For most of his 60-year career, Allen Toussaint covered plenty of musical ground but not much actual ground, choosing to stay near his hometown—until a devastating hurricane made that impossible.
You can get a good sense of Toussaint’s work from listening to our Hear the Music and Extended Play sections for February 2016, but here are a few video clips to serve as further illustration. First, a 1981 TV performance in which he’s playing piano behind blues singer Etta James on her song “Something’s Got a Hold on Me” (that’s Dr. John on the organ in the back). Hear how Toussaint’s playing really drives the band.
Next, a lovely post-Hurricane Katrina solo version of Toussaint’s own “Southern Nights.”
Lee Dorsey was the artist who had the biggest hit with Toussaint’s song “Working in a Coal Mine,” but hearing the composer sing and play it himself is a real treat, as this 2008 clip from the Later…with Jools Holland show proves.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN9FYh_GmnM
Finally, an excellent BBC documentary on Toussaint, produced in 2006, the year after he was forced to leave New Orleans. Please note: It’s an hour long.