Afterglow (Dr. John album)

Afterglow is an album by the American musician Dr. John, released in 1995.[2][3] The majority of the tracks are covers of jazz and blues songs from the 1940s and 1950s; many of the songs were introduced to Dr. John by his parents.[4][5]

Afterglow
Studio album by
Dr. John
Released1995
StudioCapitol Studios, Hollywood, California; Bill Schnee Studios, North Hollywood, California
LabelBlue Thumb[1]
ProducerTommy LiPuma
Dr. John chronology
Television
(1994)		 Afterglow
(1995)		 The Very Best of Dr. John
(1995)

The album peaked at No. 7 on Billboard's Traditional Jazz Albums chart.[6] Dr. John supported the album by playing shows with the Afterglow Big Band.[7]

Production

The album was produced by Tommy LiPuma, with arrangements by John Clayton and Alan Broadbent.[8][9] It was engineered by Al Schmitt, who was nominated for a Grammy Award.[10] Dr. John used a 20-piece string section to back his 19-member band; Ray Brown led the rhythm section.[11][12]

"New York City Blues" and "There Must Be a Better World Somewhere" were cowritten by Dr. John and Doc Pomus.[8] "I Know What I've Got" is a cover of the Louis Jordan song; "Blue Skies" was written by Irving Berlin.[13][14]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[15]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[16]
MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide[17]
Orlando Sentinel[18]
(The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide[19]
The Tampa Tribune[12]
Windsor StarB[20]

The Guardian called the album an "elegant homage to the torch songs of yesteryear."[21] The Windsor Star deemed it "too polite to count as a Dr. John album, and too New Orleans-bluesy to be a legitimate big-band album."[20] The Globe and Mail considered it "a sweet exercise in pop nostalgia."[22]

The Orlando Sentinel noted that the album "harks back to the lush, big-band sound that served the singer, songwriter, pianist and guitarist so well on 1989's In a Sentimental Mood."[18] The New York Times stated that Dr. John "rambles nostalgically down pop-blues trails originally blazed by Ray Charles ... The singing is sultry and swinging."[23] The Independent opined that the album is "spoilt by a showbiz orchestra that varnishes over his shaggy greatness."[24]

AllMusic praised Dr. John's "gravel-and-honey voice."[15] (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide dismissed the album as "empty pop."[19]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."I Know What I've Got"Louis Jordan, Sid Robin5:01
2."Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You"Andy Razaf, Don Redman4:18
3."I'm Just a Lucky So-and-So"Duke Ellington, Mack David3:33
4."Blue Skies"Irving Berlin4:42
5."So Long"Irving Melsher, Remus Harris, Russ Morgan5:04
6."New York City Blues"Doc Pomus, Mac Rebennack4:00
7."Tell Me You'll Wait for Me"Charles Brown, Oscar Moore4:39
8."There Must Be a Better World Somewhere"Doc Pomus, Mac Rebennack5:21
9."I Still Think About You"Mac Rebennack4:18
10."I'm Confessin' (That I Love You)"Al Neiburg, Doc Daugherty, Ellis Reynolds4:27

Personnel
Technical

References
  1. "Dr. John Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic.
  2. Buckley, Peter (July 1, 2003). "The Rough Guide to Rock". Rough Guides – via Google Books.
  3. Bourne, Michael (Jul 1995). "Dr. John's temple of big band". DownBeat. 62 (7): 16.
  4. Andrews, Marke (27 July 1995). "The good doctor is in — to music of the '40s, '50s". Vancouver Sun. p. C8.
  5. Garcia, Chris (September 8, 1995). "GOIN' WITH THE FLOW". The Press Democrat. p. D1.
  6. "Dr. John". Billboard.
  7. Reich, Howard (10 Sep 1995). "WHAT'S AHEAD FOR THE ENSEMBLES". ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT. Chicago Tribune. p. 7.
  8. Verna, Paul (Jul 15, 1995). "Album reviews — Afterglow by Dr. John". Billboard. 107 (28): 66.
  9. Blake, Joseph (3 Aug 1995). "New Orleans sound". Entertainment Stories. Times Colonist. p. 1.
  10. Daley, Dan (Mar 16, 1996). "Grammy winner Al Schmitt engineers creative ways of staying on top". Billboard. 108 (11): 59.
  11. Levesque, Roger (9 July 1995). "The Doctor is IN with soulful, sensitive, jazzy blues". Edmonton Journal. p. D4.
  12. Booth, Philip (July 7, 1995). "DR. JOHN, Afterglow". FRIDAY EXTRA!. The Tampa Tribune. p. 21.
  13. Daly, Mike (August 3, 1995). "AFTERGLOW". Green Guide. The Age. p. 20.
  14. Marymont, Mark (October 18, 1995). "Dr. John, Afterglow". Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. p. 1F.
  15. "Dr. John - Afterglow Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic" – via www.allmusic.com.
  16. Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 3. MUZE. p. 112.
  17. MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1999. p. 350.
  18. Gettelman, Parry (28 July 1995). "DR. JOHN". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 9.
  19. (The New) Rolling Stone Album Guide. Simon & Schuster. 2004. p. 250.
  20. Jones, Owen (6 July 1995). "CD reviews". Windsor Star. p. X23.
  21. Spencer, Neil (25 June 1995). "Pop Releases". The Observer Review Page. The Guardian. p. 7.
  22. Miller, Mark (22 July 1995). "RECORDINGS JAZZ Afterglow Dr. John". The Globe and Mail. p. C9.
  23. Holden, Stephen (10 Nov 1995). "They're Adults, And Sound It". The New York Times. p. C1.
  24. Barber, Nicholas (14 Jan 1996). "ROCK; Swamp doctor's heap good medicine". The Critics. The Independent. p. 14.
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