Story behind the song: 'When the Saints go Marching In' Posted October 23, 2014 09:41 pm - Updated October 24, 2014 12:09 am Story behind the song: 'When the Saints go Marching In' The task of discovering the actual origin of “When the Saints Go Marching In” is a difficult one. The song’s history has sometimes been confused with the origin of “When the Saints ARE Marching In,” written by James M. Black and Katherine Purvis. They are totally different songs. Louis Armstrong’s recording of “When the Saints Go Marching In” (Decca Records, 1938) is credited with the launch of it’s popularity and with bringing Armstrong to the forefront of the music world. It was a song that Armstrong had sung as a child. He was born in New Orleans on Aug. 4, 1901, in a ghetto at Uptown New Orleans, better known as the “Back of the Town.” His childhood was spent in abjection and hardship. Over time, many other artists have recorded the song, but with far less success than the “Satchmo” rendition.

It seems to appeal to age groups from teens through senior adults. It was recorded in 2013 by the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. It was a New Orleans-style celebration in the White House Monday, Aug. 9, 2010 as the President hosted the 2009 Super Bowl champions, the New Orleans Saints. The team entered the East Room, crowded with members of the media while the U.S. Marine Band appropriately played “When the Saints Go Marching In.” The length of the title has caused some New Orleans residents to simply refer to the song as “Saints.” The melody is traditionally used as a funeral march. While accompanying the coffin to the cemetery, bands play the tune, along with other selections, as a dirge. When returning from the interment, the bands switch to the familiar upbeat or Dixieland style of play. Ron Rona, one of the managers of Preservation Hall, a music establishment in the French Quarter in New Orleans since 1961, reported to me that at scheduled times six to eight musicians gather in the hall to play favorite musical selections. The musicians enjoy the sessions as well as the visitors who come to hear their music.

The hall has seating for approximately 100 people. There are two sessions each evening — at 8 and 10 p.m. No drinks or food are served. The “band,” in addition to playing their own selections, will take requests from the audience. As you can imagine there are requests, again and again, for the groups to play “Saints.” The bands have become so tired and weary of playing that song they now charge each person $20 for requesting it. The “request charge” began as $1 several years ago. A vast majority of the people in the United States can sing at least a portion of the song. O when the saints go marching in, When the saints go marching in, O Lord, I want to be in that number, When the saints go marching in.

Wynton Marsalis, a native of New Orleans and one of the Top 10 trumpet players in the world, said of “Saints” in an interview with Charlie Rose, “We play the song as if it were our birthright.” He also remarked, “The chorus speaks of redemption and salvation.” “Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life and may enter in through the gates into the city.” - Revelation 22:14 Advertisement Top 10 New Orleans Songs | Limo Livery Top 10 New Orleans Songs Shawn Talbot / Shutterstock.com When you travel to New Orleans, there are likely to be some songs that remind you of the Mardi Gras, the Mississippi River or some other aspect of the city. The following is a list of 10 memorable songs, not in any particular order, about New Orleans to help liven up your visit to one of the greatest cities in the country. For the best limousine service for your business and special events needs in the Crescent City, call Limo Livery, one of the most respected chauffeured services in the world.

1) When the Saints Go Marching In – What is the first song that comes to mind when you think of New Orleans? If you said “When the Saints Go Marching In”, you’re not alone. The song has been covered hundreds of times and New Orleans’ most important sport team is named after the song: the New Orleans Saints. 2) Johnny B Goode – This Chuck Berry classic is ranked #7 on Rolling Stone Magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs. The song tells the story of a country boy who is very good at playing guitar. With the famous catch phrase “Go Johnny Go”, it is one of the most recognized songs in music history and has been performed by many famous bands including the Beach Boys and the Beatles. 3) Jambalaya (On the Bayou) – It’s practically a certainty that most Americans, young or old have heard this song. This 1952 #1 hit was written and sung by one of the greatest country music singers of all time, Hank Wilson, and has been covered numerous times by scores of other artists, such as The Carpenters, Emmylou Harris, Van Morrison, and Harry Connick Jr.

4) Iko Iko (Jock-A-Mo) – One of the most popular songs during the Mardi Gras season this 1950s song tells a story about 19th century Louisiana native Indians chanting in a mock fight against each other. This catchy dance song has been recorded numerous times by such acts as the Dixie Cups, Dr. John, Ringo Starr and even the Grateful Dead. 5) Walking to New Orleans – Although Fats Domino was born in New Orleans and still lived there when Hurricane Katrina hit, this # 1 R&B hit song was one of the very few in his long 60 year career that mentions the city in the title. The famous singer lost everything in his home from the hurricane but has since rebuilt his home. 6) House of the Rising Sun – The song made famous by the British band, The Animals in 1964, is apparently based upon either a house of ill repute or a prison. House of the Rising Sun is a classic folk ballad whose author is unknown but is speculated to have originated in 18th century England. Although it the song has been recorded by other artists, the Animals released the best version.

7) New Orleans – The first hit by 60s singer/songwriter Gary U.S. Bonds is one of many songs simply titled “New Orleans” but this song is widely recognized to be one of the best and has been covered by The Grateful Dead, The Blues Brothers, Neil Diamond and Hank Williams Jr. 8) Proud Mary – This popular Creedence Clearwater Revival was the a hit single on their 1969 album Bayou Country. Tina Turner made the song a hit once more in 1971 and is considered to be one of her signature songs, which in 1972 earned the prominent singer her first Grammy Award. Proud Mary refers to a steamboat in New Orleans that’s “rolling down the river.” 9) Lady Marmalade – The original 1975 song performed by LaBelle is based upon a Creole woman in old New Orleans.

The catch French phrase “Voulez-vous coucher avec moi?” (Do you want to sleep with me (tonight?) also appeared in the Tennessee Williams play “A Streetcar Named Desire.” It became a contemporary hit after it was featured in the movie Moulin Rouge and sung by Lil’ Kim, Pink, Mya and Christina Aguilera. 10)The City of New Orleans – This song made first made famous by Arlo Guthrie and later a #1 country hit for Willie Nelson contains the familiar lyrics: “Good morning America how are you? Don’t you know me I’m your native son, I’m the train they call The City of New Orleans, I’ll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.” Honorable Mentions: Way Down Yonder in New Orleans (Freddy Cannon), Mr. Tambourine Man (Bob Dylan), Mr. Boujangles (Jerry Jeff Walker), King Creole (Elvis Presley), Brown Sugar (Rolling Stones), The Battle of New Orleans (Johnny Horton) and Baby Please Don’t Go (Van Morrison).

There is a extensive list of songs about New Orleans and just listening to just a select few is bound to make you yearn for a trip to the Louisiana city. Again, if you are planning on being in the city and looking for the best limo service in the city, call Limo Livery and who knows, maybe the chauffeur might play a New Orleans song or two just for you. Baton Rouge225-261-8777 Who Dat?!: Songs For The New Orleans Saints : NPR K. Gates, here in a still from the video for "Black & Gold (Who Dat!!)," also goes by the name The New Orleans Savoir. courtesy of the artist hide caption toggle caption courtesy of the artist If fight songs decided football championships, the New Orleans Saints would be 27-point favorites, while the Indianapolis Colts (who have most recently inspired the Baltimore Colts fight song ) would be scrappy underdogs. When the Saints captured the NFC Championship two weeks ago, music roared from every neighborhood and spontaneous brass-band parades shut down streets: New Orleans rhythms exploded across the city in a way that just seemed natural for celebrations of football glory.

Conversely, when Prince penned a tune lauding his hometown Minneapolis Vikings, the result was "Purple and Gold" : plodding, strangely sexy and ironic, with uncomfortable references to religious music. Yes, it was a Prince song — with the lead vocal double-recorded in falsetto, no less — but it didn't work as a football tune. The Vikings lost. No, Prince had nothing to do with it, but his "Purple and Gold" illustrated an important point. Football and the successful songs that celebrate football are not about anything but the moment — a blustery, idiotic, immediate and childlike moment. This is why New Orleans, with its Bourbon Street, jazz and Southern-fried hip-hop, might be the perfect football town. (Okay, take away 42 years of mostly unbearable, losing football, and then New Orleans is the perfect football town.) Article continues after sponsorship Americans lose themselves in football much like they do on certain weekend trips to New Orleans. And it's this escapist, feel-good beat — the music of the city — that's provided the soundtrack to the improbable 2009-10 Saints.

Internet search engines find at least 80 individual Saints-themed songs, and many of them are streaming at the New Orleans Times-Picayune's site . Listen here to some of the best, and tell us about more Saints songs — and Colts songs, of course — in the comments section below . Who Dat?!: Songs For The New Orleans Saints Who Dat from Who Dat by Aaron Nevillle And The Singing Saints The Saints have spawned many miracles: After the victory that sent them to the Super Bowl this year, locals poured into Bourbon Street, easily outnumbering tourists. Many were singing "When the Saints Go Marching In," a song typically loved more by the convention bureau than actual New Orleanians. This version mixes "When the Saints Go Marching In" with the "Who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints?" chant. Black And Gold (Who Dat!!) Toggle more options Embed Embed <iframe src="" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Black And Gold (Who Dat!!) from Black And Gold (Who Dat!!) by K.

Gates Atlanta-based hip-hop duo The Ying Yang Twins improbably invaded many NFL stadiums with its "Halftime (Stand Up and Get Crunk)" in 2004. New Orleans MC K. Gates (a.k.a. The New Orleans Savior) swings the "Who Dat" chant across the Twins' growling "Halftime" beat, evoking second lines and high-school bands during Mardi Gras. Recently, the NFL caused a controversy by sending cease-and-desist letters to local T-shirt shops that sold merchandise with the words "Who Dat" on it. But "Who Dat" goes back at least 112 years to the 1898 song by E.E. Rice: "Who Dat Say Chicken in Dis Crowd." When The Saints - Dixieland Crackerjacks in Poland - YouTube When The Saints - Dixieland Crackerjacks in Poland Want to watch this again later? Sign in to add this video to a playlist. Need to report the video? Sign in to report inappropriate content. Rating is available when the video has been rented. This feature is not available right now. Please try again later.

Uploaded on Nov 28, 2009 When The Saints Go Marching in. Dixieland Crackerjacks (From the Netherlands) on tour in Poland. A previous video of this tune played in Belgium is one of the most watched videos the band ever made, so we hope that this one will also attract interested people. This track starts and ends with a standing ovation as this concert was a hugh succes. Koos Greven - banjo, vocals Bert van Erk - double bass Ray Vanderhooft - drms Michel Muller - trumpet Bert Brandsma - clarinet, alto saxophone "When the Saints Go Marching In." often referred to as "The Saints," is a United States gospel hymn that has taken on certain aspects of folk music. Though it originated as a spiritual, today people are more likely to hear it played by a jazz band. The song is often confused with a similarily titled composition "When the Saints are Marching In" from 1896 by Katharine Purvis (lyrics) and James Milton Black A traditional use of the song is as a funeral march.

In the funeral music tradition of New Orleans, Louisiana, often called the "jazz funeral", while accompanying the coffin to the cemetery, a band would play the tune as a dirge. On the way back from the interment, it would switch to the familiar upbeat "hot" or "Dixieland" style. While the tune is still heard as a slow spiritual number on rare occasions, from the mid-20th century it has been more commonly performed as a "hot" number. The number remains particularly associated with the city of New Orleans, to the extent that New Orleans' professional football team was named the New Orleans Saints. Both vocal and instrumental renditions of the song abound. Louis Armstrong was one of the first to make the tune into a nationally known pop-tune in the 1930s. Armstrong wrote that his sister told him she thought the secular performance style of the traditional church tune was inappropriate and irreligious. However, Armstrong was in a New Orleans tradition of turning church numbers into brass band and dance numbers that went back at least to Buddy Bolden's band at the very start of the 20th century.

The tune was brought into the early rock and roll repertory by Fats Domino and (as "The Saint's Rock and Roll") by Bill Haley & His Comets. A true jazz standard, it has been recorded by a great many other jazz and pop artists.

It is impossible to list every version of the song, but a common standard version runs: We are trav'ling in the footsteps Of those who've gone before, And we'll all be reunited, On a new and sunlit shore, Oh, when the saints go marching in Oh, when the saints go marching in Lord, how I want to be in that number When the saints go marching in And when the sun refuse to shine And when the sun refuse to shine Lord, how I want to be in that number When the sun refuse to shine And when the moon turns red with blood And when the moon turns red with blood Lord, how I want to be in that number When the moon turns red with blood Oh, when the trumpet sounds its call Oh, when the trumpet sounds its call Lord, how I want to be in that number When the trumpet sounds its call Some say this world of trouble, Is the only one we need, But I'm waiting for that morning, When the new world is revealed.

Oh When the new world is revealed Oh When the new world is revealed Lord, how I want to be in that number When the new world is revealed Oh, when the saints go marching in Oh, when the saints go marching in Lord, how I want to be in that number When the saints go marching in Category Oh, When the Bands Come Marching In: A Parade Soundtrack | Where Y'at Oh, When the Bands Come Marching In: A Parade Soundtrack By: Carolyn Heneghan Anywhere else in the U.S., the first images associated with marching bands would most likely be high school and college football games where they blast fight songs and perform elaborately choreographed halftime shows at center field. But mention marching bands in New Orleans, and fond memories of Mardi Gras parades will probably come first. In a city immersed in its vibrant traditions and musical heritage, it should come as no surprise that marching bands have evolved as a focal point in Mardi Gras parades and the carnival season. They have assumed an important role in entertaining the beaded masses, often marching in extreme temperatures and unfavorable weather conditions to do so.

Featuring military, university, high school and other organized bands from all over the country, Mardi Gras parades have become both a stage for and a celebration of the great talent of these musicians, as well as a way to combine contemporary music with the formal tradition of marching band. The mixed origins of the Mardi Gras marching band parallel the unique integration of cultures and traditions in New Orleans, a rich blend of French, Spanish, African and Creole Haitian influences, among others. Some roots of the modern marching band can be most readily traced back to military bands, which were initially used to conduct troop movement and intimidate the opposition on the battlefield. Also used to entertain soldiers and keep them in high spirits, the role of marching bands became progressively more ceremonial, and they were often involved in formal and celebratory processions and parades. Another branch of Mardi Gras marching bands' history began after the Civil War, when building musical instruments became a popular industry. African Americans, armed with their newly attained freedom and this readier supply of musical instruments, began forming marching brass bands that consisted only of brass instruments, drums and bass.

By the late 1890s and early 1900s, these brass bands' presence had become an integral part of jazz funerals, a religious practice of early African slaves still preserved in the city today. These funerals celebrated the life of the deceased with a procession of his or her loved ones and a brass band, led by a Grand Marshal, between the church and the burial site. On the way to the cemetery after the services, the band would play a selection of slow, sorrowful songs, known as a dirge. But on the way out, the tone of the music became jubilant and celebratory as the procession and band began singing and dancing wildly in the streets, often with umbrellas and handkerchiefs, to joyfully commemorate the release of their loved one's soul to the heavens. This musical ritual became known as the second line, which is still an important and visible custom in New Orleans today. These street-marching bands gave rise to the Olympia, Onward and Excelsior brass bands, which began to form in the city's neighborhoods, especially the Treme.

It wasn't long before bands of this nature and origin became a strong, if not necessary, presence at social events throughout the city, and they paved the way for groups like Rebirth, Dirty Dozen, Hot 8 and Treme brass bands. Both of these sources of history and tradition influenced marching bands as they began to participate in Mardi Gras parades. While the French observance of the carnival season had been celebrated since they began settling the area in the early to mid-18th century, formal parades with marching bands and horse-drawn floats first appeared in 1857. Soon to follow were the additions of jazz bands, marching social clubs and the heavy influence of Mardi Gras Indian customs and songs. Marching bands in Mardi Gras parades today take cues from both sides of their history. For example, their uniforms resemble those of the military and constant drum line cadences keep the band in step between songs. However, that selection of songs is often steeped in the traditions of brass bands and the city of New Orleans rather than national anthems and patriotic songs. The bands' presence in parades throughout the Carnival season has since become an integral part of the Mardi Gras experience for parade-goers.

"[Marching in parades] can be long and uncomfortable, but the crowd's reactions make it all worth it," says Tulane University marching band member Kris Gonzales. "You're providing the soundtrack to one of the most unique events around." Parade routes are generally 5 to 7 miles long, with frequent and sometimes long, stops for floats that breakdown or take longer to turn down streets. Because of the often erratic weather of New Orleans, band members march in an array of weather conditions for long hours at a time. Exacerbated by their heavy, long-sleeved uniforms, members often face biting, damp-cold temperatures, and even bouts of rain, which do not always lead to a parade's postponement or cancellation. But these musicians understand and appreciate their role in the crowd's experience and enjoyment and, in return, live for the reactions they and their music inspire. "The experience is unforgettable, really, really fun, also long and tiring, but always worth it," says former Jesuit High School bandsman and current Louisiana State University Tiger Band member Jonathan Hartmann.

"The crowds are a mix of really appreciative enthusiasts and drunk ruffians that couldn't care less." "After marching 3 miles through the streets of New Orleans playing my drum and making everyone dance, the water in my canteen just was not cutting it," says former Tulane University ROTC band member James Wallin. "Luckily for me, and the rest of my fellow ROTC members, you could always depend on the people of New Orleans to show their love. Throughout the parade, as an angel appearing from heaven, someone would come out of the crowd and pass us ice cold cans of beer, which of course, we would quickly devour as we marched on playing our music." "Some of the best memories were when the parade would stop for awhile, due to a breakdown or something," says former Jesuit High School bandsman Kevin Miller, "We would put on a show with a few songs, and the crowd couldn't get enough." Song choices have evolved over the years to cater to the tastes of both the crowds and the band members themselves. Much of the bands' routines come from songs learned and performed for their schools' football games earlier in the year, including fight songs and familiar drum line cadences.

Also common are more popular commercial tunes from yesterday and today, including anything from "Louie, Louie," "Go!" and "The Final Countdown" to Michael Jackson hits and the year's featured rap songs such as last year's staple in honor of the Saints' luminous Super Bowl-winning season, the Ying Yang Twins' "Halftime (Stand Up and Get Crunk)." Rounding out the bands' repertoire are classic and well-known New Orleans songs such as "Big Chief" and "Do Whatcha Wanna," both regularly performed by the renowned St. Augustine Marching 100 Band, "Mardi Gras Mambo" and, of course, "When the Saints Go Marching In." These New Orleans flavored tunes received a push last year from a joint project between the Foundation for Entertainment Development and Education and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation's Heritage School of Music, aptly named New Orleans Music for New Orleans Marching Bands, which was designed to promote students' awareness and appreciation of local music, culture and history.

Both a nod to tradition and a proud march toward the future, these marching bands are an iconic and irreplaceable piece of the overall Mardi Gras experience, and they will continue to provide the parades' irresistible soundtrack for many carnival seasons to come. "The thing I really like about parades is that I can finally be a part of something that I have seen for years," says current Brother Martin High School bandsman Clark Wagener. "It's just awesome to be in [a parade], but it really is some work involved in getting there." "Overall marching was a physically demanding but rewarding experience," Miller says. "We would literally collapse after getting on the bus, and by the time we dropped the equipment off at school, I wouldn't get home till one or two in the morning sometimes, only to wake up the next day and do it all over again.

But it wouldn't be a parade if you didn't have the bands." Bar None, Where Fans of Saints Go Marching In - The New York Times The New York Times The City |Where Fans of the Saints Go Marching In Search Where Fans of the Saints Go Marching In By ERIC EAGAN Continue reading the main story Photo What else are you going to do on a Sunday? said Ted Castator, near left, at Bar None with other Saints fans. Credit Chester Higgins Jr./The New York Times THE Sunday football scene at Bar None, a tavern in the East Village, isn’t exactly typical for New York. In a room at the back, scores of passionate fans, dressed in black and gold, gather to root for the New Orleans Saints . The Saints have never played in a Super Bowl , and they have reached the playoffs only twice in the past 15 seasons. No matter. Since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans in August 2005, the Saints crowd at Bar None has grown steadily. Brett Michael Dykes, a tall and squarely built 36-year-old Louisiana native who was there on a recent Sunday, said that spending time with others from the New Orleans area is therapeutic.

“It does something spiritually to be around each other,” he said. They don’t talk much about Katrina during the games, but their beloved city’s halting recovery is always on their minds. Mr. Dykes, a writer who moved to New York in 2002 and lives on the Lower East Side, grew up in Chauvin, a bayou town outside New Orleans; his parents’ home survived Katrina, only to be flooded by Hurricane Rita less than a month later. The gatherings started small three years ago at the bar, on Third Avenue and East 13th Street. Ted Castator, a 49-year-old technology consultant who lives down the block, is the organizing force. He e-mails updates on the games to fans, and every Sunday after church, he arrives at the bar early to hang banners honoring the team and the city. Advertisement Continue reading the main story At halftime and at game’s end, Mr. Castator, a trim man with an easy smile, plays New Orleans brass, funk and hip-hop through the bar’s speakers from his laptop. Some of the regulars call him the “mayor of Bar None” because of his dedication to the ritual.

Please verify you're not a robot by clicking the box. Invalid email address. Please re-enter. You must select a newsletter to subscribe to. Sign Up Privacy Policy “You can’t tailgate in New York,” he said, “so what else are you going to do on a Sunday?” More than 100 people, mostly professionals in their 20s and 30s, showed up for a recent game against the Atlanta Falcons, the Saints’ division rivals. They wore jerseys bearing the names of Drew Brees, Deuce McAllister and other Saints stars. They snacked on Zapp’s potato chips, a New Orleans brand that Mr. Castator had shipped. Some, like Zach Denis, a 30-year-old Web producer, have been coming since the early days. Karama Sadaka, 32, a photographer who fled New Orleans after Katrina, had come for the first time. “This is the most New Orleanians I’ve been around since I was last there,” he said. The Saints lost the Falcons game, 34-20. Though two straight victories have since brightened their outlook, they may very well miss the playoffs again. Of course, their fans are used to that.

Kenny Taylor, 30, lingered after the loss, dejected, as Mr. Castator took the banners down. But Mr. Taylor said he would return the next week to cheer his team on. “Where would you be without that hope?” he said. A version of this article appears in print on , on Page CY7 of the New York edition with the headline: Where Fans of the Saints Go Marching In. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Who Did "Who Dat"? - OffBeat Magazine OffBeat Magazine by: Kathleen McCann 13 Comments The first time Carlo Nuccio heard the phrase “Who Dat” was from the mouths of radio show characters Amos and Andy. “‘Who dat say who dat when I say who dat?’” he quotes. “I remember that, and to tell you the truth, when we went to do it, I got the words wrong. You know, it’s New Orleans.

I’m pretty familiar with the diction, and we’ve all read A Confederacy of Dunces, but actually, ‘Who dat talking bout’ was well more proper than ‘Who dat say.’” Who Dat 1983 session (L to R) Dave Waymer, Brad Edelman, Steve Monistere, Jim Hill, Carlo Nuccio, Reggie Houston, Aaron Neville, Lewis Oubre, Ron Swoboda and Art Neville. Photo by Rick Olivier. In 1983, the New Orleans Saints were facing what could be their first year in the playoffs, and Nuccio, a lifelong, hardcore, thick-and-thin Saints fan, was 22. He saw his opportunity. He and his friend Steve Monistere, a musician and producer, decided to take the “Who dat” chant, heard at the time from the St. Augustine High School marching band, and put it to a song. “I think we mutually agreed the song would be ‘When the Saints Go Marching In,’” Nuccio says. “We didn’t know how we were going to do it. I opted for a traditional arrangement. It’s not really second line; it’s more of a military type of thing.

I figured out a place to put it in that felt good, felt right.” Once the skeleton of the song had come together, Nuccio says he felt committed to continue. He called pianist Dave Torkanowsky, whom he enlisted to get the rest of the musicians together. “I was listening to rock ’n’ roll at the time,” Nuccio says. “I didn’t really know a lot of Dixieland horn players, and I knew that he would. He ended up playing bass and piano, I played drums, and he got the horn players. We got that in an afternoon.” To fill out the song, Nuccio, a Hawkettes fan, decided on Art Neville. Neville told Nuccio it might be more his brother Aaron’s style. Aaron agreed. “It was so exciting when we first recorded it,” Neville remembers. “I’ve been a Saints fan since there were Saints.

We used to hang with the players in the late 1960s and early ’70s at the Nite Cap on Louisiana and Carondelet, and I was working with some of the actual players on the original.” Neville recorded “When the Saints Go Marching In” and the “Who dat” chant with the Saints’ offensive line. From then on, there was no stopping it. “At the time, B97 was a big chain station, and Walton and Johnson were here in town,” Nuccio says. “They did this crazy stunt. They locked their door and played it back to- back their whole show. We were laughing about it, but at the end of that day, it was kind of sewn into the fabric of New Orleans. A week or two later, Howard Cosell opened Monday Night Football—a very educated man. They played the song, and after the music stops, the first words you hear were, ‘Who dat say they gonna beat them Saints,’ and that was it.” Twenty-six years later, the song is nowhere near the end of its run, and neither is Nuccio.

As a diehard Saints fan, he couldn’t resist a revamp, not now, in the best season the team has played yet. So he gathered a who’s who of local musicians, gospel-fied the song, and “Glory Bound” was born. Aaron Neville returned to help, joined by Theresa Andersson on vocals. “It was cool working with Theresa,” Neville says. “She was a big fan, and she put a lot of energy into it. It was amazing. It was nice to be rerecording and refreshing the song.” “It was just Carlo and me recording,” Andersson says, “and then Aaron Neville came in. It was such a huge honor to work with him; he’s one of the great New Orleans musicians. I met him, we said hello, and then all I could do was take a big deep breath and go for it. We had really good energy.” Andersson, a native of Sweden, says she’s been converted to Saints fandom. “It’s very exciting to me that the Saints are so strong. It means so much to so many people. It’s been tough for me to learn all the rules, but I’ve been getting more and more into it.

I didn’t really follow football, but I’ve been watching the games, and even more I find myself sneaking a peek at the score if I’m not watching, or checking the score on my cell phone. You get involved because it’s your town and your team.” The original recording “was a whirlwind,” Nuccio says, “and who could’ve known where it would go. I would’ve said you’re out of your everloving mind.” When he saw Neville for the re-recording, Nuccio says he told him, “You weren’t driving a Cadillac back then.’ Things have changed a lot for all of us. It was a different time. I think it really helped us all career-wise. I certainly have had a good run in life, in my business.” “Glory Bound” is available for download from iTunes; a portion of the proceeds from song sales to the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic. Saints and Sinners: 15 Classic Songs About New Orleans « American Songwriter Written By Jeff Terich // March 6, 2014 Few cities have the kind of rich musical heritage that New Orleans does, its unique blend of Southern and creole culture producing sounds unlike those just one state over.

From jazz to blues, soul to zydeco, New Orleans is one of a kind, and these 15 songs deserve a spot on any playlist of Big Easy essentials. Traditional – “St. James Infirmary Blues” Traced back to its origins in England in the 18th Century, “St. James Infirmary Blues” was inspired by centuries-old folk song “The Unfortunate Rake,” about a soldier who dies of venereal disease. But it became a standard of New Orleans jazz in the 1920s, once Louis Armstrong put his own signature spin on it. In the more commonly known 20th Century version of the song, the lyrics tell a narrative of a man looking down at the body of his dead lover, and later lays out the instructions for his own flashy funeral. And the sound of the song, pulling elements from Latin American tango, even sounds like a funeral dirge. It’s been performed and recorded countless times in the fashion of Armstrong’s own version, and with good reason: 85 years later, it’s still a stunner.

Professor Longhair – “Go To The Mardi Gras” Henry Roeland Byrd, better known as Professor Longhair, is one of New Orleans’ most revered musicians, his boisterous R&B hybrid – melding elements of Caribbean and ragtime – influencing the likes of fellow Orleanians Allen Toussaint and Dr. John. That pure creole essence is filtered into the brief two minutes and 46 seconds of “Go To The Mardi Gras,” which is a vibrant French Quarter parade in compact form. Dr. John – “Sweet Home New Orleans” Sometimes known as “The Night Tripper,” Dr. John has become an emblem of the diverse musical gumbo that’s been simmering in New Orleans over the past century. Inspired by the likes of home-grown hero Professor Longhair, while mixing in his own blend of musical spices, Dr. John has a jazzy R&B sound all his own. “Sweet Home New Orleans,” which closes his 1998 album Anutha Zone, encapsulates all of his strengths, and for that matter, an entire century of musical history, from jazz to R&B, and even a hearty dose of Afro-Cuban music.

It’s as soulful and vibrant a tribute to the city as you’re likely to hear. Steve Earle – “This City” The closing track on Steve Earle’s 2011 album I’ll Never Get Out Of This World Alive was written and recorded for the HBO series Treme, which is set in a post-Katrina New Orleans. And it’s the after-effects of Hurricane Katrina that hang heavy over the ballad, as Earle sings, “This city won’t wash away/ This city won’t ever drown.” It’s laced with sadness, but the predominant feeling that comes through in the song is hope, made more beautiful by the horns, arranged by Allen Toussaint, which arrive like a rainbow through gray skies. Lucinda Williams – “Crescent City” Louisiana-born troubadour Lucinda Williams’ tribute to New Orleans on her 1988 self-titled album is a richly touching one, not to mention one that’s overflowing with references to the places and sounds of the “Crescent City.” Its arrangement is steeped in zydeco and Cajun tradition, featuring a heavy dose of fiddle and accordion, and name checks landmarks like Lake Pontchartrain.

Williams even drops a pair of phrases in French – “tout le ton son temps” (“every now and then”) and “Laissez les bon temps rouler” (“Let the good times roll”). Her pronunciation might be a little off, but the sentiment is inescapable. The Animals, Bob Dylan, et al. – “House Of The Rising Sun” A song with origins similar to those of “St. James Infirmary Blues,” “House Of The Rising Sun” comes out of the English folk tradition, and has been recorded by innumerable artists. The UK’s The Animals made it a hit, however, and their version squarely places the infamous House of the Rising Sun in New Orleans. An eerie waltz that grows ever more intense and desperate as it progresses, the song is most likely about a prostitute, though some interpretations suggest the narrator is a prisoner or slave.

Still, theories abound about the real-life location of the house, some of which include a dancehall in Carrolton, a French Quarter hotel, and a brothel run by madam Marianne LeSoleil Levant, whose name translates to “the rising sun.” Tom Waits – “I Wish I Was In New Orleans” A string-laden ballad from 1976’s Small Change, “I Wish I Was In New Orleans” pre-dates Tom Waits’ transition toward the Weill- and Beefheart-inspired auteur we know today, and as such is a fairly straightforward ballad. But it’s a good one – a gentle, sentimental wish to be liquored up in a friendly, familiar place. Waits takes the listener on a tour of the city, across Claiborne Avenue and Burgundy Street, where he can “hear the band begin ‘When the Saints Go Marching In.’” It’s enough to make you wish you were right there with him.

Pieces from new and archived print editions Premium Songwriter U articles From the Disaster Zone: When the Saints Go Marching In When the Saints Go Marching In By Craig von Buseck CBN.com Contributing Writer CBN.com  NEW ORLEANS -- The sign over the entrance to the causeway across Lake Pontchartrain said closed due to weather, but we were accompanied by our security detail who had arranged for us to enter the city so the guards waved us on through. The causeway was very similar to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel in Virginia Beach – only without the tunnels. It connects the city of New Orleans to the communities on the northern shore of the lake – a vital connector between the city and the rest of the state of Louisiana. At the entrance to the city we were greeted by a large mirrored glass skyscraper that had endured severe wind damage – dozens of windows were shattered giving the building somewhat of a checkerboard appearance. As we continued south into the city we passed a large mall next to the highway. The parking lot was nearly filled with rescue, military and utility trucks and tents. On the other side of the road the Wyndham Hotel had most of the class blown out of the south side of the building.

But despite the wind damage, this part of the city on the west side of town was not flooded. We snaked our way through town, trying to find the best way around the streets that were closed due to a water main that had ruptured or an off-ramp that had been damaged. We finally arrived at our destination, Victory Church, located on the far end of town in a suburb of the city called Metairie. On one side of the church is a local Anheuser-Busch factory, and on the other is the official practice facility of the New Orleans Saints – which was also serving as a staging area for FEMA and other military relief operations. But on the grounds of this church campus, dozens of the Saints of God were busy practicing the love and compassion of Christ with the help of Operation Blessing and several church networks from across America. We pulled into the church parking lot behind a long row of cars waiting to get supplies for their families. A sign in the front of the church said ‘free food – 9 to 4’. We learned later that local radio stations were also encouraging people to come to this shelter that had partnered with OB to distribute food, cleaning supplies, water, and other necessities.

Pastor Frank Bailey met us and welcomed us into the church – an impressive facility that had been transformed into an impressive human machine of compassion and kindness. As people drove into the parking lot they were greeted by smiling volunteers who have come from churches across America to do what they can to help the victims of this disaster. The volunteers ask how many families are represented in each vehicle, and the ages of each family member. They write the needs of the family on the car window with soap in a code they have developed to help expedite the service. Then the volunteer radios to his or her counterpart on the opposite side of the complex with the order and the number that has been assigned to the vehicle – this allows volunteers in a large gymnasium to prepare the order and have it ready by the time the car makes it through the line to the loading zone. At the next stop, the trunks of the vehicles are filled with bottles of water by volunteers who ask if there are any needs that the family has that they can pray for. Some of the people tell them they’re not interested, but the vast majority of people are open and even eager for prayer. The volunteer takes the hand of the driver and lifts their petition before the Lord.

The next stop in the line is manned by trained counselors from the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. They give each person a couple of books, ‘When Your Whole World Changes’ and ‘The Key to Personal Peace’. They also offer to pray with the visitors – and if the conversation moves in that direction, they also invite the folks to receive Jesus as their Lord and Savior. These counselors have also made themselves available to police officers, firefighters, relief workers, and military people who are in need of a listening ear. Some of these counselors also served the people of New York during the aftermath of 9/11. On the day that we arrived, the operation was running with military-like precision, serving nearly 600 families – but it was only a week old. The volunteers had come in from across the country, yet they worked together in impressive cooperation. The church partnered with the Pastors Resource Counsel (PRC), Global Outreach, Billy Graham, and Operation Blessing to bring this massive outreach to life in a very short amount of time. As people slowly return to the New Orleans area, the pastors expect the number of families served to swell to a thousand a day. I decided to follow one of the volunteers as she served the families in line.

Her name was Caryl, and she was wearing a bright orange PRC tee-shirt and a giant string of white pearls. She was a medical doctor from near Washington, D.C. and was in New Orleans with a group of more than forty people from her church in cooperation with the Pastors Resource Council – a collection of hundreds of churches and ministries from across the U.S. banded together to bring quick help in times of disaster and tragedy. As I walked along the long row of cars with Caryl she pressed the button on her two-way radio headset and conveyed the latest order to volunteers in the gymnasium/warehouse. “O.K., Anna, I’m sending over a vehicle to you, D-33, this is a repeat order. It’s an Explorer, kind of like an off-white color with two good looking women in the front and two little boys. They need two bags of toiletries. They need extra washcloths – about eight of them for everyone in the house. For the boys, size six and ten tee-shirts, socks, and underwear…” The list continued for all the members of the family, along with food, health and cleaning supplies, Gatorade, and more.

She finished with the order and then rushed down the line in the sweltering 90-degree heat to interview the family in the next available car. A few moments later another volunteer took over for Caryl so she could take a well-deserved rest. As we stood under the shade of a nylon canopy she told me how she was helping Operation Blessing to begin offering medical assistance as a part of this outreach. “I met with the president of OB yesterday as I was working in the warehouse. I told him that I had opened a donation of medical supplies and God laid it on my heart to set up a triage unit. I talked to the pastors and they gave us a room to set all of that up. I’m not going to be here long enough to see all of that functional, but I put a piece of the puzzle in place.” “I also talked to the president of the National Medical Association, a group of Black doctors. They are going to start sending physicians here to set up the medical center in the church in association with OB. One of my team members put me in touch with MAP International, which is a Christian organization that sends drugs and medical supplies all over the world.

The director talked to me and said, ‘make your list, fax it to me, and we’ll send you what you need.’” “So you’re seeing the Body of Christ coming together here,” I responded. Beaming with a bright smile she bounced on her toes and declared, “It’s awesome. We have been mostly here in Jefferson Parish. But the first day we were serving in The Dream Center of New Orleans, which is a shelter that cares for 130 people – and that center is associated with Pastor Tommy Barnett and also the PRC.” “They took me into their medical center where I met an overweight woman who was lying in bed. She’s a diabetic, hypertensive, and was running out of her medications and didn’t have prescriptions. Of course the sad thing is that the physician’s records were all destroyed in the flood. How are you going to get records? How are you going to know what prescriptions people are taking? I can’t remember from day-to-day what I give a patient without the records. Even if I saw her in my office I might have a hard time remembering what I had prescribed.

So there were no medical people there to take care of people like this woman.” “So while I was there, I talked to all the residents to find out their medical problems. But I really couldn’t help, because even if I examined them I wouldn’t feel comfortable prescribing something for them because I didn’t know them. This is the kind of place that we need to bring physicians into on a rotating basis so that we can have that place covered until we can get all those people out of there.” I asked her what the biggest needs were now that the waters are receding in New Orleans. “Most of my time here is not doing medical things. Anyone can do any number of things – volunteerism is volunteerism. We need people who can come into the shelter and help people to find a place to live. We need people who can go online and do that. We need medical people – nurses, physicians, or assistants who can do a little bit of triage where we can do a little to help people.

We need people who are willing to be in this 90 degree weather day-in and day-out ministering to people and letting them know that our hearts are broken for them.” “It’s more of a blessing for us to be here than what we give to them. What we get back is much more than what they’re getting. We need people who have a heart of compassion who can speak to these people – not just to take their order – but to say, ‘our hearts are with you. We want you to know that Jesus is still Lord and God is going to get you through this.”

Question: In what U.S. city would you be most likely to hear "When the Saints Go Marching In"?
Answer: New Orleans