The Companion Booklet to the CD ALLIGATOR BALL written by Armand St. Martin (image not currently available)

"ALLIGATOR BALL" contains 17 exciting originals by New Orleans pianoman and singer/songwriter, Armand St. Martin, who delivers his "Pan-Louisiana-Sound" with that good-time-feel of what he's coined, "New Orleans Rock 'n' Roll". This unique St. Martin sound delivers! With his trademark baritone voice, and rockin' arrangements including horns and back-up singers, many notable guest artists have added their flavor to these excellent recordings, including Little Feat's bass player, Kenny Gradney; Bruce Springsteen's keyboardist Danny Federici who guests on accordion; drummer Dony Wynn from Robert Palmer's band; Rita Coolidge's sax player, Steve Allen; Melissa Manchester's drummer, Kirk Bruner on back-up vocals and trombone; Emmy-award-winner Marabina Jaimes on back-up vocals, and YES producer Paul DeVilliers on a quick guitar track. This classic "must have" is for anybody who is a dire-hard New Orleans music lover!

Our cover art for Armand St. Martin's cut "LAST TIME IN TEXAS" is a priceless 1930's action shot of Nona Lee as seen here in El Paso, Texas when she was demonstrating her sharpshooting abilities she learned from her mother (who was a trick-rider and shooter in her brother's Marvelous Fields Brother's Traveling Medicine Show!). A note of trivia is that Gene Autry ran away from home to join the Marvelous Fields Brother's Traveling Medicine Show when he was 16! And, it's Nona's brother Stan playing guitar on Gene Autry's all-time great recording, "Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer", not Gene! This original song, with a great Texas swing to it, is rockin'. We just knew this colorized-picture had to be the cover. The custom 1-song CD-single is a cut off Armand's CD "SIZZLIN'". Worth it, just for the art alone! The music is a hit too!

Bob Compton's review of this 9-song CD was published in the Jazz Fest 2004 issue of FYI Magazine and reprinted in 2005 in The Beachwood Voice in Hollywood. Compton writes, "Even the blusiest cuts on St. Martin's latest effort are infused with a rollicking beat and the irresistible rhythm of his boogie-woogie piano playing that, while reminiscent of the maniac from Ferriday, is inexorably linked to St. Martin's New Orleans roots. . .the influences of Toussaint, Domino, Rebennack and even Booker are there. It is good ol' New Orleans rock and roll served up "sizzlin'" hot! (See the entire review under CD Reviews, and more about the cover art under Artwork notes.) Name players on "SIZZLIN'" include Melissa Manchester drummer Kirk Bruner; Lon Price on sax; Stanley Behrens on soprano sax and harmonica who is currently lead singer for Canned Heat; Marabina Jaimes, back-up vocals who is an Emmy-award-winner for Storytime; and Samantha Newark, back-up vocals who performed as Annie on Broadway as a child. This CD is truly just that . . . sizzlin'!

Armand St. Martin's first and only vinyl single to date features two hit songs off St. Martin's EP Cassette, "BE YOUR OWN PARADE". These cuts are "Must Be The Mardi Gras" and "Saint Expedite", both being "A" sides - take your pick. If you've got a jukebox or an old-fashioned record player, this is a collectible! Famous musicians on this 2-song record include Little Feat's Kenny Gradney on bass; Dony Wynn from Robert Palmer's band on drums;Steve Allen on sax from Rita Coolidge; Kirk Bruner on back-up vocals who was Melissa Manchester's drummer; and YES producer Paul DeVilliers doing a guest cameo on guitar. When everybody else had stopped making vinyl singles, St. Martin and Patty Lee Records chose to release this one!

"BE YOUR OWN PARADE" is Armand St. Martin's original 5-song EP cassette before the days of CD's and digital. As his first effort, it is as strong and good as his current recordings. Later on, Patty Lee Records added this EP as "bonus tracks" on "ALLIGATOR BALL". St. Martin is backed by famous name players such as Kenny Gradney, bassist of Little Feat fame; Rita Coolidge's sax player Steve Allen; Mac Davis' drummer Kirk Bruner on back-up vocals and trombone; Robert Palmer drummer Dony Wynn; and Mr. Mister producer Paul Devilliers on a cameo guitar part. Regarding St. Martin's concerts of these originals, The Easy Reader in Los Angeles wrote: "St. Martin creates a full, infectious sound, a powerful live attraction!."

THE COMPANION BOOKLET to the CD "ALLIGATOR BALL" is St. Martin's narratives about each of his 17 songs, with song lyrics opposite each page. These writings prove that St. Martin is not only a solid songwriter but a a great Southern writer as well. This custom-made, soft-cover manuscript is a well-written journey into understanding the background of St. Martin's songs and songwirting. It is 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" in size and approximately 38 pages. St. Martin also explains why he chose "ALLIGATOR BALL" as his record title - in honor of his group of friends who, back in the late 70's, created the legendary music scene of Tipitina's in New Orleans. This is creative writing at its best!

"ALLIGATOR BALL" poster, as seen in this picture, is 13" x 20". It is a poster of a photo of the original "set" Armand St. Martin built for his album cover art. Originally, this artwork was a 4-page mini-poster fold-out, the size of his CD. (You can read more about the art under our section called "Artwork notes".) Briefly, this poster is the enlarged version of the original mini-poster, and was a miniature paper-sculpture that St. Martin created, taking him nearly 6 months to complete. Nearly everything is cut-out with an X-acto knife and set up as one long scene. The alligator is a toy, the piano is a salt-shaker! It is a three-dimensional set. The title is tin foil. This artwork was featured in the hardcover Writer's Digest book, "1996 Artist's & Graphic Designer's Market". We are honored that It is one of just a handful of other artwork printed in this book and is the only 2-page-spread in the publiciation. Looks fabulous framed.

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"Contraflow", (a single song custom CD-R); the unusual witty rap penned by Armand's brother Edward St. Martin, M.D.(Dr. Rap), and performed and produced by Armand. Click on the cover to read more.

CLICK ON THE PICTURES TO READ MORE ABOUT EACH INDIVIDUAL PRODUCT.

c 2005 Patty Lee Records