Gazfunk is 2!!!

Yes ladies & gentlemen, today sees the blog celebrate it’s 2nd birthday. It seems like no time at all since were we celebrating our first birthday but as they say, time flies when you are having fun and I’ve certainly enjoyed bringing you some quality soul & funk this past year.

So what have we got in store for you today? Well since it’s our 2nd birthday I thought I’d bring you not one, but 2 stonking tunes. Both of these tunes come from the same place – The Crescent City aka The Big Easy aka N’awlins.

Our first track comes from Mary Jane Hooper. It was originally thought that Hooper was an alias used by Inez Cheathem but it was later found that it was in fact the stage name of Sena Fletcher – one of Lee Dorsey’s backing singers. This particular track was released in ’68 on the Power-Pac label and produced by the one and only, Mr Eddie Bo. It has that funky soul feel that has a vibe not too dissimilar to other New Orleans artist like Inell Young & Marilyn Barbarin. 

Eldridge Holmes originally started out as an r&b singer in the early 60s working with the legendary Allen Toussaint (as so many other New Orleans artists did). As the 60s progressed into the 70s so did Holmes’ sound – from the early r&b style into soul and later funk. This track comes from the period in between those two styles and this will become quite apparent when you listen to the track. Unfortunately by the mid 70s Holmes all but disappeared from the music scene without having any commercial success. However it was as a result of soul collectors and the various New Orleans compilations that have featured his work that his sound still remains appreciated to this day.