Our New Orleans is available on vinyl for the first time through Nonesuch Records. The album has raised $1.5 million to benefit Gulf Coast survivors of the devastating 2005 hurricane via Habitat for Humanity.
The new version of the album, which features songs recorded by New Orleans musicians immediately after Hurricane Katrina, includes tunes by Allen Toussaint, Dr. John, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Irma Thomas, the Wild Magnolias, Buckwheat Zydeco, Randy Newman and more.
The album received rave reviews when it was first released. The Washington Post said, “Rife with stirring performances, Our New Orleans has the soul of the city.” The New York Times called it, “An album full of mourning, obstinacy and longing for redemption.”
The two-LP set, also available digitally, includes five previously unreleased tracks: “Do You Know What It Means,” by Davell Crawford; “Let’s Work Together,” by Buckwheat Zydeco and Ry Cooder; “Crescent City Serenade,” by Dr. Michael White; “Do You Know What It Means,” by The Wardell Quezergue Orchestra featuring saxophonist Donald Harrison, Jr. and “Walking By the River” by Dr. John (the above video was recorded in a New York City studio in September 2005).
