Aaron Neville

Good evening to all,
hope your weekend is going well.

One thing I've wanted to comment on, but kept getting sidetracked by some of the stories coming out of the hurricane zone, is Aaron Neville, who I now believe is the true voice of New Orleans. I must admit that through the years, with the exception of the song called "Tell it like it is", I never understood the appeal of Aaron Neville or the Neville Brothers, not that they were bad or anything like that, just that their sound didn't match up with my musical tastes at the time. After seeing Aaron Neville perform during one hurricane relief benefit, it suddenly all became clear, his is the voice of New Orleans. Hearing that New Orleans jazz sound during some of the other performances, the horns, the piano, even the drums, I understood that New Orleans has a sound unique to itself, for someone to appreciate it, someone must be able to visualize the city. At the time when Aaron Neville performed "Louisiana 1927", and "Amazing Grace", I couldn't visualize the city in it's heyday, bustling with tourists, I could only visualize the aftermath of the storm and flood, and the pictures of people in need of help. His performance gave the terrible sights a soundtrack, reminding me of the heart of people, their hopes and dreams though dashed, or washed away, still shown on their faces, their need very evident.

I'll never be able to say I don't understand the appeal of Aaron Neville or the Neville Brothers anymore, as I found it that night, those were perfect choices of songs to sing, they sure made it all clear to me.