Brainstorming around a drugstore table 48 years ago, seven Waveland women changed local history. - story by Ellis Anderson  2015 Nereid's Court - photo by Matt Molinary
 The 2010 parade, by Ellis Anderson It all began with a casual comment. “Claire, Elaine, Louise and I were standing outside the Waveland Drugstore in 1966 watching the St. Patrick’s Day parade,” recalls Nancy Gex. “Elaine said ‘Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could have something bigger than this, something for the ladies…’ She’d evidently been thinking about this for a long time." The mission would be to create a fun family event while stimulating local business. The women began meeting around a table in the drugstore at night, after it closed (owned by the Lynchs). Later a plaque was installed on the table, “Nereids was born here.”  2010 Nereids Parade by Ellis Anderson Gex’s assignment was to find a name for the organization. After a lot of research, she came up with Nereids. In Greek mythology, they were the 50 sea nymph daughters of Nereus and Doris. The Nereids were believed to help sailors during storms at sea. Since the women decided that the organization would be based on the classical Mardi Gras groups across the coast, membership would be secret and all participants masked. Since there were 50 original Nereids, the women decided to shoot for fifty charter members. Just to make sure they had enough members, they sent out a hundred invitations, expecting that about half would decline. “We got 96 responses out of a hundred,” says Gex. “We knew then it was really going to be something.” The first ball and parade were held in 1967. With less than a year of preparation time, the women marshaled forces. Garages and warehouses all over town became workshops to build floats. Many people made their own costumes as well. Nereids fever took over the town.  2010 parade toast, photo by Ellis Anderson The first ball and supper dances were held in the St. Joseph’s gym and invitations became worth their weight in gold as people vied to get one. The identities of the king and queen were closely held secrets, with all sorts of shenanigans occurring to ferret out the names. Nancy remembered one particular incident where King Hack Doyle was entering the gym for a rehearsal. He spotted several women hiding in the bushes and asked what they were up to. They confessed they had heard that the king would be coming for rehearsal that evening and they hoped to find out who he was. Doyle said he’d been curious too and asked if he could hide and wait with them. Of course, the king never showed and Doyle sadly explained he couldn’t wait any longer, they expected him inside to help out. The secrecy even extended to the founders. Nancy’s husband Lucien was chosen as the 10th anniversary king and she was kept in the dark. Nereid’s captain Elaine Coleson arranged to leave information for Lucien in “a drop” - the trash can at the post office. She’d leave information for Lucien in the can and he’d go by and discretely fish the envelope out. Nancy was mystified when someone reported that her husband was frequently seen digging through the trash at the post office. “It was all a lot of fun,” says Nancy.  2019 Parade, photo by Ellis Anderson Eventually they raised money for a den to build and store the floats, In fact, Nancy and Dot signed a loan with the bank to buy the property - without telling their husbands. The two women borrowed $10,000 (“That was a lot of money in those days!”) and the bankers never revealed the information. Fortunately the note was paid off and floats began to be built in the den instead of any spare space the members could find. There have other been major changes through the years. Elaine and Claire were co-captains the first two years (Elaine organized the ball and Claire the parade). When they consolidated the captain’s position, Elaine was elected and she held the position until she passed in 2004. The group outgrew the gym eventually and began holding their ball at the Coast Coliseum. The anonymity part has relaxed through the years too (something Nancy admits she misses). However, the identity of “Queen Doris” is always a secret and the current captain asked that her name not be revealed. “I don’t participate any more, but I’m a member,” says Nancy. “It’s been great to see it grow. Never did we dream that it would be like it is.”  2015 Nereid's Captain, photo by Matt Molinary December 2014 photos from: the Christmas Parade through Old Town, the 20th anniversary Library Tree Gala and the Reenactment of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of the Bay of St. Louis. All photos by Cleaver editor/photographer Ellis Anderson unless otherwise attributed. If you're featured in one of the pictures below, feel free to copy it onto your desktop and share. If you're posting it somewhere like Facebook, photo credit is appreciated. More event photos, high resolution files and prints are available for purchase here. This month - The annual Mardi Gras Gala benefit for CASA invites people to laissez les bon temps rouler for a great cause! |
| Hancock Medical's Tom Carlton nourishes a muse - with the help of a Rock Star Friend A Musical Journey by Tom Carlton photos by Ellis Anderson | The Shoofly is sponsored by  |
Tom Carlton and RSF Rochelle Harper, photo courtesy Tom Carlton Picking and Choosing
When I was a kid in the 1970s, I had to make choices of participation. We couldn’t do every activity we wanted to do. I think parents were different then and didn’t cater to our every whim.
I loved and played sports early on growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, and was indoctrinated into ethnocentric sports fandom – including St. Louis Cardinals baseball, St. Louis Cardinals football and St. Louis Blues hockey. Two of the three are still ingrained in me today. Of course I had to switch out the Football Cardinals to the New Orleans Saints. I’m sure you understand.
When it was time for high school, it was time to pick new friends and define my environment. The groups were varied…there were the athletes, the book smart kids, the popular kids, the artists and the stoners. A person could navigate the different groups, but for comfort sake, you picked one in which to belong. I suppose kids are still doing the same today.
That being said, there is probably something inside everyone of us that lays dormant. For me, it raised its head every now and then….playing Beatles’ records my three older sisters had laying around or hanging with my older brother who fronted a garage band. Then in 1978, at the impressionable age of 16, I saw Bruce Springsteen for the first time at the 2,000-seat Kiel Opera House in St. Louis. That was my first concert ever thanks to my older brother. It was eye-opening. The Boss takes no prisoners and my imagination was forever alive with the sound of music.
Ignoring my artistic inclinations and continuing to hang with sports-minded people in college, I managed to meet one guy who played piano. We sang Squeeze and Beatles songs for fun. I specifically remember taking McCartney’s high harmonies on “If I Fell“ and feeling a certain tug. The artist in me was beginning to make some noise. Thank God I discovered a creative writing outlet at Mizzou, a university renowned for its Journalism School.
When I graduated, I was thrust into the real world where I reported, wrote, and marketed and eventually found my way to Mississippi. It was here that I finally bought a guitar in 1993. The guitar sat idol as a decorative item for about a decade in my various South Mississippi living spaces. Then, as a new millennium began, I met my RSF (Rock Star Friend) and my world changed.
I walked into a Mississippi Gulf Coast nightclub to see what the “buzz” was about surrounding singer-songwriter Rochelle Harper. A handful of people were scattered about the room and when the music started, a performance erupted -- no matter that there were only about 10 of us in the room. I remember a feeling in my bones that this was something special. Darned if it wasn’t the same feeling I had when I first saw Springsteen.
When I was a kid in the 1970s, I had to make choices of participation. We couldn’t do every activity we wanted to do. I think parents were different then and didn’t cater to our every whim.
I loved and played sports early on growing up in St. Louis, Missouri, and was indoctrinated into ethnocentric sports fandom – including St. Louis Cardinals baseball, St. Louis Cardinals football and St. Louis Blues hockey. Two of the three are still ingrained in me today. Of course I had to switch out the Football Cardinals to the New Orleans Saints. I’m sure you understand.
When it was time for high school, it was time to pick new friends and define my environment. The groups were varied…there were the athletes, the book smart kids, the popular kids, the artists and the stoners. A person could navigate the different groups, but for comfort sake, you picked one in which to belong. I suppose kids are still doing the same today.
That being said, there is probably something inside everyone of us that lays dormant. For me, it raised its head every now and then….playing Beatles’ records my three older sisters had laying around or hanging with my older brother who fronted a garage band. Then in 1978, at the impressionable age of 16, I saw Bruce Springsteen for the first time at the 2,000-seat Kiel Opera House in St. Louis. That was my first concert ever thanks to my older brother. It was eye-opening. The Boss takes no prisoners and my imagination was forever alive with the sound of music.
Ignoring my artistic inclinations and continuing to hang with sports-minded people in college, I managed to meet one guy who played piano. We sang Squeeze and Beatles songs for fun. I specifically remember taking McCartney’s high harmonies on “If I Fell“ and feeling a certain tug. The artist in me was beginning to make some noise. Thank God I discovered a creative writing outlet at Mizzou, a university renowned for its Journalism School.
When I graduated, I was thrust into the real world where I reported, wrote, and marketed and eventually found my way to Mississippi. It was here that I finally bought a guitar in 1993. The guitar sat idol as a decorative item for about a decade in my various South Mississippi living spaces. Then, as a new millennium began, I met my RSF (Rock Star Friend) and my world changed.
I walked into a Mississippi Gulf Coast nightclub to see what the “buzz” was about surrounding singer-songwriter Rochelle Harper. A handful of people were scattered about the room and when the music started, a performance erupted -- no matter that there were only about 10 of us in the room. I remember a feeling in my bones that this was something special. Darned if it wasn’t the same feeling I had when I first saw Springsteen.
| So yes, in 2001, I discovered my own local music scene Jon Landeau and its name was the Rochelle Harper Band. I took in every RHB performance – not some performances, I’m talking all performances…from the beginnings of The Shed Barbecue Joint to the comings and goings of Mallini’s Point Lounge and Hurricane Cove to the Casino stages, to ballrooms, to classrooms, to festivals, to children’s hospitals, to charitable causes, to the Blue Gill in Alabama, to unplugged acoustic performances at the Julep Room, to live performances on WCPR’s Home Grown show, to BridgeFests and BayFests to the annual Christmas party at the Bay St. Louis residence of Lee and Liz Bosarge and on and on.…so I witnessed literally hundreds of performances. This was easily the busiest and hardest working band on the Coast and I decided to get involved. story continued below | Listen and buy Rochelle's new album "Lilt" from I-Tunes now! |
Three Chords and the Truth
For about 10 years I made bootleg recordings, snapped countless photos, wrote promotion for the band and made videos back in the days when film still had to be bought and developed. I thought I might as well document it all, since I was there anyway. That got expensive because I was always in search of an iconic Janis Joplin-like photo of this dynamic performer who was presenting theater-worthy shows basically for free in my own backyard.
I never did capture that iconic photo, but I’ve seen plenty of great photos of Harper and the band by fantastic photographers, especially since we ushered in the digital age. The only thing that surpasses the number of shows performed by Rochelle Harper is the number of photographs snapped of Rochelle Harper. Some are amazing photos that capture the dynamic, the charismatic, and the energetic essence of my RSF.
So you see, after forty years alive on planet earth, I finally discovered that artistic friend that motivated and encouraged me to pick up my guitar and play. Through her encouragement and a certain muse, I finally put music to all the words I had written over the years and discovered that I have an ability for coming up with melodies.
Who knew? I guess that’s the result of a life that spans the history of rock n’ roll and listening to most of it. Writing songs for me now is an important part of my life and I like it a whole lot better than keeping journals. All it took was three chords and the truth (and some encouragement from an RSF).
Down the Road...
For about 10 years I made bootleg recordings, snapped countless photos, wrote promotion for the band and made videos back in the days when film still had to be bought and developed. I thought I might as well document it all, since I was there anyway. That got expensive because I was always in search of an iconic Janis Joplin-like photo of this dynamic performer who was presenting theater-worthy shows basically for free in my own backyard.
I never did capture that iconic photo, but I’ve seen plenty of great photos of Harper and the band by fantastic photographers, especially since we ushered in the digital age. The only thing that surpasses the number of shows performed by Rochelle Harper is the number of photographs snapped of Rochelle Harper. Some are amazing photos that capture the dynamic, the charismatic, and the energetic essence of my RSF.
So you see, after forty years alive on planet earth, I finally discovered that artistic friend that motivated and encouraged me to pick up my guitar and play. Through her encouragement and a certain muse, I finally put music to all the words I had written over the years and discovered that I have an ability for coming up with melodies.
Who knew? I guess that’s the result of a life that spans the history of rock n’ roll and listening to most of it. Writing songs for me now is an important part of my life and I like it a whole lot better than keeping journals. All it took was three chords and the truth (and some encouragement from an RSF).
Down the Road...
Today, some 13 years after first meeting my RSF at the beginning of her musical journey in 2001, Rochelle and I have both landed in Bay St. Louis. She and husband Gary Boswell are residents. I work at Hancock Medical. We both love this “place apart” in Hancock County that brings so many good people together.
I was lucky enough to witness Rochelle’s showcase in Nashville this past September as Moonwatcher Records released her first professionally recorded studio CD. I was up to my old tricks, documenting the showcase performance via iPad video and uploading on facebook. It was exciting to experience.
The CD is “Lilt” and contains eight original compositions, a classic Bobbie Gentry cover and songs written by record producer Joe Taylor and hit songwriter Rob Crosby. I enjoyed writing one of the first record reviews for the production (see below) and I plan to continue contributing promotion as Rochelle’s musical journey continues.
As for my late budding musical itch, I scratch away with my guitar in hand and it feels real good! Thanks RSF.
See y’all down the road.
I was lucky enough to witness Rochelle’s showcase in Nashville this past September as Moonwatcher Records released her first professionally recorded studio CD. I was up to my old tricks, documenting the showcase performance via iPad video and uploading on facebook. It was exciting to experience.
The CD is “Lilt” and contains eight original compositions, a classic Bobbie Gentry cover and songs written by record producer Joe Taylor and hit songwriter Rob Crosby. I enjoyed writing one of the first record reviews for the production (see below) and I plan to continue contributing promotion as Rochelle’s musical journey continues.
As for my late budding musical itch, I scratch away with my guitar in hand and it feels real good! Thanks RSF.
See y’all down the road.
Review of "Lilt"
Rochelle Harper's new CD "Lilt," available on I-Tunes! Cover photo by Sam Wichard
Can You Imagine Love? That’s What Rochelle Harper Wants to Do
by Tom Carlton
“Lilt” is a labor of love, the culmination of a 10-year musical journey for American singer-songwriter Rochelle Harper.
The cover art for the project tells you all you need to know about the artist – lean and committed -bringing it every time she steps on stage in the tradition of classic rock heroes – from Janis to Bruce. Rochelle Harper is not afraid to let people see her sweat. Her lilt is as Southern as an ice cold glass of sweet tea, but there’s a whole lot of lovin’ grit and peaceful determination in her heart.
This Mississippi artist delivers the past, present and future with honesty and respect, singing her original home-spun songs and energizing fans with a heart on fire…proudly representing her sweet home Alabama and the strong roots that have taken hold in the rich soil of Mississippi, home of the Delta Blues.
Yes it’s true…Rochelle Harper sings out with a distinct Southern lilt -- songs that tell stories forged from a burning heart. Her passion for the soul of a song is imminent and her enthusiasm connects with audiences, one by one.
Fans in South Mississippi know the passion of Rochelle Harper. In her neck of the woods, she has been called “The Hippie Chick.” Her mantra is “Peace Within Music.” Her signature venue is “The Shed” barbecue joint. Her fans are young and old. And now the world can hear, thanks to the first studio produced record by Grammy-nominated musician Joe Taylor.
Like the artist, this collection of songs is lean and strong, emotional and true, grounded in love and soaring with hope.
Can you imagine love? That’s what this record wants to do. That’s what this record does.
"Lilt" is available on I-Tunes or Amazon.com
by Tom Carlton
“Lilt” is a labor of love, the culmination of a 10-year musical journey for American singer-songwriter Rochelle Harper.
The cover art for the project tells you all you need to know about the artist – lean and committed -bringing it every time she steps on stage in the tradition of classic rock heroes – from Janis to Bruce. Rochelle Harper is not afraid to let people see her sweat. Her lilt is as Southern as an ice cold glass of sweet tea, but there’s a whole lot of lovin’ grit and peaceful determination in her heart.
This Mississippi artist delivers the past, present and future with honesty and respect, singing her original home-spun songs and energizing fans with a heart on fire…proudly representing her sweet home Alabama and the strong roots that have taken hold in the rich soil of Mississippi, home of the Delta Blues.
Yes it’s true…Rochelle Harper sings out with a distinct Southern lilt -- songs that tell stories forged from a burning heart. Her passion for the soul of a song is imminent and her enthusiasm connects with audiences, one by one.
Fans in South Mississippi know the passion of Rochelle Harper. In her neck of the woods, she has been called “The Hippie Chick.” Her mantra is “Peace Within Music.” Her signature venue is “The Shed” barbecue joint. Her fans are young and old. And now the world can hear, thanks to the first studio produced record by Grammy-nominated musician Joe Taylor.
Like the artist, this collection of songs is lean and strong, emotional and true, grounded in love and soaring with hope.
Can you imagine love? That’s what this record wants to do. That’s what this record does.
"Lilt" is available on I-Tunes or Amazon.com
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