Allen Toussaint's name became synonymous with New Orleans music, even though he didn't seem to "do" the records his name was on as producer, arranger, or writer on records by artists such as Ernie K-Doe or Irma Thomas. This is his first studio album in at least a decade, and it is a very worthy effort of all self-penned songs that seem to be a mix of old and new (if not in age, at least in feel). He is supported by an extremely worthy cast of the finest New Orleans musicians.
It's impossible to consider The River in Reverse without taking the devastation Hurricane Katrina wreaked upon New Orleans into account. Indeed, it's quite likely that this collaboration between Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint would not even have occurred if it weren't for that cataclysmic event. They've collaborated before – Toussaint wrote horn charts for Costello's 1989 album Spike – but neither had plans to work together until they appeared together at several benefit concerts for the victims of Katrina in September of 2005.
Allen Toussaint is a legend who wrote and produced some of the greatest songs in New Orleans R&B history, but his career as a recording artist is hardly legendary. He didn't record all that much and what he did wax is overshadowed by his compositions and productions – which, admittedly, is understandable given the work he did with the Meters, Lee Dorsey, Aaron Neville, Ernie K-Doe, the Band, LaBelle, Irma Thomas, and many others. But not being legendary is hardly the same thing as not having merit, and Rhino Handmade's 2003 double-disc set The Complete Warner Recordings makes a convincing case that Toussaint's three albums for Warner and Reprise are among the best hidden treasures in soul music.
In Memoriam: Allen Toussaint (1938-2015). The Bright Mississippi stands alone among Allen Toussaint albums. Technically, it is not his first jazz album, for in 2005 he released Going Places on the small CD Baby-distributed Captivating Recording Technologies, a label run by his son Reginald, but for most intents and purposes – and for most listeners – The Bright Mississippi might as well be his first foray into jazz, since it's the first to get a major-label production and release as it's a de facto sequel to Toussaint's successful, high-profile, 2006 duet album with Elvis Costello, The River in Reverse.