Top 10 Mardi Gras Songs

I'm going to be perfectly honest with you and tell you that I'm not the biggest Mardi Gras fan in the world, but that doesn't mean my knowledge of the season is limited. Having grown up in New Orleans and being dragged to parades as a child, you learn what people like and what gets them going. Same goes for your teenage years and mid-twenties, but by then you begin to appreciate the music more.

Mardi Gras day isn't until February 16, but those of us in the New Orleans area know the royal stands have been set up in Metairie and other places since mid-December. A few Krewes have actually already run in Slidell and the beginning of February will start the almost nightly parades rolling. People, we've got to get ready so that we aren't totally unprepared when it's time to go claim our spots and camp out.

Sure you'll have the beer. Of course you'll have the food. There is no doubt you'll have some chairs, a blanket or two, and the big ladders. But do you have the music? Do you have what is needed to dance and parade around at your spot as you wait for the five or six hours for the first floats to get to you?

No? Well, then let me help you by giving you the Top 10 Mardi Gras songs to listen to this year.

10.) James "Sugar Boy" Crawford - "Jock-A-Mo": The original version of the "Iko Iko" song that was made rather famous by the Dixie Cups in the sixties. Everyone knows this song even though they may not necessarily know the words or what they mean. It's just a fun song that really gets everyone out their seat and screaming "Hey Now." "HEY NOW!" at each other.

9.) The Meters - "They All Ask'd For You": You can't go wrong with this one because all New Orleanians love hearing this song and singing it too. It brings local places like the Audubon Zoo into the mix and hometown pride is something these people know a lot about.

8.) Al Johnson - "Carnival Time": This is one of my favorite songs on the list although others may not find it theirs. Johnson's anthem is fun-spirited even though it may not induce much dancing and parading around. I think it is a song that's a lot of fun to sing and kind of chill out to while still capturing the season in full force.

7.) Professor Longhair - "Go To The Mardi Gras": Some great piano starts it out and then a little bit of the rustling on a drum before the whistling kicks in and everyone is jamming right along with beads around their necks and drinks in their hands. Simple lyrics and fun beats make this a dancing song that will have everyone grabbing the hands of the people next to them and stumbling around like they actually know a few steps.

6.) Golden Band from Tiger Land - "LSU Fight Song": Sports' fans in Louisiana are ravenous. Football fans in Louisiana? They are rabid. All you have to do is let the opening horns' riff play and everyone will freeze for a second and then begin to cheer. Hey, the colors of Mardi Gras? Is it really a coincidence that you can take one color out and have LSU purple and gold? Come on!

5.) The Meters - "Hey Pocky A-Way": I love this song and love seeing everyone go nuts as they dance around all wild but then freeze together and just scream, "HEY...{pause}...HEY HEY HEY! HEY POCKY A-WAY!" This one lands high on the list because it truly needs to be played by every group of parade-goers at every parade they go to.

4.) Rebirth Brass Band - "Do Whatcha Wanna": Sometimes all you need is some horns and a place to roll down the street.

3.) The Hawketts - "Mardi Gras Mambo": "Down in New Orleans where the blues was born, it takes a cool cat to blow a horn. On LaSalle and Rampart Street, the combo's there with a mambo beat." How can you go wrong with a song that actually put the names of streets you know right into the lyrics? Even typing that lyric has me singing the chorus and rocking back and forth.

2.) Rebirth Brass Band - "Second Line": This will not be one of my favorites because I actually can't stand this song and cringe when I hear that opening horn. BUT...it's a symbol of Mardi Gras and when that horn first sounds, everyone drops what they are doing and gets ready to dance. You cannot mistake this song for any other and it really gets the parade crowds in the mood.

1.) Fats Domino - "When The Saints Go Marching In": With the season the New Orleans Saints have had, it's impossible not to include this classic on this list. I dare you to play it anywhere in New Orleans and not see everyone go crazy. It will bring about chants of "WHO DAT" thrown in the middle and it really brings fans and partygoers together.

The time is here everyone and you've got to be ready. I think that for the first time in some many years, I'll be heading down to the parade routes to enjoy the floats, sights, throws, friends, and good times. Be assured though that all of these songs will be in my collection and readily available as we wait for the King, Queen, and court to head in our direction.