Louisiana Jukebox Cafe

06/18/2026

Happy 84th Birthday to Sir Paul McCartney, who needs no further explanation of who he is or his impact on the music world.
McCartney however, did leave his footprints in Louisiana a few times....Ever since the Beatles played City Park Stadium in New Orleans in 1964, he has made numerous trips to the Crescent City for concerts, a Super Bowl halftime show and the most notable trip during Mardi Gras in 1975, when they were in town to record the album "Venus and Mars" at Allen Toussaint and Marshall Seahorn’s ‘SeaSaint Studios.’ McCartney has always loved the musical culture and vibe of New Orleans, having rubbed elbows with the likes of "Frogman Henry" (backed up the Beatles during that ’64 tour), Fats Domino and Ernie K-Doe, and even by accident got to meet with John Fred and some of his “Playboy Band,” but not in Louisiana, but all the way ‘across the pond’ inside the reception area of the EMI Recording Studio, famously known as Abbey Road Studios in London during the height of John Fred and The Playboys’ No. 1 song, “Judy In Disguise.”…All the Beatles were meeting up there that day for session work on “The White Album.”
Paul and Linda McCartney and ‘Wings’ performed in the Louisiana Superdome on April 24, 1993, while on tour.
At another time, McCartney was snuck into to the back of ‘Snug Harbor’ on Frenchmen Street, and he stood basically unnoticeable in the back of the crowded room and soaked in the sounds of Ellis Marsalis.
McCartney even enjoyed just meeting a random person as he did on the New Orleans streetcar while he rode down St. Charles Avenue incognito during the week of his Super Bowl ‘Halftime Performance’ in 2005.…..No one even noticed….until he started humming a Beatle tune……
This past March 26, McCartney released the single "Days We Left Behind" from his 29th solo studio album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane, which was released on May 29.
Happy Birthday Paul….for Heaven’s sake 🎶 They say it’s your birthday 🎶 Hope you have a good time 🎶

06/18/2026

Happy “Heavenly” Birthday to New Orleans-born drummer, composer, and band leader Ray Bauduc.
The son of musician father Jules Bauduc, Ray was born on June 18, 1918. His brother, Jules Bauduc Jr. was also a musician.
While still in school, Ray first worked accompanying movies at the Thelma Theatre in New Orleans.
He then began getting gigs with the likes of Ben Pollack, Bob Crosby, Jim Dorsey, Jack Teagarden, Eddie Miller, Nappy Lamare, and Pud Brown, among others.
Among his writing credits was “South Rampart Street Parade.
His first recordings came in 1939 as a part of an orchestra that included string bass player Bobby Haggart. The first ‘DECCA’ release included “The Big Noise From Winnetka” & “Honky Tonk Train Blues,” followed by a version with “Swing 39” on one side and “The Big Rise From Winnetka’ on the flip side of the ’Brunswick’ 78 rpm shellac.
In the late 1940’s to early 1950’s, he headed up the ‘Ray Bauduc and The Bob-Cats,’ which also included Brad Gowans, Eddie Miller, Matty Matlock, Morty Corb, Nate Kazebier and Stan Wrightsman.
They recorded a pair of 78 rpm 10-inch shellacs on Capitol Records, with “Li’l Liza Jane’ & “When My Sugar Walks Down’ being released in 1948 and “Down In Honk Tony Town” & “Susie” in 1950.
In 1951, Bauduc hooked up with Ray Bauduc for a pair of 78’s on the ‘New Orleans Bandwagon’ label, which included “Tea For Two” & “Fascination’ Rag” and “Little Rock Getaway” & “Breezing’ Along.”
In the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, he teamed up with Nappy Lamare in the ‘Ray Bauduc-Nappy Lamare and Their Dixieland Band.’
They released one album “Riverboart Dandies” and three ensuing singles, “Part 1, 2 & 3” in 1957 on Capitol Records.
In 1960, they had a pair of 45 rpm releases, which included “Walking With The Kings” & “Black And White Rage,” followed by a 4-song EP’ which also included “Tin Roof Blues.”
In 1959, they released the vinyl album “Two Beat Generation” on the Capitol label.
Bauduc also appeared in several films, including “The Fabulous Dorsey’s.”
Bauduc passed away on January 8, 1988, in Houston, Texas. He was 79.

06/17/2026

It was 52 years ago tonight that Elvis Presley made a return visit to Baton Rouge……..but it took the ‘King of Rock ’n Roll’ 19 years to get back.
In May of 1955, Elvis was just breaking out when he performed at Baton Rouge High School’s auditorium, as the closing act of a ‘Grand Ole Opry’ tour, which was headlined by Faron Young.
But on June 17, 1974, Elvis returned to the Capital City and played the LSU Assembly Center for back-to-back shows on the 17th and 18th before sellout crowds of more than 15,000.
Also having a homecoming on stage with Elvis was his bass player, Baton Rouge-born Duke Bardwell, now a member of his ‘TCB Band.’
Earlier in his music career in the 1960’s, Bardwell was a part of a popular Baton Rouge-based band, ‘The Greek Fountains.’
Bardwell, who had moved to Los Angeles and had worked with many of the greats, became a part of the TCB Band in 1974 and worked all the shows that year and halfway into 1975.

06/17/2026

Happy “Heavenly” Birthday to New Orleans-born Jazz pianist and vocalist James Edward “Sing” Miller.
Born June 17, 1914,
Miller worked with Percy Humphrey, Kid Thomas and Earl Foster, among others, but was best known as a fixture at Preservation Hall.
He also teamed up with clarinet and saxophonist Sammy Re*****on as the duo, ‘Sammy & Sing,” which also included Frank Fields on string bass, Koen De Cauter on guitar and Colin Strickland on drums.
They had a 1981 9-track LP release, “Songs of the South,” which appeared on the United Kingdom’s Lulu White’s Black Label.
Miller actually started out playing the ukulele, banjo and guitar, before switching to the piano at age 17 in 1931.
Miller passed away on May 18, 1990 a month shy of his 76th birthday.

06/16/2026

The Monterey Pop Festival ‘unofficially’ opened the “Summer of Love” June 16, 1967.
On the first night of the 3-day event 59 years ago on the West Coast in California, former Baton Rouge resident Johnny Ramistella, who changed his name to ‘Johnny Rivers,’ was the fifth performer, followed by Eric Burdon and the Animals, while Simon and Garfunkel closed out the opening night of the festival.
Hard to believe that a decade earlier, Johnny Ramistella was playing gigs closer to home like the Carousel Club and Our Lady of Mercy School Recreation Center.
Rivers, who attended Baton Rouge High School while growing up during his teenage years in the Capitol City, opened the set with "Help Me, Rhonda," followed by Mountain of Love, Midnight Special, Do What You Gotta Do, Tunesmith, Baby I Need Your Loving, Poor Side of Town and then wrapped up his appearance with Secret Agent Man.
The festival included giant acts like The Byrds, Jefferson Airplane, Jimi Hendrix, The Mamas and the Papas and The Who, a British act making its first American Tour.
‘The Who’ would be included on a tour stop in Baton Rouge a little more than a month later at Redemptorist’s High School Football Stadium, as one of the opening acts for the Herman’s Hermits!
Jimi Hendrix would come to Louisiana the following summer in 1968, for three stops, including Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport.

06/16/2026

06/16/2026

Lafayette-native Eddy Raven reached the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Country Charts 42 years ago today (June 16, 1984) with "I Got Mexico."
Born Edward Garvin Futch in Lafayette on Aug. 19, 1944, the now 80 year old began his recording career in 1962 and appeared on numerous labels, including his first record on Cosmo, Lafayette-based La Louisanne and then national labels like ABC, Dimension, Elektra, RCA, Universal and Capitol.
Between 1984 and 1990, he had six No. 1 singles on the Country charts with the likes of “Shine, Shine, Shine,” “I’m Gonna Get You,” “Joe Knows How To Live” and “In A Letter To You,” and “Bayou Boys,” which hung around the chart for a whopping 26 weeks in 1989!
Although growing up in Louisiana, his influences were everything from Cajun music to listening to the ‘Louisiana Hayride,’ he got his first musical break when Cajun country musician Jimmy C. Newman heard his first record (“Ladies Man”/Once A Fool” in 1962 on the Cosmo label), and signed him to a publishing contract with ‘Acuff-Rose Music.”
He moved to Nashville and wrote songs for various artists, including Jeannie C. Riley, before having his own charted single, “The Last of The Sunshine Boys” in 1974, followed by “Good News, Bad News” in 1975.
Along with releasing dozens of singles during his carrier, he has also released eight studio albums.

06/16/2026

Happy 86th Birthday to Nolan Struck, who along with his brother, could have been an inspiration for the iconic creation of the “Blues Brothers.”
Born Nolton Antonie on June 16, 1940, in the community of Duson in Arcadia Parish, but later-to-be-known ‘Nolan Struck,’ ended up in Chicago, via Port Arthur, Texas.
He eventually recorded with his brother Edward Antoine, three years his senior, better known as ‘King Edward.’ He was born seven miles west of Duson in Rayne in 1937 and celebrated his 89th birthday on May 5th.
Edward learned to play Zydeco from his cousin and soon-to-be legend, Clifton Chenier, but early on, it was Jazz and Mississippi Delta Blues that tickled his fancy.
Edward moved with his family to Port Arthur in the 1950’s. He tried to jump around in genres, but settled in on the blues.
Nolan however, who was also living in Port Arthur, had his first sights set on being a dancer, It was there in Port Arthur that he met Chicago bluesman Lonnie Brooks.
Brooks told him he was looking for a bass player in his band and offered to teach Nolan how to play bass.
It was then that both brothers, Nolan and Edward headed up to Chicago.
When they played together in Chicago in 1961, they were billed as ‘The Blues Brothers.’ Ironically, they dressed just liked Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi did in their first appearance on ‘Saturday Night Live,” and later in the 1980 motion picture, “The Blues Brothers.”
Of course, the new ‘new’ Blues Brothers were white.
Albums and tours followed, and sequels to the original movie.
Nolan and Edward, meanwhile, back in the day, toured alongside legends like Muddy Waters and Buddy Guy.
They remained “The Blues Brothers” for 14 years until 1975, just three years before Aykroyd and Belushi brought the blues back to the forefront.
It was at that time that Edward headed back South and ended up in Jackson, Mississippi. He laid down some track’s at Johnny Vincent’s Ace Records recording studio, where he cut “I Should Have Quit You Baby” and “The Things I Used To Do.”
Nolan ended up in Jackson as well, playing clubs in-and-around the Capital City.
Nolan, who had releases on various labels, including Stan Lewis’ Shreveport-based ‘Paula Records’ label, was also cutting “Falling In Love, My Nerves Gone Bad” and “You’re Been Cheating On Me,” for Birmingham, England-based ‘Big Bear Records.’
He became a part of the ‘American Blues Legends’ European tour.
The two brothers finally came full circle in 1993, when they began working on a CD album entitled “Brother To Brother.” It was a combination of ‘originals,’ such as “Miss Miser, How Do You Want Your Thrill?” and “Blues from Mississippi.” They also covered a couple of the great blues artists, Muddy Waters and Little Walter.
Those sessions were released in 1995.

06/16/2026

Happy “Heavenly” Birthday to New Orleans-born Jazz trombonist Homer Eugene.
Born June 16, 1914, Eugene was well known for his parading with the ‘Young Tuxedo Brass Band,’ along with appearances with the likes of Danny Barker, Albert Burbank, the Bargain family, as well as Homer’s own brother, Wendell Eugene.
Eugene was also a member of a variety of groups, from the ‘Barnes-Bocage Big Five,’ Peter Bocage and His Creole Serenaders and Captain John Handy’s All-Star New Orleans Jazz Band.
Eugene passed away in 1998 at the age of 84.