The Rhine Oaks – Tampin

Only a matter of hours after I brought you last week’s update, news was filtering through of the passing of a New Orleans icon and one of my all-time favourite musicians, Mr Allen Toussaint.

Allen passed away as a result of a heart attack shortly after doing what he did best – performing live in concert to a lucky few in Madrid. He was 77. As a result, today’s update features Mr Toussaint in one of his less well-known guises, The Rhine Oaks.

Tributes have been flooding in from musicians around the world paying tribute to a genuine genius of black music. One just needs to look at the number of artists who he worked with and wrote for to appreciate the lasting legacy that has been left behind. Irma Thomas, Ernie K Doe and of course Lee Dorsey are some of the biggest names that owe their success to the songwriting ability of Allen.

I could go on about the great man but I think it’s best to just let his music do the talking as it says more about him than my words ever could. My latest Soul Party! radio show is now available to listen again and if you’d like to hear even more of the great man’s music you can listen here http://livestream.com/belfastunderground/tv/videos/104516805 to an hour long tribute. May he Rest In Peace