In preparation for Music People Project interview #32 with famed piano player and producer Professor Louie… I revisited one of my favorite albums of all time, The Band’s “Jericho”. 

Click here to visit Professor Louie’s website and learn/hear more.

Louie produced much of “Jericho” at his legendary Hurley, NY studio just outside Woodstock.  If you haven’t listened to the “Jericho” album in some time… make a date with the music for a can’t miss fun time. I recommend to play tracks one thru six without distraction (then repeat) and you will be treated to best The Band had to offer in their later years.

From the opening foot tapping “Remedy” steeped in the deep woods back beat invented by Levon Helm (see “Don’t Do It”), the first six tracks captures the mighty essence of what made The Band so great without copying the old hits. This is not easy to do, and, in my books, makes Professor Louis one of the most underrated Americana producers of all-time.  Louie’s discussion in my interview about when he took over “Jericho” for The Band’s longtime producer John Simon, who seemed to not push the envelope and go way too “safe” is quite insightful…

As Professor Louie says so well in his Music People Project interview, “it is a terrible curse of death to try and imitate stuff you have done in the past. It does not work.”

Track 2 on “Jericho” presents the oh so sweet and vulnerable voice of Rick Danko paired with Garth Hudson’s organ on a snappy cover of Bob Dylan’s “Blind Willie McTell”. The powerful story-telling by Levon Helm on the next song “The Caves of Jericho” gives a strong nod to the great “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down” and further demonstrates the beauty of “Jericho”.

 

 
Click here or on the video box above to watch Professor Louis’ interview with me at his studio in March 2023.

In 1993 the Band released “Jericho” featuring their seminal cover of Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City” that reignited the group in a way that very few generational rock bands can pull off.  Interesting enough after The Band’s cover song filled “Moonlight Matinee” in 1973 and debilitating drug and money crises, they were written off by the music industry and bounced around from tour to tour with no recordings. Even though “Jericho” had numerous cover tracks, the original songs on “Jericho” were very strong and the album was decorated with critical praise.

In my interview with “Jericho” producer Professor Louie, he shares insight into how songs like “Atlantic City” came to fruition and the resurgence of The Band following their reunion as Ringo Star’s backup band in the early 1990’s.

 
Just a year behind Hot Tuna’s Live at Sweetwater” and Daniel Lanois’ wildly successful make-over for Peter Gabriel with “Us”, “Jericho” quietly made its mark and created a substantive third chapter for The Band.  Lanois’ re-imagination of Emmylou Harris (“Wrecking Ball”), Bob Dylan (“Time out of Mind” ), Willie Nelson (“Teatro”) in the next few years would follow this trend of giving new super cool life to generational Americana artists. I happened to catch Daniel Lanois live at Jazz Fest 2022 (click here for that story).

 

Around the same time that “Jericho” was released Hot Tuna has a similar re-ignition with “Live at Sweetwater” pulled together by Michael Falzarano. Although my love of Jorma Kaukonen began years before, the “Live at Sweetwater” album and Hot Tuna’s robust touring schedule following its 1992 release fueled my 30-year love affair with their music. When I asked Professor Louis about this parallel rebirth, he couldn’t agree more and shares a deep friendship with Falzarano.

Seeing my first The Band show in 1990 at World Stage in Spring Valley, NY (see my ticket stub above) and being one of less than 100 (and certainly the youngest in the crowd) at many Rick Danko solo shows at Piermont’s Turning Point (click here for more on this landmark Hudson Valley, NY music club), I fancy myself an educated Band fan, but was humbled at the stories Professor Louie shared with me. 

I didn’t know that in the spirit of the great jazz pianists Count Basie and Duke Ellington, during their many nights performing together Rick Danko bestowed the title Professor Louis on my new friend, and like the rest of The Band who used their middle names on the stage, Aaron Louis Hurwitz was reborn.

One mind-blowing nugget from Louie for me was the naming of the Danko’s Professor Louis backing band… originally called The Crows as a nod to The Band’s roots as The Hawks, the band was renamed The Crowmatix as Counting Crows, Black Crowes, Cameron Crowe were all in the popular eye at the time.

Another juicy story that may get lost in the video interview is that Professor Louis was onstage and playing keys with The Band (post Richard Manuel) at Jerry Garcia’s last show with the Grateful Dead in Chicago 1995 (click here). Although we didn’t go down the Dead rabbit hole as much as I should have with Louie… talk about being the heart of Americana music. Professor Louie seemed to always be in the right place at the right time.

I met Professor Louis through one of the new artists he produced (Stella Prince – you can watch her interview here), and was lucky enough to get a tour of his studio and later a candid interview from his Captain Kirk studio soundboard chair.

I love Professor Louie’s quote about being a musician…

“Having a passion can sometimes work against you. It overcomes you and you can get extremely depressed if things don’t work out the way you want… and they rarely do.

Music is a calling. You really have to work hard at it. If you lose the passion, then you have to give it up.

The hardest part is getting there and back. The highs and lows are really rough for many.”

These stories are best heard direct from Professor Louie and include…

…recording in a New City, NY studio with The Band using The Hooters as the back-up

…his first car (1968 Mustang) that was used to tote around his Hammond organ from gig to gig while living in Peekskill, NY

…recording a classical music piece with the Prague Symphony

…the many Hudson Valley, NY music clubs where he played hundreds of gigs with Rick Danko

Professor Louis continues to be one of the hardest working men in music with nonstop touring with The Crowmatix at music clubs and festivals around the world. 

My bad luck… I missed his most recent gig at the nearby The Turning Point as I already had tickets to see Wilco at The Capitol Theatre with my daughter (click here for that story).

I anticipate a juicy follow-up with Louie in the months ahead and urge you to check him out as he is the REAL DEAL!!!