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John Boutte

2007 OffBeat Music Awards - Best Male Vocalist

About Me


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On Sundays as the red beans were soaking for Monday's dinner, John Boutte was awakened by the sounds of his New Orleans neighborhood. Voices carried over the fence from the church behind his home in the Seventh Ward, the home where his mother Gloria still lives, where most of his Creole family still lives and sings. Past the front yard, second-line parades rolled by, matching the madness of Carnival season and the transcendent joy of the jazz funeral. This roux of influences created John Boutte, and serves him to this day.Who is New Orleans vocalist John Boutte?Think of Nat Cole, and then of Jackie Wilson, and then of Marvin Gaye, and then of Sam Cooke, Joe Williams and Jimmy Scott. Not of them actually, but of the moods that surrounded them, and especially of their audiences. Think of the way they treated an audience, of the way they read the room. Think of how the audience felt about themselves on the way home. Then treat yourself to the music of John Boutte.John has won Best Male Vocalist of the year at both the Best of the Beat Awards ('06 & '07) and the Big Easy Awards. His critically acclaimed collaboration with Cubanismo, Mardi Gras Mambo, won multiple awards including a Big Easy Award for Best Latin Album, and a Best of the Beat award for Best Latin Album by a Louisiana Artist. Footage from the "Sing Me Back Home" Recording Session
2007 Review of the latest Putomayo compilation:
New Orleans Brass
OffBeat By John Swenson

"This collection differs from most Putumayo releases in that there's something new on it, a terrific version of "I'll Fly Away" sung beautifully by John Boutte and backed by an impressive band playing collective improvisation with the true second line spirit. It's a great track...."

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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 12/20/2005
Band Website: johnboutte.com
Band Members: John Boutte - Vocals
Todd Duke - Guitar
Leroy Jones - Trumpet
Peter Harris - Bass
Herman LeBeaux - Drums
Influences:Walk down the tree-lined streets of New Orleans’ Faubourg Marigny neighborhood on a hot sultry night, and chances are you’ll hear John Boutte’s voice floating out of one of the area’s trendy nightspots. Perhaps he’ll be singing soulful versions of Sam Cooke’s "A Change Is Gonna Come" or Annie Lennox’s "Why," or maybe it’ll be one of the bayou-blended tunes he’s co-authored with Paul Sanchez, his pal in the Marigny. Whatever the song, its soulfulness will stop you in your tracks, for Boutte lives and breathes the heart and soul of New Orleans. Born into a large Creole family that goes back seven generations in Louisiana, he was exposed to music early in life, soaking up New Orleans jazz, soul, blues and gospel, then adding his own Creole traditions along the way. Today, Boutte works with a wonderful amalgam of styles -- from torchy jazz to aching soul and African-American gospel -- all convincingly delivered. "John is the embodiment of all that’s good about New Orleans," Sanchez said. "His voice is the poetry of the language of New Orleans. It’s uncanny but he makes whatever style he’s singing completely believable." Boutte lives in the French Quarter, not far from the home he grew up in. The plant-filled balcony of his apartment overlooks Rampart Street near Congo Square, ground zero for the birth of New Orleans’ music. Down the street is a non-descript laundromat -- once the home of J&M Studio, where the New Orleans sound of the 1950s was born; Little Richard, Fats Domino, Lloyd Price, Guitar Slim and Clarence "Frogman" Henry are just a few of the artists who recorded there. "In the ’50s, those guys were recording some of the biggest records in America down there," Boutte said, with a resigned sigh. "Now it’s the place where I wash and fold my clothes." One of 10 children born to a mother who believed in education ("We might have been poor, but we were always smart"), Boutte says anyone growing up in New Orleans gets a music education -- whether they like it or not. For example, he remembers a neighbor, Miss Belle, who every day belted out Mahalia Jackson songs while cooking greens and hanging her wash. "Music was an integral part of everyone’s life," Boutte said. "It was part of the socialization, from church to the barrooms to the cemetery. It was simply second nature to be in a brass band or participate in a second-line funeral parade. Avoiding it was not an option." Boutte’s stubborn mother, Gloria, had no intention of raising her children to a career in music. However, she did believe that children who understand music also do well in other subjects. So when Boutte was 8, she gave him a coronet, which led to a stand-out role in his high school marching band. Yet despite his love of music, Boutte entered Xavier University intent on pursuing a business degree. Upon graduation, he was commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Army, where he worked as a statistician while also directing and singing in Army gospel choirs. Returning to civilian life, Boutte’s sister Lillian invited him to tour Europe with her, which led to a final decision: Music it would be. "It was the best career move I could have made," Boutte said. Musical brothers Boutte found a kindred spirit when he met Sanchez; they were introduced by singer-songwriter Michelle Shocked at one of her infamous backyard parties. Born in New Orleans on the same day in the same year, Boutte and Sanchez both have a deep love of the city, its people and traditions. The complex seduction of this Southern city deeply informs their songwriting. Sanchez’s song "Voodoo Shoppe," the title cut on his former band Cowboy Mouth’s new disc, was inspired by Boutte’s neighbor, a voodoo priestess. "There were interesting things going on in that courtyard," Sanchez said, laughing. "It was definitely a New Orleans moment. I learned a lot hanging out there." As New Orleans rebuilds and tries to find its new identity, people like Boutte are an integral part of that reconstruction. With his personal history and "stranger-than-fiction" life, he’s a direct connection to the French Creole and black traditions that go back to the city’s early days. "It’s a language and culture that celebrates life in its own special way," Sanchez said. "John brings that to the stage with the stories he tells and the songs he sings." By Mary Houlihan [email protected] Copyright © The Sun-Times Company
Sounds Like:
To purchase John Boutte’s discs go to www.louisianamusicfactory.com

Type of Label: None

My Blog

Good Neighbor

We are very pleased to announce the release of John’s new disc Good Neighbor available on line and at Louisiana Music Factory March 21.The disc was produced by Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum at Truc...
Posted by John Boutte on Wed, 12 Mar 2008 01:10:00 PST

New Video Available

Check out the new video, from the recent Austin City Limits show with the New Orleans Social Club, with John's version of the great Annie Lennox tune "Why". Also uploaded is an excerpt from Emeril Liv...
Posted by John Boutte on Fri, 03 Nov 2006 02:16:00 PST

Offbeat Jazzfest Review

This is from an article that appears in the June Offbeat about John's appearance at Jazzfest. Enjoy!Cheers,KimballJohn Bouttes Jazz Tent set was every bit as emotionally stirring as Springsteens accla...
Posted by John Boutte on Wed, 31 May 2006 09:22:00 PST

Louisiana (1927) from Jazzfest

We've now posted John's show-stopping performance of "Louisana (1927)" from this year's jazzfest, which featured the new lyrics he and Paul Sanchez (Cowboy Mouth) wrote, Enjoy.Peace,Kimball...
Posted by John Boutte on Sun, 21 May 2006 08:10:00 PST

Sing Me Back Home out Tuesday April 4th

Kimball here, John's manager.  On Tuesday April 4th, the highly anticipated CD byt the New Orleans Social Club will be released on Sony Burgundy.  It has already garnered a ton of great revi...
Posted by John Boutte on Sat, 01 Apr 2006 11:15:00 PST