Azgoddess likes Erzulie so we will post from the 2006 Festa de Iemanjá in Rio Vermelho, Salvador, Bahia, Brasil, as Iemanjá is Erzulie. Iemanjá here has been incorporated in a male dancer but as you can see, she is still Iemanjá. I like this festival a great deal, and I used to live next to … More Dançando para Iemanjá

The best thing about Mardi Gras are the Indians. These are some very authentic ones, from 2006. It is downright thrilling to be sitting at your kitchen table, or executing some other entirely mundane activity, and to hear a tambourine in the distance . . . Indians coming! Axé.

Since we are on the topic of Music of My Childhood, since I have been hit with yet another Distasteful Project at work which distracts me yet further from the True Purpose of my job, and since I always did approve of Gracie Slick, we might as well let the Jefferson Airplane sing: You are … More Deep Nostalgia

This, of course, is Steppenwolf on Born To Be Wild. The song came out when I was a child. Everyone looked like these band members in those days. I did not remember how things had been before, so I did not realize that we were in an unusual era. Right now I am in an … More 1968

It has been gray, rainy, and freezing – yes, below zero centigrade – for several days, and even the cat is disheartened. I did not take pictures on my voyage south, but someone else made a very similar trip, and has kindly provided us with this video. I classify it as a song. Axé.

The Three Kings arrive today. We will eat a cake reminiscent of rosca de Reyes, although the Louisiana King Cakes are not exactly the same. As a child I ate rosca de Reyes in Madrid, where the Three Kings rode through the city on camels. Now the cabalgata de Reyes is much more multicultural than … More Día de reyes

I have gone back to work today, and I was going to post something related to that. Instead, what I have is Lila Downs in a recording session. Agua de rosas is the song. It is fun to see her in this informal setting, almost like a rehearsal although, of course, it is quite serious. … More Lila Downs

When I started this Blues Carnival yesterday, I did not realize how much  archival blues footage there was available.  I had only searched for a few artists when Colorado Bob sent a link to Big Joe Williams on his very own Baby, Please Don’t Go.  It is an excellent suggestion and I hasten to point … More Big Joe Williams

And here, perhaps to close out the evening, is D. L. Ménard with La porte de derrière. This song involves dissipation – things which happen after you go to a dance, and visit a few honky-tonks. I have seen it performed more times than I can count. Axé.