New Orleans, LA (Top40 Charts/ Ponderosa Stomp Foundation) - The Ponderosa Stomp is a two night, rock and roll houseparty but it's also a chance for artists who have been outside of the limelight for years to show the world that they can still belt, wail and scream with the best of them.
As a non-profit organization that presents the Stomp every year, it is the mission of the Ponderosa Stomp Foundation to help these unsung heroes of rockabilly, soul, funk, blues, rhythm and blues and surf music to revitalize their careers. Many of the performers are elderly, have been burned by the music industry and/or have not reaped the rewards they were due but still love the music they make.
This year's P-Stomp is set for April 29 and 30 at New Orleans' House of Blues.
Here are a few examples of performers who will be at the '08 festival, whose careers have seen a recent, Stomp-related rebound.
THE GREEN FUZ
The Green Fuz' lone single "The Green Fuz" is a holy grail of garage band 45s and was later featured on the tastemaker garage rock compilation 'Pebbles.' The band had not played a single gig in forty years, with the Stomp representing their first gig back. Ponderosa Stomp founder and curator Dr. Ira Padnos says, "I couldn't believe how primitive it sounded. It's not even lo fi, it's no fi!" After intensive searching, Padnos found guitarist Les Dale and told him that he would be interested to hear the band live. Padnos recalls, "Two weeks later, the full band reunited in the same room for the first time in nearly forty years. They called me to tell me that they were in to do the Stomp gig."
WARDELL QUEZERGUE
Allen Toussaint dubbed Wardell Quezergue "The Creole Beethoven" for his immense contributions to New Orleans' music and culture. He had retired due to blindness from diabetes. After Hurricane Katrina, the Ponderosa Stomp Foundation and Renew Our Music awarded him with a grant that allowed him to play a year's worth of gigs; with the help of his son Brian, Wardell is arranging and performing again. "It has been awe-inspiring to see Wardell work with his band," says Padnos. Quezergue is one of the great architects of the New Orleans groove, leaving his indelible mark as an arranger on historic sides by New Orleans legends like Fats Domino, Professor Longhair, Dr. John, and Aaron Neville, and international stars like Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, and Willie Nelson. A Wardell credits list reads like the ultimate New Orleans mixtape: "Iko Iko," "Barefootin'," "Groove Me," Mr. Big Stuff," "Big Chief," and many, many more.
NATHANIEL MAYER
Padnos says, "Ponderosa Stomp Foundation historian and writer Mike Hurtt flew to Detroit see walking urban legend Nathaniel Mayer and came back raving. Nathaniel would appear and disappear in Detroit like a ghost." Padnos booked him for a Ponderosa Stomp, only his second formal gig in thirty years. It resulted in his performing at festivals and signing to Fat Possum Records. Padnos remembers, "He returned for another Stomp performance and put on my all-time favorite 4am dance set!" Mayer's output for the Detroit Fortune label is legendary, from "Village of Love" to "I Want Love and Affection (Not The House of Correction)." All Music Guide has praised his "searing, gritty voice [and] yard dog-styled intensity."
TOMMY MCLAIN
Swamp pop master Tommy McLain, best known for his heart-wrenchingly soulful treatment of the Patsy Cline classic "Sweet Dreams," which barreled into the national charts in 1966, had performed around Louisiana for years. "Tommy hadn't played piano on a gig in years," says Padnos. "I had him do a solo gig at the Ogden Museum that totally blew him away as he realized how much fun and how good he was doing it. The crowd loved it." McClain subsequently performed at the Stomp's swamp pop revue, which resulted in a JazzFest booking. He later fulfilled his dream to play New York City, as backed by Yo La Tengo at the McCarren Park Pool in 2007.
KING LLOYD
Dr. Padnos remembers, "Having grown up in Chicago, I have always been big into the blues. When I moved back to New Orleans in 1995, one of the few things I found myself missing was seeing a great blues band." This was before he was led to the Fox Lounge. "The Fox and King Lloyd blew my mind," says Padnos. "It was a true Mississippi juke joint in the middle of a New Orleans hood. With Christmas lights. Set up in the middle of the club playing out of battered PA was one-time Slim Harpo bassman King Lloyd and his band. They absolutely killed!" Padnos immediately booked him for a party, followed by full-fledged Stomp appearances. Lloyd has received festival offers from European promoters but he refuses to fly, so fans must travel to New Orleans to see him.
The Ponderosa Stomp Foundation is a project of MK Charities, Inc., a 501 (c)(3) non-profit educational organization. MK Charities Inc., is supported by a grant from the Louisiana State Arts Council through the Louisiana Division For The Arts and The National Endowment For The Arts.
