Big Chief Monk Boudreaux - "Won't Bow Down"

Publisher: Relix
Reviewer: Mr. Philip Booth
April/May 2012
[pdf of review]

"The deep-voiced leader of the Golden Eagle Mardi Gras Tribe, recently heard with Anders Osborne, Galactic and the Voice of the Wetlands All-Stars, creates a vibe reminiscent of 1976's classic The Wild Tchoupitoulas album. Big Chief Monk Boudreaux kicks off his highly collaborative recording with the autobiographical "Monk's Mardi Gras," a slab of low-slung funk fueled by Orgone's rhythm section, with Dr. John on piano. Boudreaux also specialized in loose and bluesy groove tunes, like "Footsteps," an ode to NOLA cooking and the African-tinted "Educaiton," both hinting at Olu Dara. He rides Orgone's reggae riddims on the fiddle-injected "Don't Take My Flag Down," and brings the shronk on "Lightning and Thunder," abetted by son Joseph Jr.'s rapping. The New Orleans fonk, as Dr. John pronounces it, is writ large."