Aim Records
1996
1313 Hoodoo Street
About This Album
With a Mardi Gras Indian heritage themselves, the Neville Brothers sing, "The prettiest thing you've ever seen/Mardi Gras Indians down in New Orleans." The brothers are speaking of the 16 tribes of Indians that come out on Mardi Gras morning, resplendent in their magnificent costumes of hand-sewn beads and feathers. This practice recognizes the role that the Louisiana Houma Indians played in providing refuge to runaway slaves in the 1800s. The resulting mixture of cultures produced the tradition seen on the streets of the city of New Orleans. People come from all over the world to see the Mardi Gras Indians. The best-known Indians of all are the Wild Magnolias, led by chief Bo Dollis. In his gravelly voice, Dollis leads the Indians in chants and funkified Afro-Caribbean music as they wind their way through the streets of the city. Monk Boudreaux, chief of the Golden Eagles, accompanies him on vocals -- a combination of shouts, chants, and call and response. Followed by the second line, they celebrate the holiday, while the spy boy keeps a look out for other Indians. When they meet, they preen and taunt and dance, exemplified by their lyric, "We don't bow and we don't kneel.
Track List (try tracks 1,2,3 and 4)

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