Kermit Ruffins performed at White House for Congressional Picnic

Posted by  mark


Basin Street Records’ recording artist, Kermit Ruffins, performed at the Congressional picnic at the White House in front of about 1500 people on Tuesday, June 19th. Kermit and his band were greeted by President Bush and the First Lady. Tony Snow’s band, Beats Workin’, also performed. Read all about the event and take a look at a picture of Kermit with President Bush HERE (there are a few pictures in this article). Also, view an AP photo of Kermit and the President HERE. And this just in…Bill O’Reilly included a clip of Kermit Ruffins with the President in his “Most Ridiculous Item of the Day” on June 21st. Watch it HERE.

The Independent (Lafayette’s weekly) publishes story on Road Home, Basin Street Records and Mark Samuels

Posted by  mark

This past week’s issue of The Independent (Lafayette’s weekly) published a story on Governor Blanco’s miserably failing Road Home program, and the absolute incompetence of ICF (the company administering the program).

Basin Street Records and Mark Samuels are included prominently in the piece. Thank you to Scott Jordan for shedding light on this disaster.

Please read it HERE.

UPDATE 6/22/07: While standing on the White House lawn on Tuesday, June 19th while waiting for Kermit Ruffins and his band to come back from their photo opportunity with President Bush, I received a phone call from the Road Home program reviewing the numbers with me, asking which option I was taking, and letting me know that I should receive a phone call within 3 weeks to schedule a closing. I actually received the call to schedule the closing on Thursday, June 21st, and my closing is scheduled for next week. I was told by the woman who scheduled my closing that I should have the money within 2 weeks after the closing. It has been a long, long, wait and there are still tens of thousands of more people waiting, but it will sure be a big relief when the money comes.
UPDATE 7/15/07: This time, a promise made by the Road Home came through and I have received my money. It actually came in about 10 days after the closing.

Wall Street Journal Cultural Conversation with Dr. Michael White

Posted by  mark

Today’s Wall Street Journal front page of the Leisure Section contains a 1/2 page “Cultural Conversation” with Dr. Michael White and includes a terrific caricature of him. The article talks about New Orleans, culture, his CD, Dancing in the Sky, and much more. Pick up a copy or visit www.wsj.com. Here is a link to the page:

http://online.wsj.com/public/page/leisure_weekend.html?mod=1_0051