greetings of the season, y'all!

Like most New Orleanians, my life continues to be a kaliedescope of physical and emotional changes--some inspiring, some heartbreaking, all fairly mindblowing--during the weeks and months since Katrina roared through it.

The "parting the waters" benefit at Town Hall in September was an unforgettable experience. my thanks to editor David Remnick, organizer Rhonda Sherman, and the whole staff at The New Yorker for pulling it off with the same panache that has made--and kept--the magazine one of the brightest jewels in the crown of american journalism since the very first issue.

i'm sending along a backstage pic of Elvis Costello and me. We'd not shared a bill since i opened for him in new orleans on his first US tour. When i reminded him of how some joker had flushed a lit cherry bomb in the ladies room during the first set with predictable results: our audience boogying ankle-deep in sewage for the remainder of the evening, he remarked thoughtfully, "there seems to be sort of a water theme emerging here, wouldn't you say?"

Check out Kevin Kline's cool tee shirt in the other backstage photo--it was designed by his friend, New Orleans-born Lori Guidroz. To get one just like it, log on to http://whatitmeans.org. All proceeds go directly to folks in need through The Greater New Orleans Foundation.

Not long after my sojourn in new york, i received a call from Nonesuch Records asking me to re-record "my darlin new orleans" for their upcoming release, "Our New Orleans", a killer compilation which will benefit Habitat for Humanity and include tracks from buckwheat zydeco, jon cleary, randy newman, irma thomas, allen toussaint, and a host of others, along with yours truly. i travelled down from north carolina (where i have taken up residence on my very own hilltop) to dockside studios in lafayette to hook up with some dear, dear friends--among them my son alex, whom i'd not seen since before the storm-- and cut a new version of this old favorite of so many fans, which was originally performed by the collective consisting of ron cuccia, charles neville, john magnie, ramsey mclean, ricky sebastien, and myself known as ron cuccia and the jazz poetry group. the resulting track, which includes my take on ron's incredible poem, "streets", is a knockout. check out session pics on the website, and watch for the disc early next year.

speaking of discs, the masters of 'purple heart' were carried to the relative safety of new york (thank you, rob!) before katrina could swallow them. we're returning our attention to its completion very shortly, and the new "my darlin new orleans" has been added to its track lineup. now more than ever, i can't wait for all of y'all to hear this long-overdue recording at last! stay tuned for further progress reports.

meanwhile, count your blessings, tell everyone how much you love 'em, and get ready to rock the houseboat with me in 2006.

with love from harmony hill,
leigh
http://littlequeenie.com