In the 1980s, he bought rap records from Steve Yano, whose booth was the first outlet for Dr. A lifelong resident of Gardena, Mike Nishita, 56, has been coming here since he was a kid, when slasher movies were still beamed onto the big drive-in screen at night. Located on the border of Torrance and Gardena, the Roadium Open-Air Market is open from 7 a.m. “Some of my own personal masters were saved - but of course there was a whole lot more in there.” “They got wiped out,” said Toussaint in his inimitably gentle way. In a 2007 interview with Larry Appelbaum, senior music reference librarian at the Library of Congress, Toussaint was asked what became of all the master tapes in the studio. Toussaint’s business partner and co-owner Marshall Sehorn passed away in 2006. His Gentilly residence was eventually demolished Sea-Saint was left abandoned. Toussaint evacuated to Baton Rouge, and then to New York City, where he settled into a well-appointed apartment for the next several years. Homegrown talent was given access to the same lavish musical imagination that Toussaint extended to Paul McCartney and Paul Simon, who flew halfway around the world to get the local feel of that room. It was where an infinite cast of musicians and artists were transformed by Toussaint’s ingenuity. It served as a clubhouse for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame nominees the Meters and the late Dr. Sea-Saint brought us the original recording of “Lady Marmalade” by the proto-feminist R&B trio LaBelle. Since 1973, the converted paint and lumber outlet had been home base for Toussaint, whose collaborations with local talent gave the city a fresh signature in the ‘60s and ‘70s and elevated the former session pianist and songwriter into the eminent maestro of New Orleans funk and soul.
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30, skies were blue and Sea-Saint was fully submerged. Even as the storm moved out, the lake continued to pour itself into the city.
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One by one, the three outfall canals bordering Lake Ponchartrain failed and water rushed into Gentilly, the quiet residential neighborhood where Allen Toussaint’s home and studio were located. 29, 2005, and within a few hours, the first floodwaters had crossed the doorway of Sea-Saint Studio. Hurricane Katrina pushed into New Orleans early in the morning of Aug.