Mitch Woods takes a drive to Crawfishfest

"Suddenly a saucer comes out of the sky..."
Mitch Woods, "Jukebox Drive"
The great neo-boogie woogie pianist Mitch Woods will commence the proceedings next Friday at this year's Crawfishfest. Don't be late because Woods is a living joy to hear, a perfect start to this tribute to the music of Louisiana and American roots. "Jukebox Drive," a clever variation on the car song tradition of "Rocket 88" and "Hot Rod Lincoln," is the title song on Woods' latest album. Mitch expands his version of the story to include alien abduction, but he's the one who's going to be transporting the crowd when the flag falls on this year's Crawfest. In addition to six Woods originals (including "Boppin' the Boogie," "Boogie Woogie Bar-B-Q" and "Mitch's Boogie" -- you get the idea) he covers a couple of Jimmy Liggins tunes (including "Saturday Night Boogie Woogie Man"), John Lee Hooker's "Boom Boom," Mose Allison's "Parchman Farm" and tops it all off with a spirited reading of the Professor Longhair classic "Tipitina." Copies should be available at the fest, but you can also order it at amazon.com and at www.eltororecords.com.