JoJo Hermann Discusses James Booker, New Orleans Piano Influences March 19, 2019 15:13

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Words by Josh Hettermann
Photo by Craig Baird: Home Team Photography
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For an audiophile and music junkie such as myself, there is undoubtedly no greater high than discovering an artist you had never heard before. I may not remember much of my childhood, but I can vividly recall when my father put on a tape cassette of Little Feat’s Waiting for Columbus album as we took a drive through the bucolic Shenandoah Valley on the way to one of my older brother’s college basketball games in 1999. I was 8 years old. To this day, the album remains one of my favorites of all time. While I have grown up and changed in many ways, one of the few constants in my life has been my insatiable desire to discover new music.
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When I recently came upon the innovative and self-proclaimed “Best damn record club” and website Vinyl Me, Please a few months back, I was cautiously optimistic that it would introduce me to some hidden gems that I may have missed over the years of my intense and far-reaching musical exploration. Little did I know that the service would open my eyes to, what I now consider, one of the greatest and most underrated artists I have ever listened to. After receiving James Booker’s The Lost Paramount Tapes and spinning it a few times, I was shocked and humbled that I had never heard his legendary piano-driven sound steeped in New Orleans’ rich musical roots.
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The more I researched Booker’s The Lost Paramount Tapes in conjunction with his enigmatic and tragic life, the more serendipitous this story became for me. I discovered that John “JoJo” Hermann, one of my musical icons and the longtime keyboard player and key contributing singer/songwriter of the legendary Athens, GA outfit Widespread Panic, was not only heavily influenced by Booker but also devoted a whole episode of his podcast Key’d In to the album.
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After being linked up through the always-welcoming Widespread PR team, JoJo was kind enough to have a quick conversation with me this past week about Booker and elaborated on how Booker and other NoLa greats influenced him. A common theme early in the conversation was the significance of the “family tree” of New Orleans pianists that legends such as Professor Longhair and Fats Domino cultivated, which inspired both Booker and Hermann alike. JoJo elaborated on these influences further by stating, “Booker was one of the biggest limbs off that whole tree that was Fats, the Professor... but he took it to another level with his syncopated left hand playing and by adding some of these unique, funky notes in there.” He followed this with a humble observation, one that shows his respect for the late Booker, saying, “To tell you the truth, I don’t consider myself really good enough to play him! Not as much as guys like Josh Paxton, (legendary Allman Brothers Band keyboardist) Chuck Leavell and Dr. John, of course.”
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While he is not a born and raised Cajun musician like all the aforementioned artists, JoJo’s reverence and respect for the incredibly rich musical history of New Orleans is apparent throughout the conversation as well as in his play with Widespread Panic and his side projects such as Slim Wednesday. “Street Dogs for Breakfast,” the title track of WSP’s most recent album is a boogie-woogie tune carried by Herrmann’s vocals and keys. While JoJo is modest about his abilities compared to Booker’s, his powerful, clean work on the keys in Panic staples such as their fan-favorite cover of JJ Cale’s “Ride Me High” are most definitely reminiscent of Booker’s similarly strong finger-work on what I think is The Lost Paramount Tapes’ best track in “African Gumbo.” Upon being asked about his playing style and prose, he answered, “It’s all connected to New Orleans and Fats with Little Richard, Doctor John, Huey “Piano” Smith, Art Neville, ya know? It all comes out of that.”
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After trading a few minor anecdotes about Booker’s enigmatic life, including the fabled story of the pianist giving a young Harry Connick Jr. piano lessons in exchange for leniency on drug charges from legendary New Orleans district attorney Harry Connick Sr., JoJo strongly recommended watching the critically acclaimed Lily Keber documentary on Booker’s Life, Bayou Maharajah which premiered to rave reviews at the 2013 SXSW Film Festival. “If you see that, you’ll get it!” I’ll take JoJo’s word on that one!
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Discovering James Booker’s music and the readily apparent legacy and influence he continues to have on many prominent artists in the modern music landscape has been an incredible experience. It blessed me with the opportunity to discuss “The Gulf Coast Conundrum” with one of my all-time favorite musicians in JoJo Herrmann. Diving deep into the rhythmic anomaly that is James Booker will forever be one of my most cherished memories as a journalist and music fan. It feels as if I’ve unearthed a time capsule buried in the swampy waters of the Louisiana bayou many years ago, and I have no doubt that there is more to uncover on this enigmatic but supremely talented musician whose influence can be felt all over today’s live music landscape. Circling back to my anecdote about the pure, unadulterated joy of discovering music, I can honestly say that uncovering and dusting off the legendary sounds and story of James Booker has been one of the most rewarding musical and journalistic endeavors of my life. Despite this satisfaction, I have a feeling I’ve only just started to dust the cobwebs off the long forgotten treasure that is Booker’s music and story, and I can’t wait to dig a little more.
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