All by Hisself: Live at the Lonestar

• Artist: Dr. John
• Rating:
• Release Date: September 23, 2003
• Type: Live, Enhanced CD-ROM
• Genre: Rock

Review

Dr. John (Mac Rebennack) created his own label after many years in collaboration with Joel Dorn's Hyena Records. The result is an imprint called Skinji Brim that will issue Rebennack's archived live recordings as well as recordings by other artists that "ain't found a home nowhere." All by Hisself: Live at the Lonestar is the first volume of over 20 projected! What a beginning. This is a stone-solo piano outing recorded over two nights in 1986 at New York's premier roots music nightspot. The sound is phenomenal, the material is stellar -- "Stagger Lee," "Swanee River Boogie," "Such a Night," "Junco Partner," "Iko, Iko," "Right Place, Wrong Time," and many others -- and the performance is off the hook. Easily one of the best Dr. John live recordings, it sets a standard for capturing solo performers live and in the raw. In addition to one hour-plus CD, there is a bonus DVD included in the package. It's an intimate video of Rebennack sitting and playing music, talking about music, New Orleans, and the lineage of the great piano players from the Crescent City by a man whose entire life has been informed by that tradition. It's a one-of-a-kind portrait that is worth the price all by itself. This is the Christmas present for roots music fans in 2003. ~ Thom Jurek, All Music Guide

Tracks

CD 1

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Swanee River Boogie	Stephen Foster	Dr. John	(2:47)
Stagger Lee	Leon T. Gross, Traditional	Dr. John	(4:24)
Average Kind of Guy	Doc Pomus, Mac Rebennack	Dr. John	(3:14)
Sick and Tired	Chris Kenner	Dr. John	(4:18)
Such a Night (Lyrics)	Mac Rebennack	Dr. John	(7:27)
Qualified	Jessie Hill, Malcolm J. Rebennack	Dr. John	(6:13)
Something You Got	Mac Rebennack, Chris Kenner	Dr. John	(3:37)
Junco Partner	Traditional	Dr. John	(5:13)
Travelin Mood/Let's Make a Better World	Earl King	Dr. John	(6:23)
Right Place Wrong Time	Mac Rebennack	Dr. John	(3:47)
Iko, Iko	James "Sugarboy" Crawford, Traditional	Dr. John	(4:47)
Medley: Rockin Pneumonia/High Blood Pressure/Happy Times/Don't You ...	Huey "Piano" Smith, Allen Toussaint, John Vincent, Alvin "Red" Tyler	Dr. John	(7:34)

CD 2

Track Title	Composers	Performers	Time
Ma Sings, Plays & Talks About New Orleans Music... [DVD Video]		Dr. John

Credits

Jamie Polaski (Sonic Solutions), Dave Brubaker (Graphic Design), David Gahr (Photography), Joel Dorn (Producer), Kevin Calabro (Associate Producer), Mac Rebennack (Piano), Randy Hudson (Authoring), Ethan Gussow (Video Editor), Mac Rebennack (Vocals), Joel Dorn (Liner Notes), Victor Sheldrake (Producer)