CD's subtlety captures New Orleans' sound

By John Barry
Poughkeepsie Journal
November 4, 2005

There is no backing brass band, no voodoo, no gumbo.

But there is an attitude that for some residents of New Orleans probably captures the feelings of hope that might surround the Crescent City.

The attitude is that, in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, hundreds of deaths and a diaspora, "It's Gonna Be OK." Such a sentiment is captured in the title of one song on a new CD by Jesse Moore, who lived in the Hudson Valley and played local clubs for years before moving to New Orleans in 2003.

Moore had scheduled a CD release party for his latest musical effort, a CD called "More Than Life Itself," for Sept. 8. But he evacuated New Orleans Aug. 28. Hurricane Katrina flooded New Orleans, devastated the Gulf Coast and sent hundreds of thousands scrambling for their lives.

Moore returned to New Orleans Oct. 8 to a French Quarter home that was unscathed, but to a city submerged.

"It's kind of like one of those little snow globes," said Moore, known in the Hudson Valley as the HooDoo Man. "The little placid scene, suddenly, like someone just tipped the whole thing over."

Scheduled for Saturday

He eventually rescheduled his CD party for Saturday. Moore and his five-piece band will play Margaritaville on Decatur Street at 10 p.m. There is no cover.

He will be playing music from a CD that is a cross between Curtis Mayfield and Taj Mahal.

The New Orleans influence, Moore said, "is reflected more covertly than overtly ... it doesn't come out as overtly as some of the music that's come out of there. We did that with a purpose. There are a lot of guys who are doing it and they do it well," he said of musicians who capture the traditional New Orleans sound on their CDs.

"They've been doing it all their lives. I didn't want to make a 'New Orleans' album. We wanted people to say 'Wow, this was recorded in New Orleans.' "

Moore wrote some of the songs on the CD — he also recorded songs written by others — in New Orleans. He recorded them at Ultrasonic Studios, where Moore's favorite album, "Going Back to New Orleans" by Dr. John, was recorded.

Moore's original tracks were "a catharsis from a deep personal relationship," he said.

The titles of the songs seem like they could apply to a personal relationship or to New Orleans after Katrina — "Taste Your Tears," "Underneath It All," "Goodbye," "Forever" and even a cover of Lyle Lovett's "If I Had A Boat."

Moore said the dual meanings in each song struck him while playing a festival in Oregon, one of the post-Katrina gigs he was able to keep.

"To me, these songs, I thought I was writing them for one reason," he said. "Post-Katrina, when I went to this festival and sang these to these people, they all took on a totally different angle. It was fascinating. I thought I was writing about one thing and it turned out to be more universal than that."

John W. Barry is the music writer for the Poughkeepsie Journal. Write him c/o Poughkeepsie Journal, P.O. Box 1231, Poughkeepsie, NY 12602, call 845-437-4822, or e-mail jobarry@poughkeepsiejournal.com