Dr. John (aka Mac Rebennack) is one of the coolest Caucasians ever. This gravel-voiced ivory-tickler is a veritable New Orleans music-history lesson, filtering blues, jazz, soul, and funk into earthy, hearty compositions that also serve as monuments to his audacious personality. The Night Tripper’s in town for a six-night run supporting his latest album, Tribal, but let’s hope he also dips into his swampy, Creole-delic classic, Gris-Gris. “Walk on Gilded Splinters” to this show, if you have to. (Jazz Alley, 2033 Sixth Ave, 441-9729, 7:30 pm, $30.50, all ages)

Dave Segal is a journalist and DJ living in Seattle. He has been writing about music since 1983. His stuff has appeared in Gale Research’s literary criticism series of reference books, Creem (when...