The first show I ever played as an opening act was opening for Dr. John at the Horseshoe. I asked Richard Underhill to play with me. We did maybe 6 bluesy jazzy pieces. It was thrilling. I think we both were about 25? I have no memory of Dr. John being friendly or unfriendly just in his own world. I do sort of remember enjoying his performance, I think they got him a CP70, those keyboards were the standard then. Not something one person could move alone. The only thing I knew about him was his connection to Professor Longhair. They might have been friends. I wrote one song in a Professor Longhair style. I played it at Fat Albert’s in the basement on the echoey upright piano. It was about the telephone company and corporate propaganda. Wonder why it never became top of the pops? Dr. John had a heroin problem, so I read one time though I didn’t notice that night. Then again, what exactly would I notice? I read he became close with Doc Pomus and that during that time he had straightened out. I liked what Dylan said about Doc Pomus in his Music Cares speech 10 years ago. He distinguished the Doc Pomus songs as meaning much more to him than a lot of other songwriters from that same era. This Magic Moment, Save The Last Dance For Me. I even knew Dr. John was in The Last Waltz but I didn’t know why then, didn’t know about his relationships with all those people. If one could go back to an earlier period, very different attention would be paid to the opportunities that come one’s way. I guess I was in the right place but it must have been the wrong time.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"