for rare gems in...
2021-05-201h 14
Trick BagEpisode 10: He Sang, She Sang - R&B DuosOn this episode of Trick Bag, Neil digs into great male-female R&B duos of the '50s and early '60s. Some of these acts -- like Los Angeles' Gene and Eunice, New York's Mickey and Sylvia, and New Orleans' Shirley and Lee -- found success on the charts and with the concert-going public. In other cases, these duos paired up for only a handful of recordings before going their separate ways, but not without making their mark on R&B history and leaving behind great musical treasures for future generations of R&B and Rock 'n' Roll af...
2021-05-061h 01
Trick BagEpisode 9: Ray Charles and Percy MayfieldThe Genius of Soul Meets The Poet of the Blues: The musical collaborations of Ray Charles and Percy MayfieldMayfield, dubbed "The Poet of the Blues" for his seemingly never-ending stream of beautifully-woven song lyrics, laid down his first sides for Gru-V-Tone Records in 1947. He hit it big in 1950 with the now-iconic "Please Send Me Someone to Love," which has since been recorded by hundreds of artists. Percy's original version stayed on the R&B chart for 27 weeks, peaking at the #1 position. Other chart successes for Percy in the early '50s were "Lost Love," "Strange Thi...
2021-04-221h 05
Trick BagEpisode 8: The Story of Guitar Slim (Lawrence Cotton Part 2)This edition of Trick Bag will pick up from where the last episode left off. We'll hear another helping of engaging stories about Guitar Slim stories from his piano player, Lawrence Cotton. Also featured in this installment are recordings Lawrence made with Guitar Slim, Edgar Blanchard's Gondoliers and Danny White. Join host Neil the Night Howler and special guest, Lawrence Cotton, for another journey through the golden years of New Orleans rhythm and blues!_____________________ Songs featured in this episode: Guitar Slim - Something to Remember You ByG...
2021-04-0851 min
Trick BagEpisode 7: The Story of Guitar Slim (Lawrence Cotton p1)On this edition of Trick Bag, we'll hear the story of one of the most colorful, dynamic and intriguing characters in New Orleans music history -- Guitar Slim -- as told by his piano player, Lawrence Cotton. Guitar Slim hit it big in 1954 with "The Things That I Used to Do." Complete with Slim's stunning guitar work and a masterful arrangement by Ray Charles, the song stayed at the #1 position on the R&B chart for 14 weeks and was one of the top-selling R&B singles of 1954. Slim's piercing and innovative guitar style combined with his captivating ons...
2021-03-2553 min
Trick BagEpisode 6: Montel RecordsThis edition of Trick Bag showcases one of the great independent record labels of Louisiana. S.J. Montalbano's Baton Rouge-based Montel Records issued its first single in late 1958. Over the course of the next ten years, Montel and its sister labels, Carmie, Michelle, Stephanie and Debbie -- the latter three named for Montalbano's three daughters -- provided a platform for an eclectic mix of R&B, Rock'n'Roll, swamp pop, country, blue-eyed soul and garage rock. A 1963 Michelle release -- Dale and Grace's "I'm Leaving It Up to You" -- put the label in the national spotlight when the song hit #1...
2021-03-1157 min
Trick BagEpisode 5: Mardi GrasHappy Mardi Gras! On this edition of Trick Bag, we'll get a taste of classic New Orleans Mardi Gras music. Most of these songs received very little to no attention outside of New Orleans, but in the city, they're considered perennial anthems of Carnival season. If you're from New Orleans, you should have a blast hearing the stories behind the Mardi Gras classics you've been listening to all your life. If you're not from the city and these songs are new to you, you're sure to enjoy this exciting musical taste of Mardi Gras in New Orleans! Songs...
2021-02-161h 00Trick BagEpisode 4: Clover Part 2The Clovers were one of the top R&B vocal groups of the 1950s scoring 21 chart-toppers between 1951 and 1959. These include "Don't You Know I Love You", "One Mint Julep", "Blue Velvet", "Ting-A-Ling", "Devil or Angel", and "Love Potion No. 9". On this installment of "Trick Bag", we'll hear a 2014 interview with Harold Winley, the group's bass singer and last surviving original member. Harold is a great raconteur and tells the story of the Clovers as only he can. This two-part series also features Clovers hits and obscurities, including several rare live performances from the mid '50s.
2021-02-1157 minTrick BagEpisode 3: Clover Part 1The Clovers were one of the top R&B vocal groups of the 1950s, scoring 21 R&B chart-toppers between 1951 and 1959. These include "Don't You Know I Love You," "One Mint Julep," "Blue Velvet," Ting-A-Ling," "Devil or Angel" and "Love Potion No. 9." On this installment of Trick Bag, we'll hear a 2014 interview with Harold Winley, the group's bass singer and last surviving original member. Harold is a great raconteur and tells the story of the Clovers as only he can. This two-part series will also feature Clovers hits and obscurities, including several rare live performances from the mid '50s.
2021-01-281h 00Trick BagEpisode 1: Dr. John Part 1Osiris Media proudly presents Trick Bag, the place to be for classics and rare gems from the early days of rock ‘n’ roll. Trick Bag is hosted by disc jockey and R&B aficionado Neil Pellegrin and is inspired by his weekly radio show on WWOZ in New Orleans, where he spins vintage tracks (and the occasional hit) from the mid-20th century and celebrates some of the most electrifying and soulful sounds ever recorded. This first episode comes in two parts and spans the early years of the legendary Mac Rebennack, better known by his stage...
2021-01-141h 05Trick BagEpisode 2: Dr. John Part 2This episode of Trick Bag concludes our musical journey through the early work of Mac Rebennack, aka Dr. John. Tracks Featured in this Episode:Clarence “Frogman” Henry, “Long Lost and Worried”Benny Spellman, “Walk On, Don’t Cry”Bobby Mitchell, “There’s Only One Of You”Mac Rebennack, “Good Times”Johnny Fairchild, “A Fool Or a Wise Man”Shirley and Jessie, “You Can’t Fight Love”Mac Rebennack and Ronnie Barron, “My Key Don’t Fit”Johnny Adams, “Who’s Gonna Love You?”Tommy Ridgley, “Heavenly” Morgus & the Ghouls, “Morgus The Magnificent”Alvin “Shine” Robinson, “Empty Talk”Jerry Byrne, “Raining”...
2021-01-141h 01Trick BagTrick Bag - PilotTrick Bag is a musical podcast experience that brings the listener deep into the sounds of R&B. Inspired by his weekly radio show on WWOZ, disc jockey and vinyl aficionado Neil Pellegrin spins obscure tracks from the mid-20th century, celebrating some of the most important artists of our time. Each episode features the stories behind the music, including rare artist interviews and archival recordings of performances and recording sessions. Our GDPR privacy policy was updated on August 8, 2022. Visit acast.com/privacy for more information.
2021-01-0602 min