Pianist and composer Ned Parkhouse celebrates his New Orleans roots in this elegiac collection. 23 pieces evoke the moods, sights, and sounds of the mother of jazz in America. Ned was music critic for the New Orleans Item early in life before he left for the bright lights of Manhattan, "but I found myself dreaming," he says, "of what I had left behind: the sad beauty which was the heart of New Orleans' famous joie de vivre."

By the time he recorded this album, Ned was nearly blind, which, he suggests, merely amplified the intensity of the experience of composition.

Tracks:

1. Au Revoir Joie de Vivre
2. Place d'Armes
3. Vieux Carré
4. New Orleans
5. Saint Louis Cathedral
6. All Saints Day
7. Garden District
8. Lee Circle
9. Royal Street
10. Desire Streetcar
11. Telling Mardi Gras Beads
12. Rex, King of Misrule
13. 2a.m.
14. When Comus Passes by
15. Behind the Masks
16. Last Dance, Last Night
17. Tossing Favors to the Crowd
18. Fragment
19. Callout for a Lady
20. 12th Night Magic
21. Fragment
22. Masks Off
23. Jack

Enjoy first fruits of a lifetime of music!