Such A Night: Omnivore Premieres Dr. John’s “Live at The Turning Point”
On November 20, Mac Rebennack – a.k.a. Dr. John – would have turned 85 years old. Though the Good Doctor died in 2019 at the age of 77, his musical legacy remains alive and well in no small part due to the efforts of the Estate of Dr. John and Omnivore Recordings. Following last year’s release of Live at the Village Gate, Omnivore has announced Live at The Turning Point, a never-before-heard 1987 solo performance by the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee. It hits stores on 2 CDs and digital formats on November 20 to coincide with Dr. John’s birthday.
Live at the Turning Point captures the entire second set of May 7, 1987 at Piermont, New York’s Turning Point club as well as unique bonus tracks from the early set that night. The intimate environs inspired Dr. John to dig into a wide-ranging repertoire of classics and deep cuts alike, including salutes to fellow New Orleans legend Fats Domino with a medley of “Blueberry Hill” and “Blue Monday” and another, even more expansive Domino tribute weaving five of Fats’ tunes into one Dr. John specialty. Bringing out every color in his piano’s 88 keys, Dr. John feted Lee Dorsey (“Ya Ya”), Willie Dixon (“Wang Dang Doodle”), and Hank Williams (“Jambalaya (On the Bayou)),” revisited further Crescent City favorites such as Professor Longhair’s “Tipitina” and James “Sugar Boy” Crawford and The Dixie Cups’ “Iko Iko,” and tapped his own legendary songbook for the likes of “I Walk on Guilded Splinters,” “Right Place, Wrong Time,” and “Such a Night.”
This joyful, previously unreleased recording has been produced in conjunction with the Estate of Dr. John by Karla R. Pratt (Dr. John’s daughter) and Omnivore’s Grammy Award-winning producer, Cheryl Pawelski. Audio for both sets has been restored and mastered by Grammy-winning engineer, Michael Graves, and the package includes new liner notes from The Second Disc’s own Joe Marchese. “One Room Country Shack” from the 8 pm set is streaming now.
Mac Rebennack brought the spirit of New Orleans to the small, historic village of Piermont, New York (also the setting of the 1984 film The Purple Rose of Cairo!) on that spring evening in 1987. You, too, can capture that spirit on November 20 from Omnivore Recordings. You’ll find the complete track listing and pre-order links below. (As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)
Dr. John, Live at The Turning Point (Omnivore OVCD-647, 2026) (Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Omnivore Recordings)
CD 1: 10:30 pm Set
- Cabbage Head
- Qualified
- Such A Night
- Traveling Mood/Louisiana Lullabye/Let’s Make A Better World
- Blueberry Hill/Blue Monday
- Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On/Shim Sham Shimmy
- Walking To New Orleans/You Know I Miss You/Going To The River/Rose Mary/Poor Me
- Ya Ya
- Iko Iko/Brother John
CD 2: 10:30 pm Set (continued)
- Love, Life And Money
- Wang Dang Doodle
- Big Bass Drum (On A Mardi Gras Day)/Down Yonder We Go Ballin’/Drive It Home
- Right Place, Wrong Time
- Goodnight Irene
Bonus Tracks: 8pm Set
- I Walk On Guilded Splinters
- Jambalaya (On The Bayou)/Blow Wind Blow/Boll Weevil
- Tipitina
- One Room Country Shack
- Georgia On My Mind
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