July 9, 1999. Dr. John takes the Loreley stage, turning a summer festival into a New Orleans groove masterclass. Live at Rockpalast 1999 — out March 27 as a CD/DVD box set — presents the six-time Grammy winner and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee: rolling piano lines, deep-pocket funk, and a half-growled, half-preacher voice that commanded every ear.
Born Malcolm “Mac” Rebennack Jr., Dr. John built a catalog defined by feel as much as persona. Gris-Gris in 1968 introduced a shadowy mix of voodoo chant, second-line rhythm, and Crescent City R&B that claimed its own corner of American music. Strip away the Night Tripper mystique, and what remains is the New Orleans pulse at the heart of it all.
At Loreley, with David Barard (bass), Bobby Broom (guitar), and Herman Ernest (drums), he lays down muscular, unhurried takes on classics: “Iko Iko” marches like Mardi Gras, “Right Place, Wrong Time” snaps with sly funk tension, and “I Walk On Guilded Splinters” spirals into a hypnotic incantation. Over decades, Dr. John collaborated with Eric Clapton, Mick Jagger, Van Morrison, and Frank Zappa, and appeared in The Last Waltz and Blues Brothers 2000, always carrying New Orleans rhythm wherever he went.
Prepared with MIG Music and the Dr. John Estate, this release preserves the electricity of that night. Dr. John may have passed in 2019, but every note lives on in Live at Rockpalast 1999.
