Saturday, June 21, 2014

Dr. John's Berets

Malcolm John "Mac" Rebennack Jr., better known by the stage name Dr. John (also Dr. John Creaux), is an American singer/songwriter, pianist and guitarist whose music combines blues, boogie woogie and rock and roll.
After his professional music career began in New Orleans in 1950s, Dr John concentrated on guitar as his primary instrument, gigged with regional bands and scored his first hit with instrumental Storm Warning. However, his playing career came to an end when his left ring finger was injured by a gunshot during a fight. After the injury, Dr John took up bass guitar, before making the piano his primary instrument.
By the late 1960s, he went on to become a session musician for the likes of Sonny and Cher and Canned Heat amongst others. It was his own solo career, beginning in 1968 with his debut album Gris Gris, that gained him the attention he deserved. The album, combining voodoo rhythms and chants with the New Orleans music tradition, was an instant success and Rolling Stone Magazine have since ranked it in their top 500 albums of all time. Along with Gris-Gris, Dr. John is perhaps best known for his recordings during 1972-1974. 1972's Dr. John's Gumbo, covering several New Orleans R&B classics, is considered a cornerstone in New Orleans music.
Since his heyday, Dr John has continued to write and record for various artists and movies soundtracks and in 2008 he was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame.

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