Louis Prima Jr. Talks New Single, Musical Memories And More

Louis Prima Jr. is a musician who is the son of Louis Prima who as you may know, was the King of Swing – He was the voice of King Louie in the ‘Jungle Book’. A new duet single of ‘Pennies from Heaven’ is scheduled for release and we were fortunate enough to talk with Louis Prima Jr.

When did you begin songwriting?
1986(ish) – when I first started getting into music and being in bands. I didn’t want to play in cover bands, so I dedicated myself to learning how to write effective songs.

What is your earliest musical memory?
I was probably 4 or 5, when I sang JOY TO THE WORLD by Three Dog Night on stage with my father.

Your new single ‘Pennies from Heaven’ will be a duet with your late father Louis Prima. What was the inspiration/story behind the track?

When I was a little boy, I had a piggy bank…(kidding but you can write that). On our second album, BLOW, Jim Ervin, our record label president, secured permission to use a Capitol master to sing with my father. We used the track THAT’S MY HOME; a little known prima number, because it is one of the rare prima recordings where you could isolate the voice or trumpet, since it was a 3-track recording. My father mostly recorded with only 2 mics hanging in a room. Anyway, so when we were gearing up to get into pre-production for our third offering, Jim came to see us play at the World Famous Cicada Club in Los Angeles. Pennies from Heaven is in regular rotation in our set, but at the time, the song was HUGE on TiKToK (as well as being featured in the movie ELF, among others), so the song really goes over well with the crowd. After the show, Jim said “Man, you HAVE to record that on the new album. The way you guys do it is GREAT”. Flash forward to Capitol Records and we were in the middle of recording. We get to Pennies from Heaven and Jim says, “Ok, you gotta scrap your arrangement and key, and do it just like your father”. He then told us that he was in talks with Capitol again for the the rights to use the original recording, but this time, besides my dad’s vocal, we could also incorporate the great Sam Butera on sax and the rest of the band too. I tell ya, when people hear this duet there is going to be a lot of joy and tears at the same time. It came out very powerful.

Where did you record the single and who produced it?
In the same room (Studio B) at Capitol Records that my father recorded it in. Jim Ervin and myself are co-producers.

Which of your tracks hear you at your a) happiest, b) and c) most reflective?
I’d say all of them that I sing on…but truthfully, the songs about home (NEW ORLEANS from the album BLOW and an upcoming new song called I’m Coming Home). I love that town with all of my heart. Most Reflective? Look, I never sing a ballad. I write a TON of them that I won’t sing because I just don’t think I can pull them off. So, I let others carry that weight. On the album BLOW, we wrote a song (spearheaded by Ryan McKay) called SOMEDAY with Leslie Spencer on vocals and she just KILLED IT. And on our new album, I wrote a song called PAINTING PICTURES. It is pretty daring that Jim allowed us to record this because quite frankly it’s a peek into my dark side. Kate Curran does an incredible job with this song, as her unique vocal style really fits the haunting nature of the song. When it’s released, I will be really curious how people receive it though.

What two things do you hope to have achieved once you have left the stage?
I hope that I have made people happy — that I’ve allowed them to escape whatever ails them and give them unabashed joy. I also hope that we have changed the mind of whatever perception you had coming into the show.

Do you have any favoured stage instruments, effects, pedals, microphones etc?
I LOVE my Ultimate Ears by Logitech In Ear Monitors. They’ve saved my life. But as far as instruments, I am a sucker for playing the drums.

Where is your hometown and could you please describe it in five words?
I claim New Orleans and Las Vegas both as home (I went to 14 different schools by the time we settled in Vegas in the 8th grade). Vegas – Hot, dry, tourism, lights, and impersonal…New Orleans – hot, wet, soul, music, and food.

How do you look after your voice?
A long time ago, I took vocal lessons from a guy in Hollywood named Ron Anderson. He was incredible. Everyone who was anyone used him. He was contracted to the Tonight Show to help people last minute. To this day, I still do his daily warm up, the post show warm down, and, continue learning from all that he taught me.

You are given the opportunity to write the score for a film adaptation of a novel that you enjoy. Which novel is it and why?
I read a little bit, but not enough to hurt me none…so, I am not much of a reader. But, if I could pick a score to write, it would maybe be Orwell’s 1984. I know the movie has been done, but I think it would be great to do a retrospective tying into the current state of affairs of today. It would definitely be a dark comedy.

Who are some of your musical influences? Do you have any recommendations?
Besides the joy in my father’s music, my early influences were AC/DC and groups like The J. Geils Band and Earth, Wind & Fire…it’s a mixed bag. Currently, I am a huge Deftones fan (yes, I love rock) and enjoy Blackberry Smoke, and I just found a band called The Happy Fits. Check THEM out.

Do you have any live dates planned in the UK/Europe in 2024/2025?
When the pandemic hit in 2020, we were scheduled to be in Europe for thirty days in October and November. Needless to say those dates canceled. We are always working hard to put a quality string of dates together and hope to be able to say YES very soon.

Do you have any further music releases planned for 2024/2025?
We have a full release ready to go. This includes Pennies From Heaven and our already released, Hey Skinny Santa.

What makes Louis Prima Jr. happy and what makes you unhappy?
I’m happy spending any time with my two sons, seeing others smile, spending a day just laying in the grass, exercising, enjoying good food, or watching a group of musicians practice their craft (whether they suck or not)…a lot of things bring me joy. But, seeing the world being torn in two by trivial things that shouldn’t really matter makes me unhappy.