IN MEMORIAM: Allen Toussaint dominated so many ‘Southern Nights’

I sit here, listening to an Allen Toussaint song, wanting to cry. His piano skills are so evident, his composing excellence on full, wonderful display.

Sadly, the world woke up Tuesday, Nov. 10 to news of the death of Allen Toussaint, one of the most important musicians and composers in the history of New Orleans and music in general. The Times-Picayune reports that Toussaint was 77 years old and died while on tour in Madrid.

Hailing from a city know for its beats and rhythms, Toussaint was an American original who carved out a sizable listening audience, toured extensively and graciously offered arrangements and songs to other performers. It was only last night, Nov. 9, that Hollywood Soapbox published an interview with Jon Cleary, a NOLA musician who collaborated with Toussaint on a recent album. The composer’s musical reach was wide and varied.

For this writer, Toussaint’s music will always live on as the soundtrack of the great city of New Orleans. If memory serves, I had the good chance to see him three times in concert. He shared a double bill with Dr. John at the Town Hall in New York. He opened a concert at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill for the Blind Boys of Alabama, and he joined the Preservation Hall Jazz Band on stage at the Mayo Performing Arts Center in Morristown, N.J. In fact, I had a ticket for his holiday-themed show at the City Winery in New York for later this month.

Seeing Toussaint on stage was a special treat. He was a giving musician, someone who had no problem playing the many hit songs that made him a legend. From “Southern Nights” to “Yes We Can Can,” the singer-composer had an impressive catalog to pull from. At one point during his concert, he would get up from his piano bench and throw Mardi Gras beads into the audience. Even though his music was often exquisitely complex and touchingly romantic, Toussaint knew how to have a good time and allow the concertgoers the chance to experience Mardi Gras, even though it wasn’t February and it wasn’t New Orleans.

His piano playing matched his on-stage personality. His fingers would effortlessly move across those keys, bringing to life recognizable tunes and new songs that had that unmistakable Toussaint stamp, a medley of jazz, soul, r&b and a splash of funk. Horns were not outside his purview either. On Cleary’s latest album, Go-Go Juice, he arranged many of the horn sections.

For fans who attended one of his concerts, they will undoubtedly remember the time when Toussaint broke into such a dizzying display of piano playing that his fingers kept crawling over the sides of the instrument, even after he ran out of keys to pound. He was an original.

Perhaps the lasting legacy of this performer-musician-composer will be his songs, both the ones he sang and the ones he wrote for other musicians. However, there should be some ink left over to tell the tale of his wonderful personality and seeming happiness at entertaining a crowd.

When news of Toussaint’s death hit the world, many folks probably had the thought that one of the world’s preeminent entertainers had been lost. We still have his recordings. We still have those memories. But, oh, how I yearn for some of that smooth playing and another transporting experience, via music, to those southern nights.

You will be missed, Mr. Toussaint. You will be missed.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

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