To: Lee Michaelson, Editor, The Topanga Messenger
From: Adrian Wright
Subject: The Louisiana Evacuee Restoration Tour
Topanga's creativity was bursting out all over on the perfect fall
weekend of October 20th! Abuelitas hosted, not one, but three
concerts throughout the weekend, TCEP's Pirate Extravaganza
transformed the Top of Topanga Clubhouse into Caribbean paradise, and
family World Music concert at the Theatricum Botanicum brought out
droves of families in their summer hats. But the Louisiana Evacuee
Restoration Tour, featuring my folks, David and Roselyn, during Sunday
brunch on Abuelitas' patio, was truly unique. With silver vases
filled with roses and lavender, candles flickering in the shade in
honor of the voodoo queen, Marie Leveaux, and the plaintive wail of
David's antique gold plated trumpet, you could almost hear the sounds of a New Orleans second line Krewe marching someone's soul on home.
David Leonard and Roselyn Lionhart, a New Orleans folk and blues duo,
together since 1959, embarked on their "Louisiana Evacuee
Restoration Tour" a year ago, after their home was badly damaged
during Hurricane Katrina, to raise money for themselves and three
charities they are contributing to. They knew they were going to be
unable to live and work in New Orleans for many months (their house is
still not livable), and needed to raise money to live and to fix up
their home. "We knew there were people worse off than ourselves,"
said Roselyn, "so many New Orleans musicians never leave town, or even
have the means to, and our government seems completely incapable of
meeting the needs, so we decided to do our part by helping three
charities that have a long history of helping local musicians." Lee
Michaelson, the Topanga Messenger editor, said "it's important to keep
attention on this. My folks live in Mississippi, and lost everything,
so I can really empathize."
The music moved from the French Quarter, to the backwoods delta, from
Depression era songs, to the civil rights songs of the '60s. Their
music encompasses the sounds of folk, rhythm and blues, rock and roll,
gospel and country, Cajun, Zydeco, Creole, jazz, gospel, and blues
style rap! "It's New Orleans Style music" said Roselyn. "Its songs
of protest, sadness, celebration, and survival! And we are going to
survive! And New Orleans is going to survive, even if we have to do
it by ourselves. Of course, we hope we won't have to. Make Levees,
not war!" She then led the crowd in repeating a memory chant, urging
everyone to write their political leaders and tell them "we want the
levees 30 feet high, 30 feet deep, and 50 feet wide, and built by the Dutch!" to much applause.
Several Topangans in the crowd marveled at the musicians multiple
instrumentalism. A companion of Elizabeth George's said "its unusual
to find a guitarist who can play the trumpet so well," whereupon
Elizabeth promptly retorted: "Fred Tackett!" Roselyn's big, soulful,
gospel voice, and David's mellow, dustbowl drawl lent perfect
harmonies to their instrumental duet of guitar and banjo or guitar and mandolin; David's horn and his wailing Lee Oskar Harmonicas (the
ones he prefers), Roselyn's glistening steel Mandolin, and her raft of
African Finger Pianos: Kalimba, Sansa, Mbuti, Mbira, Morimbula, and
Jamaican Rhumba Box.
Both singers welcomed the audience in, engaging them with entreaty,
croons, whispers, hollers, story songs, slow ballads and rousing, foot
stomping songs of celebration. I was moved, as always, by my father's
gentle rendition of the sweet ballad "Love Children" which he wrote
for me in Detroit, when I was no more than 6, about children making do
with whatever they have: "Love Children on a city street, street
corner jungle gyms, fireplugs for rockets, alleys for playgrounds,
fences for climbing, see them cut the corner, running down the
street!"
David and Roselyn, who were featured in PBS' "River of Song"
documentary and book, have circled the country a few times on their
tour, and spent a month touring France last December. They have given
40% of their donations, and $5.00 for every $20. CD sale to three
charities: the New Orleans Musicians Clinic
(www.neworleansmusiciansclinic.org), Preservation Hall's Musicians'
Hurricane Relief Fund (www.preservationhall.com), and Tipitina's
Foundation (www.tipitinasfoundation.org), which provides free office
services for musicians and is helping them get housing and replace
instruments. Adam and Debra Silbar, the gracious owners of Abuelitas,
generously provided their patio for the concert. "Adam and Debra are
just wonderful. We played a gig here a few of years ago, and had a
fantastic time, we told Adrian we couldn't wait to have some more of
that yummy Mexican food!" said David.
They have raised several thousand dollars for each charity over the
last year, and have made it possible to proceed with some of the
cleanup work on their house. "Possible, but not probable," quipped
David, "seeing as we're hardly in New Orleans to get anything done!"
A couple of community groups helped with the cleanup of their home in
the Upper 9th Ward last fall and this spring, and they have finally
been able to get one of the overwhelmed local contractors to show up
and write some bids!
With all of their travels this past year, they made sure to be home
for this year's "survivor's" Mardi Gras, marching with their second
line Krewe, Mo'Lasses, New Orleans' (mostly) Women's Brass Band. And,
as is tradition, they performed with my sister, Arlee Leonard, a New
York based, world traveling, jazz singer/songwriter, at a markedly
different Jazz Fest, that saw an upsurge in big name talent, as stars
and street performers alike sought to bring money, tourists, and
spirit back to the Crescent City.
David and Roselyn lived in Topanga in the'70s, leaving for the south
after their rented Fernwood house sold a few months after the birth of
my brother, David Stormborn "Stormy" Leonard, born at the height of the '80 storm! In true Blues fashion, Roselyn frequently paused in the middle of a song or tuning, to tell a story: "if you are going to show up in the middle the night, during a 150 year storm, with the water out, all three roads out, and the electricity out, you're gonna' get the name Stormborn!" David added in "we had to leave California because every time we were in the state, we had more kids!"
My older sister and I were born in the Bay area when my dad attended
Berkeley (looong ago), and the two youngest were born at home, in
Topanga! Local Topangan, Gail McTune, a longtime friend of theirs,
was present at both births. She rushed breathlessly into Abuelitas,
just after the concert, fearful that she'd missed them altogether, and
shared a long ramble and reminiscence with David and Roselyn, and
Makita Groves, a friend from the duo's Detroit years, in the late '60s
and early '70s! Makita lives in Woodland Hills, and said "I wouldn't
have missed this for the world! It doesn't feel like Topanga, today,
it feels just like the French Quarter."
~Adrian Wright is all that David and Roselyn left behind, when they
left Topanga for New Orleans, although they tried to leave their dog,
Dolt. For more information about David and Roselyn, please see their
website at www.davidandroselyn.com.
