Jazz Fest 2023 Bible from OffBeat Magazine

CONTENTS

51 Charlie Sepulveda

This is Latin jazz.

54 Mickey Hart of Dead & Co.

A strange trip.

56 ARTEMIS

A joyful thing.

58 Loose Cattle

A gator and a dumpster.

60 Dustin Dale Gaspard

Soul food.

62 Michael Juan Nunez

South Louisiana marsh blues.

65 Mdou Moctar

Mystic shredding.

67 Maggie Koerner

A woman out on her own.

70 Doug Garrison

The timekeeper.

72 Something Else!

All the Crunchberries.

74 Jazz Fest Stage Schedules and

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CONTENTS

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113 The Continental Drifters

A forever family.

115 The Junior League

Homegrown indie pop.

123 OffBeat EATS

Marielle Songy, has you covered with some “can’t miss” food spots.

126 Jazz Fest A to Z

All you need to know is in our Jazz Fest guide.

158 Listings

118 Reviews

New Breed Brass Band, Jenn

Howard, Johnny Vidacovich, Brad Walker + Extended, Marc Stone, Krasno Moore Project, Shawn Williams, Marc Broussard

160 Backtalk with Nick Spitzer of American Routes

Online Exclusives

Christian McBride: Fresh and Unique

Vintage Vinyl: Joseph Bondi’s latest installment

In Memoriam: Wayne Shorter, Kidd Jordan

JAZZ FEST BIBLE 2023 VOLUME 36, NUMBER 5

PUBLISHER AND EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Jan V. Ramsey, janramsey@offbeat.com

MANAGING EDITOR

Joseph L. Irrera, josephirrera@offbeat.com

LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Eric Gernhauser

CONTRIBUTORS

Joseph Bondi, Mark Guarino, Steve Hochman, Kimberly Kaye, Jay Mazza, Cree McCree, Brett Milano, Jennifer Odell, John Radanovich, Marielle Songy, Dan Willging, John Wirt, Geraldine Wyckoff, Michael Allen Zell

COVER ART

Tim Neil

WEB EDITOR

Johnny Geraghty, johnny@offbeat.com

WEB CONSULTANT Veronika Lee Claghorn

PHOTOGRAPHER/VIDEOGRAPHER/WEB SPECIALIST Noe Cugny, noecugny@offbeat.com

ADVERTISING DESIGN PressWorks, 504-944-4300

DISTRIBUTION

Abe Guerrero, Doug Jackson

Copyright © 2023, OffBeat, Inc. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. OffBeat is a registered trademark of OffBeat, Inc. First class subscriptions to OffBeat in the U.S. are available for $65 per year (foreign subscriptions are available, check website for rates). Digital subscriptions are available for $25.99. Back issues are available for $10, except for the Jazz Fest Bible for $15 (for foreign delivery add $5) Submission of photos and articles on Louisiana artists are welcomed, but unfortunately material cannot be returned.

LOUISIANA MUSIC, FOOD & CULTURE

Iread every word that’s published in OffBeat’s “Bible.” One theme that recurs is that many musicians were influenced as children to become musicians. If a kid is exposed to music and music history—and is encouraged by teachers and mentors to love listening to all kinds of music and to perform same, you have the makings of a deeply-rooted musical tradition that’s passed on through time.

I have nothing but respect for teachers and educational mentors who inspire kids. Unfortunately, arts education, especially music, is no longer a part of the curriculum in our schools. The emphasis is on STEM—obviously not a bad thing, but without literature, arts, culture and music, we’re producing generations of kids who are starved for the very things that make us empathic, cultured, diverse human beings. In New Orleans and in some areas of Louisiana, our musical heritage is passed down from grandfather to son to grandson to great grandson (or daughters!) in families, churches and bands. That’s the way it’s always been and must continue into the future. But it’s very important to create an entity that creates curriculum and requires that our indigenous music, art and history of same is taught to youngsters throughout their school years, beginning with elementary school, even kindergarten. IF we don’t teach our kids, they

won’t be aware why we are so musically and culturally special. If future generations don’t know who Allen Toussaint was, or Harold Dejan, or Buddy Bolden, or the Neville Brothers, or Dr. John, or DJ Jubilee, or Master P was (literally, some young people who live here already have forgotten these because they are just too young to remember)—we are in deep trouble. We need to do something right now to insure that we are steeping our kids in our musical heritage. History and exposure to all kinds of Louisiana culture and music is crucial.

Speaking of history, I became aware of a fantastic photograph that was taken on October 14, 1998 by photographer/documentarian Lawrence Cumbo—at the request of Mac Rebennack—to recreate “A Great Day In New Orleans”,” similar to Art Kane’s 1958 renowned portrait “Great Day in Harlem.” After months of planning, 63 legendary musicians, spanning three generations, gathered in Armstrong Park to have their photo taken for posterity. Now, 25 years later, Cumbo is embarking on a journey to bring the surviving “greats” and the next generation of musicians together in a new documentary film. Cumbo is making this historic photo available for purchase to help raise money for the documentary. You can visit GreatDayProject.com for more info or to order a print.

Saturday

GIVE ME BACK MY LOVING

BY BRETT MILANO

There’s one side of Leo Nocentelli that everybody knows. That would be the funk cornerstones he laid down as a member of the Meters, songs that one band or another will inevitably play at Jazz Fest. At this point you barely need to mention the titles: “Cissy Strut,” “Fire on the Bayou,” “Africa,” “People Say,” “Hey Pocky Way.” The Jazz Fest and New Orleans music would be a lot poorer without these songs. So would your life and mine.

But there’s also another side—specifically, there’s Another Side. That’s the name of the solo album that Nocentelli quietly recorded while the Meters were on hiatus in 1971, then shelved when the band signed to Warner/Reprise the following year. Few Meters fans were aware that the album even existed—until a remarkable turn of events led to its being rediscovered and released by the specialty Light in the Attic label in late 2021. And suddenly Nocentelli’s got a cult classic on his hands—and since this is one of very few releases under his own name, the resonance for him is especially strong.

“What happened to me is not of this earth, man. It has to be spiritual. It’s like an oxymoron, a brand new 50-year-old record. That just doesn’t happen to people in the music industry. I am just touched by it, because why did the Creator pick this to happen to me? He could have picked anybody, but He said, ‘Let’s have this happen to this little guy named Leo Nocentelli.’ The only thing I can think of is that I must have been doing something right in this life.”

Granted, it’s not completely unheard-of in this day and age for a lost ’60s or ’70s music artifact to get unearthed. The real mystery about Another Side is why it was shelved in the first place, since it’s got some of Nocentelli’s best work. It’s also the biggest step any of the band ever took away from the Meters groove, even though three-quarters of the original lineup is on it (Art Neville is absent but drummer Zigaboo Modeliste and bassist George Porter Jr. both appear, plus James Black sharing drums and Allen Toussaint playing keys). He plays mainly acoustic guitar, and the sound is stripped-down and soulful. Comparisons to Bill Withers and Polydor-era Link Wray haven’t been amiss, but there’s a warmth here that draws

from the early ’70s singer-songwriter movement (the one cover is a joyful version of Elton John’s “Your Song,” not yet an overplayed tune at the time). Nocentelli proves he can craft a memorable melodic hook, with most of the tunes airing softer emotions than would usually fit into a Meters song.

They did however fit well with the music he was discovering at the time. “I picked up a couple of James Taylor albums—Sweet Baby James, Mud Slide Slim. I was writing a lot of instrumentals in the Meters, not really experiencing lyrics. So, when I heard James, he was doing great turns of phrase that I never heard used before. And that got me thinking I could not only do music—I could tell stories. I went and bought a gut string acoustic guitar, and when I sat down, I started writing lyrics to chord progressions I’d never used before.” Some of the songs were undoubtedly personal and considering the Meters’ first label Josie had just gone belly-up and the future was uncertain, that would likely explain a song called “Getting Nowhere.”

“I would have to say so, yeah, that one could be autobiographical. But sometimes I’d just put myself in other peoples’ predicament and write about that situation. ‘Riverfront’ I wrote for Aaron Neville. We used to run together, and he told me about working on a riverboat, carrying bananas and so on, and I just thought about the things a guy in that situation would have to do.”

Amusingly, one review has singled out the track “You’ve Become a Habit” as the album’s New Orleans slice of life—fair enough, since it seems to concern one guy’s love for a lady of the evening (Nocentelli would later play on the most famous song on that topic, Labelle’s “Lady Marmalade”). But the real inspiration was not the French Quarter, but France—the setting of the classic 1963 movie Irma la Douce. “Shirley MacLaine was a lady of the street—they couldn’t call her a prostitute in the movie, but the audience would know it—and Jack Lemmon loved her and called her Fancy. So that’s completely not personal experience, I didn’t do that.”

Though the tapes were thought to be lost, they were in fact sitting in Allen Toussaint and Marshall Sehorn’s Sea-Saint studio for decades. But with the Meters moving into their second act, Nocentelli had no interest in going after them and getting the album released. Toussaint himself said after Katrina that any tapes stored there had

been washed away—but ten years later, a pile of Sea-Saint tapes mysteriously turned up at an open-air market in Los Angeles County. They were bought by Mike Nishita, a DJ who recognized the imprint—he worked for Quincy Jones Productions and is the brother of Beastie Boys collaborator Money Mark. Another Side is the first and so far, the only part of that collection to see the light of day, but there have to be many more treasures in there, and Nocentelli likely appears on plenty of them. One photo shows the master of the soundtrack Black Samson, scored by Toussaint and played by the Meters.

Nocentelli recalls getting a call out of nowhere from Nishita. “He calls me and says: ‘I just bought a bunch of tapes, and one of them is yours.’ Really? He started mentioning the titles and it blew me away. I didn’t remember the chords, the lyrics, nothing. It was completely gone from my mind, but I still knew the titles. I’ve never heard of something like this happening. You wouldn’t have Count Basie or Duke Ellington putting out a record they did 50 years ago.”

When the Meters regrouped in 1972, it was with a different attitude and a new sound. Songs got longer, vocals were now upfront, and Cyril

Neville joined as percussionist and sometime lead singer. Nocentelli’s own playing, mostly spare and slinky in the Josie years, now got into heavier Hendrix and P-Funk territory. An epic jam like the 12-minute “It Ain’t No Use” (on Rejuvenation) was quite a few miles from the Josie era. “When I started playing, I was listening to guys like Wes Montgomery, Kenny Burrell, Charlie Christian, jazz players. I always wanted to picture myself on the cover of an album playing a big hollow body. And all that [Josie] stuff was on the Gibson ES-175, a hollow body known for playing jazz. After I learned how I could pull a string and make it bend, I started putting a little overdrive on it, and I got progressively better at that.”

He never really returned to the sound of Another Side, and you won’t hear much acoustic guitar or James Taylor influence on anything he’s played since (the exception being the instrumental cover of Taylor’s “Suite for 20G” that the Meters did on Trick Bag). But he does credit the solo experience for opening him up as a songwriter— and though the Meters’ classic songs are largely credited to the full band, it’s acknowledged that Nocentelli was doing most of the driving. “When we were in the studio there was one focus, one

BRIAN BENNETT PHOTOGRAPH

guy that people would listen to and hear what this guy has to say. In the Meters that guy was me. When we went about living our lives, there was never one guy. But when it was about getting together and creating some great music, everyone was looking at me to come up with the idea.”

The album he calls a personal peak also happens to be the Meters’ best one. “That Rejuvenation album, I put my whole heart and soul into that one. If there’s anything that reflects where I was musically, it would be that record. When we played the sessions at night, I’d be the last one to leave, I’d be there ’till 3 a.m. when everyone was gone. That’s the love I had for the music and for what I was doing at that time. And another integral person at that time was Zigaboo. Out of all the other guys, I thought Zig was a plus in the writing for the Meters. I would have to say he was a very clever guy with the words, more clever than I was. ‘People Say,’ he came up with the lyrics for that. And ‘Just Kissed My Baby’—I’m the only one who could have written that musically, but I could never have come up with anything like those lyrics.”

Collecting Nocentelli’s solo work post-Meters hasn’t been easy, since there’s precious little of it. His one prior studio album was Rhythm & Rhymes Part 1 (2009), whose release was extremely limited (my copy is a CD-R that he was selling at the Louisiana Music Factory). There was a funky 45 in the late ’80s, “We Put the Rock in Your Roll,” which included Ivan Neville and future Dumpstaphunk bassist Nick Daniels; then a ’90s live album which included Modeliste and featured fresh workouts on Meters tunes. On the other hand, his credits as a session man are wide ranging, including albums by Peter Gabriel, Etta James, Robbie Robertson and Sarah MacLachlan, plus a host of New Orleans-related albums.

One of his early ’80s gigs is a particularly bittersweet memory. Longtime Meters fan Jimmy Buffett called him in for a tour when his regular guitarist Josh Leo jumped ship to tour with Kim Carnes (riding high at that time with “Bette Davis Eyes.”) “I remember getting a tour jersey that said

Leo; I thought that was great until I realized they’d made it for the other guy. It was a great tour, and we were supposed to go to Europe next, I had the itinerary and was all ready. Then I found out that Josh Leo had asked Jimmy for his gig back and got it. That kind of knocked me out of the box and I dealt with that in different ways—and to be very candid here, the way I dealt with it might have upset Jimmy. So even up ’till this very day, he and I have very few things to say to each other. I was just looking forward to doing those shows, and what happened may have left a bad taste in his mouth. And in mine too.”

He took residence in Los Angeles soon after the Meters split in 1980 and has mixed feelings about his time as guitarist for hire. “I knew some people that lured me into the clique, so to speak. And it got pretty rough living out there. Even if they knew who I was, I was still the new guy on the block. LA is the kind of place where you can’t just go there—you have to belong there. That’s the difference, and I think I just about pulled it off.” What brought him back to New Orleans was partly the music and partly, of all things, the weather. “The redundancy of great weather got to me. Every day is a sunshiney day. I’m used to living in New Orleans where there is gloom and rain.”

With the release of Another Side, he has a few things he’s always craved: Recognition for his songwriting, a successful record under his own name, a few licensing deals (three songs have been licensed for film and TV so far)—and not incidentally, songwriting royalties he doesn’t need to share with anyone else. Not to mention some of the appreciation that he and the Meters had deserved for decades. “I get so many people emailing me now and telling me how this or that song affected them and made them a better person. It is amazing and gratifying to hear that. I always point to this quote that Maya Angelou said: ‘When you get, give. And when you learn, teach.’”

With Nocentelli hitting 77 next month, it’s all been a long time coming. “At this point, I’ve been doing it for 60 years. I love music, I love writing,

“I get so many people emailing me now and telling me how this or that song affected them and made them a better person. It is amazing and gratifying to hear that.”

but I don’t do a lot of live stuff anymore. To be honest with you, I’m not the same age anymore and the passion for that isn’t what it used to be. Whatever I do, I do at a high level, I don’t know no other way to do it. I’m always able to play above average every time I pick up the guitar. But this is the way I want to go now. I want to get more of my songs into movies and to get away from playing live music.”

There are endless stories of musicians who did landmark work without getting properly compensated. But Nocentelli says that story isn’t his: The Meters have been sampled everywhere, they’ve been honored by the industry (with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy in 2018) and financially he’s doing fine, thank you. “I basically live out of the mailbox; my royalties are the thing that sustains me. And I’m the most sampled guitarist ever, so I don’t have to take every gig that comes along. I know how to get paid; I know how to avoid getting ripped off. When it comes to that I’m the Bible—and I’m the Qur’an and the Jehovah’s Witness manual. So, whenever I hear somebody say that they know shit about this

business I’ll say, ‘Shut up, man. Because you don’t know who you’re sitting next to.’”

He says the book on the Meters isn’t necessarily closed, though Art Neville’s death in 2019 closed the chapter on the original lineup. The original four last played in town at the Orpheum during Jazz Fest 2016, then played their final show on the 2017 Jam Cruise. But Nocentelli, Porter and Modeliste all played together as the Meter Men following Neville’s retirement, and all three are doing separate sets on the Fairgrounds this year. Which doesn’t mean that any surprise reunions are likely this year but well, maybe someday.

“There’s a certain magic, man. Even if I wrote those songs, they couldn’t have manifested themselves with Tom, Dick and Harry. It had to be Art, George and Zig. We always had different ways of thinking, but we always got together when it came to music. What I’d like is if they would come and sit in with me, that would be beautiful and a great thing to happen. But if there was any attempt to do that, it would probably disrupt a lot of things. Can you imagine the original Meters at Jazz Fest? There wouldn’t be nobody at the other stages.” O

Cumbia de Nueva Orleans Los Guiros brings the beat

BY MICHAEL ALLEN ZELL

Los Guiros is a psychedelic cumbia band whose time has come for New Orleans. Their core sound spans at least the last 200 years with respect for the traditional but is also of the now with electronics and effects. Like three of the best restaurants in our city— Fritai, Queen Trini Lisa, and Bratz Y’all—they fill a gap, are of a uniquely particular region, and have a New Orleans-centric quality.

Corina Hernández is the vocalist for Los Guiros. She also adds güiro and electronics to the mix. We sat down at the Bywater’s Orange Couch

to get the word.

Hernández began, “We had a band with the same members of Los Guiros called Forró Nola. We played a music which I like to describe as Brazilian two-stepping. Got a lot of love with that band, but Galaxie was having their one-year anniversary, and they asked us if we wouldn’t mind playing but doing cumbia. We learned a bunch of cumbias for that gig.”

It was a great surprise for the band to find people so receptive to cumbia, also that other bands and venues reached out to them for double billing or more gigs, respectively. “It’s really sweet and overwhelming how much love this band is getting,” said Hernández who added, “We also have a really nice Latin community that comes out to the regular gigs every second Tuesday of the month at Saturn Bar and every last Thursday of the month at St. Roch Tavern. Clearly the band is eclectic. In fact, they also have a twicemonthly Salsa Saturday night gig at 30/90 as Mofongo Latin Band.

The güiro is an oblong percussion instrument with carved parallel edges on one side played with a scraper. It’s the core of the cumbia rhythm that goes—one and a two and a three and a four and a. It makes sense for the band to name itself after the instrument itself, but there’s more. “It’s so hard to name a band nowadays, because you just put the name in Google and find one band in New Zealand with three followers. I

CAMILLE FARRAH LENAIN PHOTOGRAPH

really like the name of the instrument, and plus, no hay güiro is an expression that means ‘everything’s chill, there’s no problem,’” said Hernández.

“Cumbia Mezcal” was Los Guiros’ first single. It’s catchy, a perfect introduction, and based on the Mexican saying, “Si va to mal, Mezcal (If everything is going bad, drink Mezcal). Si va to bien, también (If everything is going good, the same).” Hernández explained, “It’s the first time I have written an original song for any of my bands and recorded it. Some of our songs are about community and others are dance songs about drinking and having fun.”

Los Guiros have recorded five other originals (they’re expecting at least three of them will be released by Jazz Fest time), and Hernández has written another four. The rest of the band includes Juan Coyote on cuatro puertorriqueño, Simon Moshabeck on accordion and synth, Todd Burdick on tuba, Gabriel Case on timbales, Howe Pearson on percussion and electric drums, and Miguel Cruz on congas. This is fitting, as cumbia traditionally has three percussionists.

Cumbia music is often referred to as the musical backbone of Latin America. “My first introduction to cumbia was Totó La Momposina, who is the queen of traditional sound in Colombia. Her ensemble is, I think, 12 pieces, and it’s so driving and beautiful. I also love chicha, which is a subgenre of cumbia started in Peru. It’s from the ’70s where they started introducing a lot of electronics. We love to incorporate those electronic elements too,” said Hernández. Even though their originals are expanding, they like to do covers from a range of artists, including icons Celso Piña and Selena. There are divergent schools of thought as to whether cumbia originated in Cartagena as an Afro-Caribbean hybrid based on the Bantu root word “kumbe,” meaning “to dance,” or if it was of solely indigenous origin in the more rural areas of Colombia. Either way, this is music that anyone can move to. Hernández said, “It is so much easier for people here in New Orleans to just jump on, because they don’t feel like there is a specific dance or steps to follow like in salsa or bachata or

merengue. It’s very freeform.”

Speaking of dancing, the New Orleans aspect of the band comes from a key added instrument. “We really love the fact that we have a tuba. That puts the NOLA in Los Guiros. I always feel like if you wanna party, just add a tuba,” said Hernández. Otherwise, the band is adding a visual component in time for festival season involving embroidery and more. Los Guiros played Bonnaroo in 2022 and will be a welcome presence to New Orleans festivals. Look for them to go on the road, perhaps in California as opportunities arise. In the meantime, the band is actively playing fundraisers for associations they support such as ISLA, Louisiana Bucket Brigade, and others.

Hernández is clearly pleased, yet modest, with the organic groundswell of support, especially having chosen New Orleans as home. She was born in Germany, moved to Spain, worked in India, Yemen, Norway, Turkey, Poland, Brazil and other places. Her first job in music was as a 29-year-old on a cruise ship in the Mediterranean. She’s a self-described late bloomer when it comes to music, though it’s always been very important to her. “My husband and I came down here from New York on our honeymoon—he’s also a musician—and we just fell in love with New Orleans. I have never experienced anywhere else in the world the amount of appreciation and opportunities that musicians have in this city. It really is amazing,” she said, adding, “The community is incredibly open. From the first week here I felt comfortable to sit in with bands at Maison and Spotted Cat.”

A Los Guiros show is filled with the energy and spirit of its members. The band has found it humbling to not only see people that have never heard the music, love it, and start following them around, but also that the Latin people who live here are grateful to be brought back home. Hernández noted, “A friend of ours brought his mother who is 78 to a show, and she danced for at least an hour. He told me he’d never seen his mother dance. That really made my day. You can dance with a partner, but it’s also totally okay just by yourself and feel like part of the crowd.” O

“We really love the fact that we have a tuba. That puts the NOLA in Los Guiros. I always feel like if you wanna party, just add a tuba.”

Diggin’ Her New Hometown

Dee Dee Bridgewater is a vocal powerhouse

BY GERALDINE WYCKOFF

Three-time Grammy winner, vocalist Dee Dee Bridgewater leads her own bands, has played with countless jazz legends and continues to perform concerts around the world. Yet considering her very impressive resume, she’s nonetheless particularly eager about her appearance at the 2023 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival.

“I’m really excited to be doing the festival this year because it has a bigger meaning for me because I’m now a resident of the city,” declares Bridgewater who, come May, has called the Crescent City her home for seven years. “I’m going to be able to show my musicians and sound engineer [from New York] around when they fly in.

“I’m happy to be invited back,” says Bridgewater, who first played the Fest in 1996 teamed with saxophonist David Sanchez in support of her 1995 album, Love and Peace: A Tribute to Horace Silver on which the great pianist and composer performed and, perhaps surprisingly, wrote lyrics for his songs. “Horace was very, very important in my life and my first husband, Cecil Bridgewater, a trumpet player, played with him for many years.”

She returned to Jazz Fest on three other occasions and performed at Essence Festival in 2012. At the Fair Grounds, Bridgewater will head her working trio with New Orleans’ own, bassist Amina Scott, pianist and music director Carmen Staaf and drummer Shirazette Tinnin who hail

from New York.

“I was just looking for a place to live where I could rest my hat, so to speak,” says Bridgewater whose home is on the West Bank. “I’ve always enjoyed New Orleans whenever I’d come. I love the history of music with jazz having its beginnings here.

Bridgewater was born in Memphis, Tennessee although as a toddler her family moved to Flint, MARK

HIGASHINO PHOTOGRAPH

Saturday May 6 at 12 p.m. Alison Miner Stage

Saturday May 6 at 4:05 p.m. Jazz Tent

Michigan. “I have always had a place in my heart for the south so that was one of the things that entered into my moving here,” she acknowledges. “I had thought about moving to Memphis as well, but I just felt a little more connection to New Orleans and I’d been here a few times and I had some people that I knew here. So, it just seemed like the logical move for me. And Memphis, honestly, is a little bit behind, culturally speaking. I just didn’t feel the culture was as rich in Memphis as it is here. And the food is fabulous.”

The vocalist and actress, who won a Tony for her portrayal of Glinda the Good Witch in the theater production of “The Wiz,” was exposed to jazz early in life as her father was a trumpeter and also a deejay with the hip handle Matt the Platter Cat. The first album that she could call her own was by crooner Johnny Mathis. “Somebody threw it out,” she explains with a laugh, adding that she was also a fan of Harry Belafonte. “That’s what my sister and I would do. We would go up and down the street to see if anybody was throwing out old LPs.”

The repertoire for her Jazz Fest set remains up in the air though she promises some material to honor the recently-passed masters pianist Chick Corea and saxophonist Wayne Shorter. “I worked with them and was friends with them. They were wonderful human beings. I’ll talk to the ladies and see what they feel comfortable with.” One might expect her to also include a taste of her 1997 Grammywinning album Dear Ella, which is, of course, a tribute to the magnificent Ella Fitzgerald.

“Betty Carter is probably my biggest influence overall in terms of how I regard my music; how I deal with musicians and try to elevate young musicians by mentoring. Like Betty, I also own my label, DDB Records.” Others Bridgewater includes as influential are vocalist, pianist and composer Nina Simone, primarily for her “political and social awareness and activism.” “I loved that Miles [trumpeter Miles Davis] was ever-changing and I’ve tried to tear a page out of his book and always do different projects so that I couldn’t be pigeon-

holed into any one category.”

Bridgewater’s experience and abilities as an actress are reflected in the dramatic energy she brings to the stage as a vocalist. “There should be something to engage your audience, so the audience feels like it’s really part of the show,” she explained in a 2012 interview. “I love to interpret the songs and bring the stories that I’m telling to life. “I love movement; I love to move on the stage, and I like to make people laugh.”

Since moving here, Bridgewater, who rarely performs in New Orleans, has dived into this city’s myriad of musical and cultural activities.

“Well, yeah, I’m trying to be all up in the New Orleans culture,” she enthusiastically says, describing her plans to do this year’s Uptown Mardi Gras Indians Super Sunday. “I did Mardi Gras and I try and do the French Quarter Fest if I’m home. I try to participate in all kinds of stuff that’s going on because it’s such a fun city.”

“I’ve always had wonderful experiences at Jazz Fest,” she continues. “So much so that in 2018 I decided to just go to Jazz Fest as a spectator. I went every day and bought my tickets and stood in line like the rest of the folks. I found a nice little parking space. I had a girlfriend come down and we went from noon until it closed at seven. I’m telling you; it took me about a week to recover.”

In a bow to the city and its musical talents, she recorded a version of composer and pianist giant Allen Toussaint’s “It Ain’t Easy” that rings of this city’s rhythm and blues heritage.

“A shout out to New Orleans and to all of the New Orleanians,” Bridgewater joyfully expresses. “I hope I’m going to see my neighbors and some of my new friends that I’ve made down here. So, I’m looking forward to it”.

“I love that festival. I love the way it’s laid out on the Fair Grounds and all of the different tents and stages and the arts and crafts and all of the food and everything. It’s just rich, rich, rich. I think it’s one of the best festivals in the States—in the world.” O

“I’ve always had wonderful experiences at Jazz Fest,” she continues. “So much so that in 2018 I decided to just go to Jazz Fest as a spectator.

Blurring Boundaries

Molly Tuttle is respectful of tradition but is not bound to it

BY BRETT MILANO

Getting back to her roots proved a winning move for young bluegrass star Molly Tuttle. For much of her career she’s incorporated pop influences and been willing to cover songs from all over the map. But she was determined that her third album, last year’s Crooked Tree, would be a traditionally-styled set. The result is her biggest hit to date, and a bluegrass Grammy this year.

“My life feels about the same after the Grammy, but it does seem like a huge milestone in the career,” she says. That career goes back to the early 2000s, when she joined her family’s bluegrass band and emerged as a prodigy on guitar. She moved to Nashville in her 20s and began a string of eclectic albums that featured a wide range of material and collaborators.

In between she spent a few years in Boston, attending the Berklee College of Music—a place never known as a bluegrass hotbed. “It’s true that a lot of people there are focused pretty heavily on jazz. A lot of students will be learning about jazz theory and maybe applying that to the bluegrass they’re playing. That’s how it was for me—I never felt that I knew about theory, and the study there is on the more complex side of things, so it taught me a lot of basics and concepts that I could apply. Most of my time there was spent playing music with friends, staying home and studying as much as possible. There are times now when I wish I still had time to study, instead of being on the road playing music.”

“When I started making records, I was most interested in staying true to my style as an acoustic, flatpicking guitar player. Then I got interested in seeing what elements I could put into my style to

make it unique. With Crooked Tree I started getting nostalgic for when I was growing up, playing bluegrass festivals. My first instinct was to make another contemporary-sounding record, but once I was at home during the pandemic, I started writing a lot of bluegrass songs—and a lot of my favorite musicians weren’t as busy as they usually are. I wanted a record I could enjoy touring for in the next year, so it just kind of flowed.”

Still, the record isn’t entirely traditional. Tuttle remains a dazzling guitarist, and as a lyricist she’s

inclined to socially progressive statements. Both “Big Backyard” and the title track are anthems for proud misfits—something she’s often been herself. “That was something important to me, something I’ve had to overcome in my life and something I’ve always wanted to express in my music. I’ve never really felt comfortable writing straight-up bluegrass lyrics; I’m from California so a lot of what Bill Monroe sang about didn’t really resonate with my life.”

The title song is based on her experiences with alopecia areata, something she’s been candid about.

Friday May 5 at 1 p.m. Alison Miner Stage

Friday May 5 at 4:15 p.m. Fais Do-Do Stage

Her condition appeared early in life, causing her to lose most of her hair at age three. At the moment, she gives relatively little thought to whether she’ll wear wigs onstage or not. “It’s something that feels fluid for me. I have worn them for half of my life, but that’s something that’s always evolving. I started wearing them at age 15, mainly because I was tired of being asked why I was always wearing hats. Then I pretty much stopped during the pandemic. I’m naturally an introverted person, so wearing one helps me go through the day uninterrupted. So, the song is really just a statement of who I am. I grew up looking different, but learned to embrace that and it made me stronger.”

Her eclectic taste goes back to preteen years, when she made her first trip to Tower Records and walked out with a Beck CD. But her most famous covers are Rancid’s “Olympia, WA” which she turns into an acoustic stomp, and the Rolling Stones’ “She’s a Rainbow,” which she does without the trademark piano. “It’s a fun challenge and I think some songs work better than others. I’ve always felt there was a crossover between punk rock and bluegrass. I always love learning other instrumental

parts and translating them into the kind of crosspicking that I do; and I did that with the piano part in the Stones song. Most of us grew up with what our parents are interested in—I remember trying to get my hands on any CD I could and burn it into my computer. Every new CD I would get was always precious to me. I miss those days when that was always a fun way to discover new music.”

She’s excited to learn that she’s appearing the same weekend as Dead & Co., since the Grateful Dead also play a notable role in her musical history—she recently included two Dead songs, “Dire Wolf” and “Cold Rain & Snow” on the deluxe edition of Crooked Tree and has played a few others live. “We both did a festival in Mexico a couple of years ago. I love the Grateful Dead but I’m a little afraid to say that I’m a fan, because you’re supposed to know the lore and all the different shows. But I also grew up listening to [the Dead bluegrass spinoff] Old and In the Way, and they’re also from the Bay Area so that was special to me.” But no, they haven’t talked about getting together onstage. “We haven’t. But I don’t mind putting it out there.” O

The Soul Rebels plus Wu-Tang Clan

Friday April 28 at 5:40 p.m.

Congo Square Stage

The Soul Rebels

Friday May 5 at 4:25 p.m.

Congo Square Stage

Once Upon a Time in the Soul Chamber

Soul Rebels’ Lumar LeBlanc from A to Z

BY MICHAEL ALLEN ZELL

The stage will be packed with a singular focus and one love when the legendary Wu Tang Clan join forces with the groundbreaking Soul Rebels to bring the nitty gritty to the Crescent City.

Soul Rebels co-founder Lumar LeBlanc opened his mind and his memory for a stunning A-to-Z of New Orleans, influences, loves, learning moments, and, of course, music.

Adventures. “Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel.” The Blondie song (“Rapture”) named Flash, so I wondered who it was. Once I heard this as a kid, I could never get it out of my mind. It’s ingenious. It touched my soul

and enhanced my love for music.

Big Cheeky. Big Cheeky comes from a name that one of our original members, Tyrus Chapman, gave me because I’m a big dude. It’s stuck with me since early adulthood because of my large size, particularly in the back.

Children. My first son is finishing studying Chemistry at Xavier University. My youngest son is finishing in Business Finance and Marketing from St. Thomas. I’m proud of them. My wife’s done a lot to hold them down since I’ve been on the road so much. You hope that good direction will navigate them through this wilderness in the righteous sense.

DJ Slick Leo. Talk about another classic moment in my life that changed my world. The Famous Theater (1538 Marigny Street now part of the Auto Zone parking lot) was a place I went to as a kid in the hood. They showed major motion pictures like Superfly . When I got to junior high, they shut it down and converted it into a discotheque. The show was called “Live from the Famous with Slick Leo.” They would broadcast it late at night, mixing rock ’n’ roll records with Grandmaster Flash or Kurtis Blow. I remember hearing the Romantics with the lyric, “I hear the secrets that you keep when you’re talking in your sleep,” mixed live.

ESPN Greatness Ad . It was a blessing. You create music and don’t know what’ll happen with it. All through March Madness (20192020 season) it was being played over and over again. It’s a song that has a very positive strong message, so I think it fits well with what they were doing. Just believing in yourself. That was so cool. I’m grateful to the band.

Fashion. Fashion is something handed down to me from both sides of my family. It’s akin to living life on an elevated level. My grandfather on my dad’s side was very fashionable and into high-end stuff from Rubenstein Brothers. He worked at a five-star hotel and had to wear a tuxedo to work. I didn’t see him in jeans until he retired. People on my mama’s side were fashionable too even though they didn’t have money like that. She brought the style and fashion from the French people they were descendants of. I was always into sneakers. I was finally able to get a new job as a teenager and be able to buy the sneakers and clothes I wanted. Fashion became an identity thing for me. If the shoes aren’t right, everything else is not gonna be right. Fashion tends to go with the times, but style is personal. I used to wear Nikes in school, and some people laughed because they were running shoes then, but I always thought they were cool.

Growing up. I grew up mainly in the Sixth Ward. Nobody in the projects had a new car. We knew all the people who had cars, that’s how many people owned them. Everybody would pile in and chip in for gas if you needed to do something that required a vehicle. We would get old shopping carts from the grocery store. We had a girl collect beads and throws from the

parades and push her in the cart. My friends and I would be behind the shopping cart being pushed as if we’re the marching band and she was in the float. Yeah, it was crazy. When we moved, I was devastated. They put a big old table in the backyard like we’re sitting with royalty. We had hamburgers and french fries with all my little friends. They bussed them in two cars to come celebrate a house-warming party with me. When we got the Eighth Ward apartment after living in the projects, it felt like suburban life. I love all of them, but the Sixth Ward really stuck with me. That’s where the culture was, the music, and people sitting on the porch.

Houston. H town, I associate with maturity and growing up. Becoming a man. If my mother and father had their way, I would’ve been a doctor or lawyer. I was in the marching band (St. Augustine High School Marching 100) in high school. The man who owned the Houston Oilers saw us playing for the New Orleans Saints in Houston. He was so impressed, said, “I wanna bring y’all back,” and made a whole weekend out of the trip. He took us to see Texas Southern University Marching Band. It looked like a choreographed Broadway performance. Once I became a senior, they offered scholarships to me and the majority of our senior musicians, but it happened at the last minute. I had already committed to LSU. Once I got the scholarship, one of my friends who became an original member of Soul Rebels said, “I’m going to Houston. Why don’t you come?”

I Love to Read. I love to read autobiographies on history. People and personalities. My mom was an avid reader. She would take me to the library to expose me to different things. Those were some of the most precious solitary moments I had. It was as sacred as a church. It got to the point I couldn’t stop reading. I don’t think my mom thought it was a bad thing, but she was concerned because I was in the bathroom for longer than a child probably needs to be. I had tons of magazines stored to read in there. I would read anything—cereal boxes, canned goods.

Jim Morrison. Oh, the Lizard King. The Doors. Another introduction from my mom. She listened to a lot of rock ’n’ roll. Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, REO Speedwagon. I could imagine how people were looking at a young

black kid with an Afro buying these records. I listened to them over and over. I didn’t understand The Doors fully, but I could coherently hear the words, and they stuck with me. Jim Morrison is mystical to me.

Kurland Agency. They’ve helped make the Soul Rebels even more of a brand. Branford Marsalis had given me Ted Kurland’s number and card before Hurricane Katrina and said if you really want to tour and do it on a high level, Ted is the one. His son Alex’s become an industry giant too. Adam Shipley is essential. I give credit to them for furthering the professional and business part of our journey. Those guys have done an excellent job, and hopefully our relationship will continue to blossom. Together we still have some uncharted waters that we need to swim in.

Let Your Mind Be Free. Let Your Mind Be Free (the first Soul Rebels album) is a classic piece that New Orleans should be very proud of. It was a total organic experience that came from the culmination of Cyril Neville, Milton Batiste, Harold Dejan and the nine band members. It was authentic, because we weren’t seasoned in the music industry. All of it was strictly done on what we wanted and felt, rather than having a producer say this is what you need to do to get a little commercial success. It was a calling card to stop the violence in the city. The crack epidemic in New Orleans. We were playing many jazz funerals. It got bad in the war, so we came together and said we need to make music since we’re playing in the street and touching hundreds of people. It has to be one of the most innovative brass band records that exists.

Middle School Teacher. That’s probably the toughest job I ever had, teaching kids of that age group. Personalities at that age are so hard. I love education. That part is easy to me. What’s

tricky is that each kid is different with their own individual space mentally and emotionally, so you gotta try to find different ways to teach them the material in a receptive manner. I just got my Masters, and if I ever teach again, it’ll be on the college level.

Cyril Neville. He let us spend countless hours practicing at his house and his studio. Cyril came up with the name Soul Rebels . He said it reminds him of Bob Marley.

Olympia Brass Band. For me they’re the grandfathers of brass band music in New Orleans. Olympia did an excellent job of transforming it. They didn’t wear the traditional black and white band uniforms. They were kind of show time Hollywood with nicknames that were like characters. Olympia were superstars to us. They influenced everybody, because they did it on a big scale and were able to commercialize brass band music. They did all those different types of performances.

Porsche. I had a 944 Porsche. I don’t love objects, but it was really fine. Classic car. I did a European tour, and I came back able to get that car. When I was young, I used to read GQ Magazine and first saw a Porsche there. You should have seen me driving that car with the sunroof. I felt like Michael Jackson, a superstar. The paint job was immaculate, but the car was expensive for me to keep up maintenance-wise. I love how it sat low, and the lights popped up so at night it looked like a little spaceship from The Jetsons.

Quincy Jones. I hope I can meet Quincy. He epitomizes what it means to be a musician and live the life. I don’t understand how a man can hear all that music, from classical to hip hop to jazz to rock. To be able to touch all those different charts successfully. I love to hear him talk about how important artistry is to life. That’s what I love, his blessings to this universe. Red Beans and Rice. That touched my soul. I

Lumar Leblanc of Soul Rebels

might cook some red beans when I get home. I don’t eat meat too much anymore, but red beans are still a delicious-tasting southern delicacy. I get Camellia red beans, soak, and cook them. It just takes so long because you cook the beans a long time. I’m a red beans and rice man like Louis Armstrong. I really could eat beans every single day. I eat it three times a week sometimes. I cook a big pot and we just go over the week.

St. Augustine High School. St. Aug is another institution that changed my life. Discipline, education, and leadership. I went during eighth grade, so I spent five years at the school. It was an environment that was extremely disciplined, very competitive, and all the extracurricular

activities exemplified this too. Discipline is the main focus at St. Augustine. It was an intimidating place. I love the school. You have to realize it’s a spiritual education. It gives you the faculties for dealing with life. I went to Catholic private schools my whole life no matter where I lived, and when I got older, I looked forward to going to St. Aug.

Third. My grandfather that I mentioned earlier with the clothes is Lumar, the first. He lived a long time, almost made it to 100. Grandpa was very stylish, kind of flashy. My father was the opposite. All my dad really wanted was a wife, a family, and a good job. He got that. I was an only child, so they were really protective. My dad was so proud that he had a

son to name after him. I didn’t feel any pressure, because my dad is a nice, caring, loving man. He was a good dude. His whole thing was to take care of the family. You know how much noise I used to be? They bought me a drum. I started early, in first or second grade. Everybody coming to your house. We made noise like crazy, and never stopped. They let me do it all night. Then I became a parent, and I couldn’t let my sons be like that.

University. I went to TSU, Texas Southern University. You had to grow up quick. I was on my own. I couldn’t run home. My mother and father told me, “Look you got a job to do.” When you succeed you feel a level of accomplishment that you’re proud of, so that’s why I didn’t leave. My friends mostly left. TSU taught me my Afrocentrism, about who I was as a Black man in America, and how to be self-sufficient. University education is more universal, and that changed my life. I have a big appreciation for different cultures, for different people. I became a more worldly individual. It was preparing me for what I would experience when I travel. I didn’t know it at the time, but I’m seeing it to this day.

Vibe. We call it the Soul Rebel vibe. Trying to keep positive amongst each other. We do that through respect. That’s the best way to put it.

Wu Tang Clan. We’re so blessed and honored to be playing with the Wu Tang—a legendary institution. They’re able to bring the stamp on hip hop that you need. We first did single shows

with the GZA, that went well, and we played with The Chef Raekwon. This Jazz Fest show will be so special. I hope people take notice of what’s going on. It’ll show authenticity between hip hop and horns and jazz and funk musicians. I’m looking forward to the show and we’re practicing hard.

eXpatriate. I’m blessed to be part of the fabric of America through my artistry and through my experience. If I had to say, where else would I live? I really love France and Japan. As a culture France is a utopia with the food, and the people are so free-flowing. When we went to Japan, you would talk to them and could tell they really studied it. The music, hip hop, and sneakers.

Young Olympia Brass Band. A very talented group of men who understood tradition and modern innovation. Those bonds will live on forever. What we did was to take the jobs that Olympia [Brass Band] couldn’t do. They were so busy, but Milton [Batiste] handled it like a business. They would put us on jobs so that the money stayed in Olympia, and he could trust that we would do the jobs professionally.

I’m amazed to see how the younger brass band musicians use the music as a learning tool for traditional music.

Zodiac. We have different personalities to mesh, and we do a great job of that. As a band you have all different types. When you do this like we do it and we have to be together for so many days in a year of playing music, that’s a team effort. O

Thursday May 4 at 12:20 p.m.

Fais Do-Do Stage

A Joyous Celebration

Michael Doucet avec Lâcher Prise let things happen organically

BY DAN WILLGING

Side projects involving your favorite musicians are often intriguing and a growth experience for the musician and attentive listener. BeauSoleil’s fiddling front man Michael Doucet is certainly no stranger to side projects. Besides introducing his woefully underrepresented, often misunderstood Cajun cultural music across the globe,

Doucet has had a litany of side projects to whet his insatiable musical appetite over the decades. Recently, in the fall of 2022, Bay Area fiddler Tom Rigney released the second installment of the Doucet-Rigney alliance, the fiery Roll On , backed by Rigney’s Flambeau squadron. In late February, Doucet united with another ensemble, Fiddler 4, a supergroup of acclaimed fiddlers,

bluegrass innovator Darol Anger, Appalachian Fiddler Bruce Molksy, and cellist Rashad Eggleston, at Seattle’s Wintergrass Festival. It was the first time they had played together since touring behind the band’s only recording, 2002’s Grammy-nominated, eponymously titled release.

These days Doucet is equally stoked by another one of his ensembles, the sans accordion Lâcher Prise avec Michael Doucet, that plays a wide arrange of original and Louisiana material beyond the BeauSoleil canon. “I think this new group kicks ass,” says Doucet about the group that includes guitarist Chad Viator and bassist Chris French from Roddie Romero and the Hub City Allstars.

Lâcher Prise, French for the Buddhist concept of “letting go,” refers to being free of inhibitions and restrictions. It was Mardi Gras day 2018 when the seeds were sown. Doucet, by chance, recognized a wigged Sarah Quintana outside a French Quarter bar, and she recognized his fluffy white hair protruding from his mask. Eventually, the two broached the subject of music. She, in turn, sent him some original material, which led to getting together and jamming. From the first song, everything clicked immediately. Amazingly, the two played their first gig a week later. Quintana was just the person Doucet was looking for.

From there, Doucet built the rest of the group. He knew guitarist Chad Viator since the early millennium through Doucet’s eldest son Mathew and played a few songs at Festival International (circa 2010) backed by The Hub City Allstars. It wasn’t until 2016, when Viator really got to know the elder Doucet while recording a song, “Sois L’Amour,” by Ashana Sophia, a Hawaii native then residing in Lafayette. She wanted to fuse traditional Cajun sounds with Kirtan, something Viator refers to as “yoga chant music.” Viator pegged Doucet as the perfect guy for such a collaboration.

“I brought him into the studio, and we just hit it off,” says Viator. “And then we just started playing without any labels on anything.”

According to Viator, Doucet meeting was when things began to get more official in becoming a group. “He just called me up one day, he’s like, ‘Hey, I want to make an album.’” Viator recalls. “There was no Lâcher Prise at the time. I was like, okay, and, and we booked it.”

The recording was completed in two-and-ahalf-days at nearby Dockside Studio in Maurice, Louisiana. Looking back, Viator wonders if he overacted by bringing everything in charts. “I didn’t want to waste any time in there,” Viator explains. But a major turning point for the group occurred while recording the last song, “Abandonne,” a soft and tender Doucet original, fashioning a gorgeous fiddle line and Quintana’s ethereal vocals.

“At the end of the session, we had a little bit extra time and we just said, let’s get out of the isolation booth,” Viator recalls. “Let’s come into the main room and just play music. And we did ‘Abandonne,’ which is on the album that way. Everyone had the most fun with that one and it just felt really good because we were performing. We were all looking at each other’s fingers as we played. Chris French comes from classical music background, so he enjoys playing that way, much like a classical ensemble plays together as a group, as opposed to separate studio booths. And [jazz drummer] Jim [Kolacek] is good at that too.”

The group played around Lafayette and did a showcase at the Folk Alliance Conference held in New Orleans in January 2020. But as everything else shuttered in March 2020 by COVID, Lâcher Prise wasn’t spared either. “C’mon, the album came out on my birthday, Valentine’s Day 2020,” Doucet says. “We had a California tour, a Louisiana tour. We were going to play with Preservation Hall. We were going to go up to New York, do Bob’s Pub and all that stuff, right down the drain, gone, and so was the record.”

Sometime during the pandemic downtime, Quintana went to school to become a speech therapist, but she still guests occasionally with the group.

In planning Lâcher Prise’s next record, Viator sees it taking place entirely like it did on “Abandonne.” “No isolation booths, headphones, just live performances,” Viator explains. “And then assimilate what we have and try to make that into the final product. That’s the way Michael really operates best. Through the next album, I’ve been trying to get at the core of what inspires him, what makes him play well, and what makes him happy. I’m just going to do that because the music should feel joyous. It should

be a celebration, and you have to feel that when you’re performing. If you’re doing something 20 times and are getting frustrated, then the inspiration is gone.”

Viator says Doucet will come over every week or so, and they’ll sit around, talk, and play music. “If we have a motto, it’s the idea of not overthinking, let things happen organically,” Viator says. “There’s no reason to aim for success. There’s no reason to make something into anything other than what it is. And that’s pretty much the concept of what this group is, which can be challenging.”

Viator describes the process as lots of experimentation, trying to find what will fit the group, culling from all of Doucet’s vast influences that are not just limited to Cajun but encompasses Caribbean, African, New Orleans R&B, rock ’n’ roll and traditional jazz. “So, we’ll play music from all those things, but never intentionally try to pull it off ‘correctly,’” Viator says. “Michael interprets it in the moment but that changes from performance to performance. Tempos and keys and things will change.” Viator records these sessions and then revisits them, looking for something unexpected, like a catchy groove or a particular lyric to be examined later.

Doucet and Viator also play as a duo around Lafayette, something the fiddler says is “hysterical. It’s a gig where nobody listens, but we have a great time.” As accomplished a guitarist Viator is, he describes it as being more challenging for him. “The guitar in the duo setting becomes the drum and the chordal instrument, and it can be melodic,” Viator explains. “So, there’s more responsibility, but at the same time, I enjoy it.”

Though a lot of things are still being discussed by Doucet and Viator for Lâche Prise’s upcoming Jazz Fest show and the next recording, one desire of Viator’s would be to get to the place where all musicians read each other’s minds during a performance. “That’s a beautiful thing. The music becomes extraordinarily tight and does something amazing,” says Viator. So yeah, I guess [Doucet] wants to be in an uncomfortable place.”

“I don’t like Xeroxed music,” Doucet says. “We’re not out to prove anything. Unfortunately, they don’t have a category because it’s not even experimental. It’s stuff we like, and it’s all from Louisiana, and that’s how we do it.” O

Exuberance and Passion Angélique

Kidjo makes a lot of music

BY STEVE HOCHMAN

Angélique Kidjo is rapturously, ravenously eating crawfish, stuffing her mouth from her hands, making ecstatic noises, then rubbing the top of her shaved head in the throes of pure elation, never mind the residue and spices she’s getting all over.

Except the crawfish are imaginary. So are the seasonings on her hands. She’s in her Brooklyn home on Zoom, bereft of crawfish. But her excitement of coming to New Orleans for her Jazz Fest performance on the first Saturday is very,

very real, as she pantomimes a feast-to-come with great anticipation.

“I’m going to eat my crawfish!” she says, coming in close to the screen. “I tell my husband, ‘Don’t stand next to me. Don’t come close to me.’ He doesn’t like seafood. Take him to eat something else and give me room to eat my crawfish!”

She laughs uproariously.

But then this is how she talks about anything. Whether it’s silly or serious, she brings an exuberance and passion, manifest in voice and manner. That’s true whether the native of the West African country Benin is talking about recording with Dr. John or about her work as a UNICEF ambassador and heading her Batonga Foundation, which she started in 2006 to provide education opportunities to adolescent girls in sub-Saharan Africa.

And, as anyone who has seen her in concert knows, including at two previous Fest appearances, it’s true when she makes her music—her body and spirit given completely to the performance. And she makes a lot of music. She starts rattling off her recent run of projects: “I had a show with the 12th Symphony of Philip Glass, the premiere in New York,” she starts, talking about the February date at Carnegie Hall of the composer’s work that draws on themes from David Bowie’s Lodger album, with Kidjo as featured solo vocalist.

Next it was Hamburg, Germany’s Elbphilharmonie, where she was curator and star of a four-day festival called Reflektor Angelique Kidjo. Her

own concerts there included a full performance of her 2022 Queen of Sheba album collaboration with trumpeter-composer Ibrahim Maalouf and a night of her leading an African Women All-Stars group she assembled, other members of which were among the spotlighted artists in other programs of the festival. She also be hosted a panel discussion of a new generation of artists—musical, visual, even culinary—of African descent in Germany as part of the series.

“All those arts are coming together,” she says. “We talked about the challenge with not only being from another culture, but what you bring through your culture to the country.”

And there was a show with classical pianist Alexandre Tharaud.

“It’s called ‘Les Mots d’Amour,’ which means words of love,” she says of the program of classics, all sung by her in French. “We started this project at the end of the pandemic. The world needs love, so we chose songs that talk about love.”

After Hamburg, she and Tharaud took that show to Belgium, Luxembourg and France for a few dates, before she headed to Aberdeen and Amsterdam for concerts built around her 2022 Grammy Global Music Award-winning album, Mother Nature—her fifth Grammy Award. (She also sang the title song of the album recently at the World Economic Forum in Davos to highlight the impacts of climate change.)

Then it was back to the U.S. with Jazz Fest on the horizon. And a little further out, she’ll be in Stockholm on May 23 to receive the highly prestigious Polar Music Prize in recognition both of her musical achievements and her tireless work with her Batonga Foundation.

It’s amazing she can keep track.

And this all came on the heels of a remarkable run of acclaimed, groundbreaking recordings that saw her taking on new challenges and adding to the already-vast expanse of her creative accomplishments. Her 2018 Remain in Light reconsidered the 1980 Talking Heads album, with a highly personal take on its African-influenced elements, while 2019’s Celia (also a Grammy-winner) paid tribute to Afro-Cuban icon Celia Cruz, again bringing Kidjo’s personality and perspectives to the fore.

Those two, along with Mother Nature, on which she collaborated with both veteran and rising African performers, including Burna Boy and

Sampa the Great among the latter, will provide the core of her Jazz Fest set. And perhaps, she says, there will be some surprises to honor her love for the city.

Her introduction to New Orleans, in fact, came in Paris when she was just about to start her international career and he was a young hotshot on tour.

“It was in the ’90s,” she says. “I had just signed my contract with Island Records. And a friend of mine, a journalist, introduced me to Branford [Marsalis]. We were going to see a concert by the [Senegalese] band Touré Kunda. I didn’t even know who he was. And we were talking and then it was just like we clicked. We were talking about music and then suddenly realized that we were not walking on the sidewalk. We were walking on the street. I said, ‘That’s what we did in Africa.’ And he said, ‘That’s what we do in New Orleans!’ And we start talking about music and we go to a restaurant and eat gumbo. And I’m enjoying this. He’s so great. And I said, ‘I’m going to record my album.’ And I said, ‘What do you play?’ That’s what I asked him. And then he said, ‘I play saxophone.’ I say, ‘Are you good at playing saxophone?’”

Big laugh at this as she recalls the journalist

friend looking at her like she’s crazy.

“And then [Marsalis] goes, ‘I play some.’ I say, ‘Okay, if you play some, will you be willing to play on my album?’ He said, of course.’ And I said, ‘But I don’t have much money. I don’t have a big budget.’”

Marsalis told her not to worry, just send him the music—and in the course he became her ambassador to New Orleans.

“The first time I visited Branford in his house, and he opened his music room to me, I’m like, ‘Come on! This can’t be? Where did you get this from? Where did you get that from?’”

She gestures as if pointing to albums on his shelves. “He said, ‘I listen to everything!’”

It became the model for other encounters with New Orleans greats.

“I’ve had the luck of meeting Zigaboo [Modeliste, the Meters drummer],” she says. “If we sit down and start talking about drums, we’ll spend the whole day! And when I met Dr. John, it was another level again. He came to play on my album [2014’s Eve], and we would be talking, and

he would just play, and we would get into a trance of singing and it’s just crazy. It’s so intense that the distance, the history disappeared.”

The connection is just part of the shared musical DNA, she says, something she understood innately, even in her youth in Benin, hearing American rock and R&B.

“Music that comes from New Orleans, for me when I was growing up, I didn’t even ask the question. For me, it was obvious that it came from Africa.”

It goes well beyond the music for her, though.

“Sometimes I arrive and just the smell of the city brings me back home,” she says. “The beignets in New Orleans—we have them in Africa. It comes from the slaves. The food that we eat in New Orleans is the world we eat. Every plate, we are taking a bite of the world. And that’s what is interesting to me. When I first arrived in New Orleans, the humidity, it’s like ‘Oh crap!’ On a hot day, the humidity is so high that everything you wear just sticks to your skin. And I feel welcome in the New World!” O

Sunday April 30 at 1:35 p.m.

Festival Stage

Hey Hey, All Together

Ivan Neville’s Touch My Soul is his first solo album in 19 years

BY BRETT MILANO

If you’re a renowned New Orleans artist and you want to write a song about the need for everyone to get along, it will probably come out funky and uplifting. But if you’re Ivan Neville, you can also pull out your address book and get a dream team of guests to perform it with you.

The song is “Hey, Hey, Hey,” which is indeed funky and uplifting. Neville’s soulful voice and keyboards are immediately recognizable, and so are the other voices—that’s Bonnie Raitt, Michael McDonald and the Revivalists’ David Shaw answering each other’s vocal ad-libs;

and Trombone Shorty and Theresa Andersson making instrumental cameos. And that’s the very distinctive voice of his dad Aaron Neville taking the song out. Since the chorus is “Hey, hey, all together” the mix of voices adds to its communal spirit.

Neville says he carried the song around for a couple years before getting it right. “It was inspired by me thinking of how far apart we’ve grown as a people. Especially in this country, where religion, politics and other things make us focus on our differences instead of our similarities. And that got me thinking about

growing up in New Orleans, where you’ve got that vibe of friendship and camaraderie among your neighbors. I was thinking about how that’s not really present anymore, and thought I’d maybe get a few friends to sing on it.” Parts of the all-star session happened virtually while shutdown was still in effect, though McDonald was in town to record. Getting his dad in was a big thing, since Aaron formally retired two years ago and hasn’t been on a record since his own Apache in 2016. “I just told him, ‘I need a few of those classic Aaron Neville yodels. Gimme four or five of those.’”

When he brought that song to the Mascot label (which also handles his band Dumpstaphunk) they said great, we’ll take the whole album. Only trouble was, there wasn’t an album yet—so that’s how Ivan Neville wound up making Touch My Soul, his first solo album in 19 years. It’s definitely not a Dumpstaphunk record, even though the whole band appears on various tracks. But it gives him a few chances to slow down, open up vocally, play some acoustic piano and express some more serious thoughts that might not fit into a funk workout.

And he certainly had a few things to think about. During 2020 he had an especially scary experience with COVID-19, which he caught during the first month of the pandemic (He had recently played a virtual benefit concert in New York, where a few musicians who shared the same piano had gotten infected—Jackson Browne and Paul Shaffer among them). He was in the danger zone for a number of weeks, with a 103-degree fever, pneumonia in both lungs and an oxygen tank at home. And music ultimately played a part in his recovery, with the Piano Sessions that he livestreamed from home. After recovering he also did a couple of the first Tipitina’s webcasts with Dumpstahunk and the occasional supergroup Dragon Smoke—but before that, things were looking a little dodgy.

“It was a serious low ride I took. Talk about being afraid of the unknown. Nobody knew what to do about that shit. I got a lot of help from physicians, but everybody was guessing because nobody knew for sure. It got pretty gruesome and frightening. I started doing the livestreams while

I was still sick. We have a little room in my house called the sunroom, and that’s where I started writing some of the music on this record. I’d do a livestream for as long as I was able, about an hour—and it turned out that the singing was really helping my lungs to heal. So unbeknownst to me, doing the music was making me stronger.”

A couple of songs on the album seem to refer to his recovery—notably “Blessed” when he sings “The sky is bluer than I’ve ever seen.” That line was actually meant literally, since Neville had cataract surgery just before it was written. But he admits the album found him in a bit of a reflective mood: He turned 60 around the time he got sick, and it wasn’t all that long ago (a mere couple decades) that he pulled himself out of a life-threatening addiction to drugs and drink. So, if there was a good time to feel blessed, this was probably it.

“[Getting sick] was maybe in the back of my mind. But you grow older and find you’ve been through a lot of stuff. I had some dark years in my life, made some bad decisions and I survived and came out the other side. And surviving the COVID was kind of a kickstart. You can really start to think about your mortality when you have those little oxygen tubes up your nose. But I was also thinking about growing up in my life, what it means to find acceptance, and what I can maybe do to help. And when I’m thinking of something

other than myself, the day gets a little bit better. And I thought about being grateful to be alive, still doing something that I love for a living. That comes out in a lot of messages in the songs—some of them subtle, some maybe not so subtle.”

The album’s one surprise cover, Talking Heads’ “This Must Be the Place,” ties in with that idea. Though it’s often interpreted as a love song, to Neville it meant something a little deeper. “I’ll tell you I was hitting a brick wall with the next song I was going to write, that can happen sometime. My creative juices were getting dried up, then I heard that song randomly—and I said, ‘Fuck, I love this tune.’ Not that I was a big Talking Heads fan but some of their songs struck me as unique and very musical. And whatever David Byrne was thinking when he wrote it, it had me thinking of where I was, right there and then. Everybody thinks about ‘I could have gotten more. I could have lived differently.’ But you know what—where you are can also be pretty fuckin’ cool. So, this must be the place.”

The album’s guest list also underlines the fact that while Neville still lives and works in town, he moves in some pretty impressive circles. As a regular member of Keith Richards’ X-Pensive Winos he’s part of rock ’n’ roll royalty, and his list of recorded guest appearances would fill a good couple of pages. “I got a few friends that I’ve made over the years. When I started living life good and stopped burning bridges, I found I was friends with a lot of people. I love it when people call me to do what I do, which is to be a complimentary musician. I’m always down to do that.”

One guy who’ll always get his phone calls answered is Richards, who reconvenes the X-Pensive Winos whenever he feels like it’s time (most recently, they played three songs at a New York benefit show in March of last year). Neville’s ready and willing, but at the moment Richards is tied up with his other band. “It’s always wishful thinking, you know; you’re always hoping that happens. Because Keith is my man, he’s been

a good friend to me for as long as I’ve known him. I was thinking of trying to get Keith on this record, but the Stones are getting busy, probably going to tour again. And those guys are hitting 80 soon—we’re all getting older, and you always want another chance to play with your friends while they’re still around. But I’m still in a band called Dumpstaphunk, and we still love making the music we make.”

In fact, Dumpstaphunk celebrates a milestone this year: It was Jazz Fest 2003 when they first appeared under that name, originally as a pickup group but inaugurated as a fulltime band soon afterward. All but one of the original members—guitarist Ian Neville, bassist/guitarist Tony Hall, and bassist Nick Daniels remain in the lineup. They’ve added a horn section, but the only other changes have been in the drum chair—which has been taken by Raymond Weber, Nikki Glaspie (now with Nth Power), Alvin Ford Jr. and currently Deven Trusclair. All four drummers will be present for their closing-night show at Tipitina’s during Jazz Fest, when they’ll play songs from the band’s full history. “We’ve evolved over the years; you have to if you want to stay in the band this long. We love each other but if you’re going to keep at it, you’d better have a serious creative incentive.”

Another hat he’ll wear proudly is as a keeper of the family musical legacy. Since he’s been a member of both the Neville Brothers and the funky Meters, he’s got no problem keeping that music going (Dumpstaphunk has a Meters set that they’ve played with George Porter, Jr. during Trombone Shorty’s recent tours). “We do some pretty good renditions of that music, and I love that I get to do it. Because Art influenced me and taught me so much so playing it with my uncle Cyril, George and Leo sometimes is a blessing. I’m still listening to that music 50 years later, and still hearing stuff I never heard before. Sometimes I’m saying ‘That’s what Artie was doing? Shit! I never heard that one little note that he put into that piece, and I’ve been playing it my whole life.” O

“We’ve evolved over the years; you have to if you want to stay in the band this long. We love each other but if you’re going to keep at it, you’d better have a serious creative incentive.”

Jazz Icon Ellis Marsalis’ ELM Records

David Torkanowsky pays tribute to the ELM Music Company

BY GERALDINE WYCKOFF

It’s actually a rarity to see David Torkanosky leading an ensemble at Jazz Fest. That’s not to say it’s rare to see him, one of New Orleans’ finest, most talented and spontaneous musicians, at the piano on a festival stage.

It’s been since 1997 that Tork played under his own name. This time around, organizers specifically asked him if he wanted to do anything.

As a member of the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation, Torkanowsky had always felt it would be “unseemly to solicit Jazz Fest for a gig.” After the call and making inquiries to determine if there

were any conflict of interests, he said yes.

It was Tork’s decision to pay tribute to a band led by pianist and composer Ellis Marsalis Jr., the ELM Music Company, which performed regularly in the 1970s at the modern jazz mecca, Lu & Charlie’s. It was a group that awed the teen-aged Torkanowsky, as these masters primarily performed original material from the mighty pens of Marsalis and drummer James Black. The band also did what Torkanowsky describes as “interesting arrangements” of, perhaps unlikely, tunes such as Seals & Crofts’ “Hummingbird.”

“That was very, very cool,” says Tork, promising that it will be included in the repertoire at Jazz Fest along with material that the ELM Music Company wrote and played during the ’70s. The ensemble, led by pianist and composer Ellis Louis Marsalis Jr. (ELM) included the cream of this city’s contemporary players including Black, bassist Richard Payne, trumpeter John Brunious and saxophonist Ralph Johnson. Decades later, Marsalis’ initials were revived on ELM Records that was established by Ellis, his wife Delores and son Jason Marsalis.

“It was New Orleans contemporary music at its highest level,” declares Torkanowsky,

who would set up the Fender Rhodes his grandmother bought him for Ellis that allowed the underaged Tork to get into the North Rampart Street club.

“I certainly didn’t have a full appreciation of that fact at the time but now I realize it was like going to hear Miles [trumpeter Miles Davis] on 52nd Street. That group, ELM, did material that ultimately proves to be timeless.”

Torkanowsky has enjoyed a long association with Ellis, dating back to when he was about 10 years old and his mother, flamenco dancer and instructor Teresa Torkanowsky, would take him to Bourbon Street’s Crazy Shirley’s to hear the Storyville Jazz Band. Marsalis was among the outstanding members of the band that featured brothers drummer Bob French and bassist and vocalist George French; trombonist Waldren “Frog” Joseph; and reedman Otis Bazoon. Tork once said that he was amazed that this group of musicians played in the traditional New Orleans style during the ensemble work, yet took off swinging modern during solos. Later Tork himself gained a reputation as a musician who often ignored perceived musical boundaries.

“My mother had a flamenco club around the corner. I want to say it was called Chateau Flamenco. It was a couple of doors down from Preservation Hall so between Pres Hall and Crazy Shirley’s. She was a huge fan of New Orleans African American musicians,” Tork continues. “My father [symphony conductor Werner Torkanowsky] had something called Creative Artists of New Orleans. It was basically a small cabal of himself, Ellis, Allen Toussaint, Roger Dickerson, John Scott and maybe one other person. They would just have dinner once every other month and sit down and talk about music and the

challenges of being a composer in New Orleans. They’d talk about things that were common to their creative association. So, my parents already knew Ellis so there was a hook-up for me.”

For the Jazz Fest set, Torkanowsky decided to shine the light on the artists who in recent years made up the Ellis Marsalis Quintet that performed on Friday nights at Snug Harbor. They include Ellis’ son, Jason Marsalis on drums, saxophonist Derek Douget, trumpeter Ashlin Parker and bassist Jason Stewart. It was a gig that the pianist held down for over 30 years.

“These guys were the last people who were musically intimate with Ellis so, of course, that had to happen,” Tork explains adding that he’s played with Jason numerous times and describes him as a high-level musician both as a drummer and on vibes.

Among the numerous albums Torkanowsky has produced throughout his long career were two featuring pianist Marsalis. A Night at Snug Harbor, which was initially released only in Japan on Something Else Records, was re-released in 1989 on Evidence Music. The band featured Ellis, drummer David Lee, bassist Bill Huntington and trumpeter Nicholas Payton with Rick Margitza, Tony Dagradi and Donald Harrison on reeds. “Somehow, Art Blakey showed up,” Tork remembers with a laugh, “and he kind of ignored all the signs on the tables—“Please We’re Recording,”—and he just walked up there and said, “I’m going to kick some Duck’s ass.” The legendary drummer and bandleader, who then made his way to the drum set, was referring to Donald Harrison, a former member of Blakey’s Jazz Messengers whose nickname was “Duck.”

Torkanowsky, who also produced the great duet album, Homecoming that paired Ellis Marsalis

BRIAN BENNETT PHOTOGRAPH

with saxophone giant Eddie Harris, played his roll straight-up despite knowing and admiring Marsalis for decades.

“It’s very similar to being on the bandstand with an icon,” Tork explains of producing an album from the likes of Marsalis and Harris. “Like I am a huge [trumpeter/pianist] Nicholas Payton fan. When I’m on the bandstand with him, I can’t be a fan. Because the highest evolution of the art form is when, in the case of a quartet, four sentient beings are having a mature conversation with give and take and space for each other to express their opinions. If you’re in adoration of one of the people, then the balance is off. It’s like George Duke told me one time: ‘Just as soon as you can, stop being a fan.’”

On producing the Marsalis/Harris release, Torkanowsky simply says, “When you have two great artists like that, basically the work is getting them in the same place at the same time in the right studio with the right engineer and the right microphones. The content is driven by them. I remember that Eddie asked Ellis not to walk bass lines—in a jazz duo a pianist has a tendency

to walk in order to keep time. It effected the character of the record in a good way.”

Torkanowsky has performed all over the Fair Grounds, certainly with Astral Project, all-star bands, twice with the group Fleur Debris that included bassist George Porter, Jr. and Nicholas Payton on trumpet and others. He was also on call for last minute emergencies as a “special forces” keyboard consultant. “I’m not a piano technician,” Tork quickly points out. “I know some good ones but I’m not one.”

“In the early days, me and James Singleton and Johnny Vidacovich—we damn near did every gig,” the pianist remembers. “I was pleased not to do that because I think somebody who pays increasingly more expensive ticket fees they want to hear as much diversity as possible.”

“Ellis Marsalis is the icon when it comes to composition—he is the creator,” declares Torkanowsky of his decision to pay tribute to him and the late great musicians in the ELM Music Company. “He is the aesthetic to which many of us aspire. My approach when I’m playing his music is to honor his intent.” O

Thursday May 4 at 3:20 p.m.

This is Latin Jazz

Charlie Sepulveda’s jazz journey started with Louis Armstrong

BY JOHN RADANOVICH

Trumpeter-bandleader Charlie Sepulveda brings a lifetime of Latin and jazz musicianship from his home in Luquillo, Puerto Rico, a place with hundreds of years of musical tradition preceding him. At the very dawn of jazz when James Reese Europe couldn’t find musicians in the U.S. who could read music for his orchestra, Europe went to Puerto Rico to hire from the many municipal bands. The best of the trumpeters of his generation, Sepulveda also taught music on the island for many years and believes fervently in encouraging young jazz musicians.

The Bronx-born Sepulveda credits seeing Louis Armstrong on television as the catalyst in his journey to become a jazz musician. Sepulveda’s family moved to Puerto Rico when he was eight, and there he studied classical trumpet at the conservatory Escuela Libre de Música de Puerto Rico. Later he studied jazz trumpet at City College of New York with Ron Carter and was a student of William Fielder. By his 20s, Sepulveda was musical director for his cousin—the trailblazing Eddie Palmieri—with whom he has recorded three albums. He has since played and recorded with Tito Puente, Hilton Ruiz, David Sanchez, Danilo Perez, Steve Turre, David Byrne and countless other well-known names across genres. He likes to refer to Eddie

Palmieri as the Art Blakey of Latin jazz, for the many great players who passed through Palmieri’s Perfecta and later bands, but this measure must also include Sepulveda, who introduced another powerful trumpet—Brian Lynch—to Palmieri (Sepulveda named his first son Brian). Sepulveda and Palmieri talk every week.

In 2017 Sepulveda recorded Mr EP: a Tribute to Eddie Palmieri. That same year singer Jon Secada asked Sepulveda to back him with his full big band for a tribute to Cuban great Benny

Moré on To Beny Moré With Love. Secada’s pop vocal style wasn’t well-suited to Benny’s music, and the controversy still continues in the Cuban music world about the spelling of Benny’s name. However, there is no mistaking the power of

Sepulveda’s band, with brilliant arrangements by the late Ray Santos—whom Sepulveda had insisted was the only arranger he would work with on the project.

Sepulveda’s style shows Lee Morgan, Freddie Hubbard, and Chet Baker as major influences on his tone: “I try to get their sound, but I never get close,” he laughs. Many musicians and influential bandleaders like his friend Wynton Marsalis strongly disagree. Sepulveda and Marsalis first met when they sat next to each other in Dizzy Gillespie’s United Nations Band in 1994, alongside Claudio Roditi and Slide Hampton, and have remained close friends.

Despite the difficult past years for Puerto Rico with hurricanes, earthquakes, and infrastructure issues, Sepulveda and his wife Natalia still love living in the surf town of Luquillo, east of San Juan, an area rich with Afro Puerto Rican history. He is part owner of C Note, a club on Playa Azul, for which Sepulveda put in a great deal of work in development and booking. Unfortunately, Sepulveda’s relationship with the club has soured from disappointing business issues and other disagreements. Regardless, Sepulveda is committed to jazz in his hometown, and to continuing his work encouraging young Puerto Rican musicians to keep studying jazz.

In the past Sepulveda visited New Orleans with Fania Records’ great Johnny Pacheco, Tito Puente, and Sheila E. He is currently involved in preparations for a 25-year tribute tour for the Buena Vista Social Club, with many east coast stops in June. In addition to a project mixing hip hop, reggaeton, trap, and Latin jazz Sepulveda calls “Urbajazz,” a follow up to his excellent This is Latin Jazz is also in the works.

On May 4, Sepulveda leads his masterful, longtime band The Turnaround, as a septet: Emanuel Gambaro piano, Ivan Renta sax, Gabriel Rodriguez bass, Francisco Alcala drums, Gadwin Vargaz congas, and Sepulveda’s wife Natalia Mercado on vocals. The band is sure to be in top form for that Thursday, the same day that Santana also appears at the Fest.

Sepulveda will remain in town after the Fest for another few days before heading to the Cape May Music Festival, and Dizzy’s Club in Lincoln Center June 29. With so many friends in the music world, it pays to watch for any jam he may attend while still in New Orleans. O

Saturday May 6 at 4:30 p.m. Festival Stage

A Strange Trip

Dead & Co. will play its first-ever Jazz Fest show

BY CREE MCCREE

The Grateful Dead goes on forever. The Jerry Garcia-led band played its final show at Chicago’s Soldier Field on July 9, 1995, just weeks before Garcia died, and has continued in various incarnations ever since.

Formed in 2015, Dead & Co. carries the odyssey well into the 21st century with three original members—drummer/percussionists

Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann and guitarist Bob Weir. They are joined by bassist Oteil Burbridge, keyboardist Jeff Chimenti and young blues artist John Mayer, who stepped in as lead guitarist after proving himself worthy by jamming with Bob Weir.

As we speak, Deadheads from all across the country are set to converge at the New Orleans

Jazz Fest on Saturday, May 6, for what promises to be an epic (for Jazz Fest) set: two-and-a-half official hours, which are likely to stretch well into the early evening. The date was added as a sneak preview of what’s being billed as The Final Tour this summer.

To whet my appetite for what promises to be an epic show, I spoke to Hart via Zoom at his sprawling compound in California’s Sonoma Country. As the following conversation reveals, New Orleans is the rhythmic motherlode for Hart, who will be at top of his game at Jazz Fest, along with the rest of Dead & Co.

How do you connect with the clave rhythm of New Orleans? The clave means key, and it’s the key to almost all rhythms. This rhythm came from Africa, went up through Cuba, Puerto Rico, Haiti, and then after the Free Slave Revolution in the 1700s, it all went to New Orleans. And mutated into what we know now as rock and roll or jazz. It’s the sonic signpost, the basis of all that music.

Congo Square in New Orleans is where American music became American music. It came out of Congo Square in the 1800s, along with voodoo, and the practice of African religions. All the saints, when they came to America, they just catholicized it and turned it into different names, but it’s the same guy.

They tried to pull a fast one. Right on. [laughs] So, New Orleans is special, besides being busted there.

Which leads me to the next

question: Are you gonna play “Truckin’” at Jazz Fest? We haven’t decided what we’re gonna play, but that’s an interesting connection I never really thought of.

The line “Busted down on Bourbon St.” is gonna have a lot of local resonance here. “Truckin’” would be a good choice. But New Orleans holds much more for me than going to jail there. [laughs] That parish prison was not my favorite place, I’ll tell you.

Oh my god! You went to the OPP? Yeah, that was a nice place to visit, but a good place to leave. But New Orleans holds a special place in my heart because of Congo Square, where the slaves were able to practice their religion openly. And once the Whites saw these Black people moving in and out of trance, it freaked them out. When the loa is riding you, you forget about everything else. Congo Square was the turning point of American music, along with Storyville, and all that music went up the Mississippi river to spread to all parts of America.

Do you see a direct line from Congo Square to contemporary New Orleans drummers, like Mean Willie Green? Oh yes. Mean Willie Green is one of my favorites. He plays without shoes so he can feel the pedals. He’s right on the top of the pile.

“Drums/Space,” which you have been doing for decades, is a highlight of any show. Well, it started in the sixties, ’67 I think, with bacon frying. We cooked the bacon in an electric frying pan and ate the bacon on the stage.

Hysterical. Maybe you could revive that tradition. I doubt it. I retired it years ago; it was retired for me. Bacon grease didn’t work really well with the amplifiers. But that’s where “Drums/Space” really started. It’s the most played section of Grateful Dead repertoire, we’ve played it thousands of thousands of times. I look forward to that because the only law is that there is no law. And we keep it like that, It’s spontaneous. It’s in the moment, in the now.

Do you expect any surprises in New Orleans for “Drums/Space”? Oh yes, but I can’t tell you about them or it will spoil the surprise. That is to be revealed.

You’ve played in town, but you’ve never played the New Orleans Jazz Fest before. We were supposed to, but COVID stopped us.

It stopped us all. Well, we are sure glad that you’re

coming back, and people are super excited about seeing you. You’ll have The Beam with you, right? Oh yeah. Never leave home without the mono chord. Thank you very much, Pythagoras. He figured out the revolutions of the spheres, the mathematical equations of the revolving orbs, the whole vibrating universe. And he conjured the mono chord, which is The Beam: 12 strings, all the same note, and very low.

How has RAMU developed over the years? Your “Random Access Musical Universe,” which lets you access every instrument you ever played? Not every, but most. Whenever an instrument comes into my collection, I sample it. And that sample goes to RAMU which is my memory bank, my digital workstation. And I can call up any of those instruments and add processing to ’em at any time during the performance. It started back in the eighties, and it’s grown to incredible proportions. It’s very easy to operate and has an enormous range of variations.

This is your first Jazz Fest appearance, which is also being billed as The Final Tour of Dead & Co. Is that actually true; or is that just a teaser? That is no teaser. [laughs] We don’t tease. That’s what it says it is. We won’t tour as this unit anymore. It’s run its course, and we’re going to end it and move on. Now no one knows what “on” means.

Probably not even you. No, we don’t know. And we don’t care to know. All we’re interested in right now is finishing Dead & Co. really well and having a wonderful time. Make people dance.

Well, we’ll see what happens next. I suspect there will be another chapter. Hey, I’m not gonna retire. We’ll figure it out. O

“But that’s where “Drums/Space” really started. It’s the most played section of Grateful Dead repertoire, we’ve played it thousands of thousands of times. I look forward to that because the only law is that there is no law. And we keep it like that, It’s spontaneous. It’s in the moment, in the now.”

A Joyful Thing

Renee Rosnes and ARTEMIS capture the heart of jazz

BY STEVE HOCHMAN

As Renee Rosnes describes the various attributes of members of ARTEMIS, the all-star jazz sextet that the pianistcomposer-arranger leads, certain words and phrases seem to come out in boldface.

Trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, she says, is a “leader” who has “a beautiful kind of abandonment” and “inspires all of us.” Bassist Noriko Ueda “can just really fly.” Alexa Tarantino, who plays alto and soprano saxophones as well as flute, “has a great lyrical gift” and “knows how to take her time” developing solos. Drummer Allison Miller is “a bright light…. always listening, always inspiring” and “very uplifting, like she’s always a joy to play with.” Tenor sax player Nicole Glover “has this raw energy” and is “very sharp, like witty” and “she likes to kind of jump in the deep end of the pool.”

After that last one about Glover, she pauses for a second and then adds, “I mean that literally, too.” She continues: “This is an example of Nicole.

We were performing in Bodø, Norway, last February. It’s cold up there. We’re talking about the North Sea. And there was a floating spa.”

Glover, she says, couldn’t resist.

“She decided she was going to jump in the ocean! Well, she did. Numerous times while we watched in amazement. I mean, February in the North Sea, you know? So, she’s very brave. That comes through in her playing.”

Maybe only Glover dove into the icy sea, but all of them take those leaps musically, individually with brilliant solos throughout the album’s vivid modern jazz panorama, but even more so with some stunning ensemble work, all which will be on display on Thursday of Jazz Fest’s second weekend.

Take the song “Empress Afternoon,” a highlight from ARTEMIS’ new, second album, In Real Time, released by venerable Blue Note. In the piece, written by Rosnes, the players swirl around each other in modal interplay, dynamics shifting passage to passage, one or another stepping forward to solo in turn. But then, with seeming collective spontaneity, they snap together for an incredibly fast, impossibly intricate bit. The effect is like galactic dust coalescing into a bright star, or lights shining into a lens and uniting in a sharp beam to pierce the sky. It’s thrilling.

That bit is a modal run drawing on Indian music, the kind of thing that musicians study for years to be able to pull off. She’d originally recorded it more than 20 years ago for her album Life on Earth, with explorations

of rhythms from various cultures. This one meant extra to her. Raised in British Columbia by adoptive parents, she met her birth family in her 30s and learned that her biological mother is Punjabi. She’d already loved Indian music, but to help pull of this piece back she then brought in a ringer, tabla maestro Zakir Hussain. For the new album, having learned that Miller had studied tabla, she wanted to give it another go. As for the rest of her ARTEMIS colleagues…

“I did get some looks when I brought it in,” she says, laughing again, from her New York home. “But we were having a ball.”

It’s a great encapsulation of ARTEMIS itself, the coming together of these various elements and personalities into something of true wonder.

“You put all the ingredients together and you hear it on the album,” she says. “All the things I was just saying.”

Rosnes certainly had high hopes when she put together the first edition of the group after being asked in 2016 to assemble a band for some European festival dates around International Women’s Day celebrations. She called a few of the top figures in modern jazz, both veteran leaders and emerging stars. Teri Lyne Carrington was on drums, Linda Oh on bass and Anat Cohen on clarinet. Up-and-coming saxophonist Melissa Aldana and trumpeter Jensen were in front, with Grammy-winning singer Cécile McLorin Salvant on board as well. It went over great.

“The concerts were very successful, and I felt that there was a real chemistry there,” she says. “And so, we decided kind of collectively that we’d like to do more together.”

Carrington and Oh had other commitments and had to decline, and Miller and Ueda stepped in. The next year they did some touring together and were signed by Blue Note, got to work on the first album, and released it in 2020. As the world reemerged from the pandemic, Salvant and Cohen couldn’t carve out time for more ARTEMIS work, so Glover and Tarantino were recruited, solidifying an all-instrumental lineup that fully realizes the potential of these collective talents.

At core, though, is Rosnes and her craving of jazz’s collaborative spark. Growing up in Canada she and her two sisters—also adopted—were guided by their mother’s love of classical music (and their father’s passion for folk songs of his native Norway). All three played piano, and Renee (pronounced Ree-nee, coming from Irene) also

played violin in the Vancouver Youth Orchestra. In high school, though, she was recruited by the school jazz band director, and that was that.

“Throughout my years in high school he would lend me records and I’d go home and listen to them,” she says.

Count Basie, Horace Silver, Herbie Hancock, Bud Powell, Thad Jones and Mel Lewis were among the artists to which he exposed her, as well as the great jazz singers. She went on to study at the University of Toronto’s classical performance program, but it wasn’t the path for her.

“I realized my heart is in jazz,” she says. “That’s where my passion is and that’s where I feel most comfortable. That’s what I really, really love.”

That love has led her to an incredible career, recording and touring with J.J. Johnson, Wayne Shorter, Ron Carter, Bobby Hutcherson, Gerald Wilson, Jon Faddis and far too many others to name here, as well as releasing 20 albums as leader or co-leader herself, one of those being Double Portraits, a 2010 set of piano duets with Bill Charlap, a.k.a. her husband.

She also co-founded both the always-superb SF Jazz Collective and the Canadian Jazz Master Awards and is artistic director of the Oscar Peterson International Jazz Festival held in Ontario.

The passion has only increased over the years, a deep love of exploration of sounds and styles, of collaborations and directions, from the world music of Life on Earth to Brazilian jazz, from straight-ahead classics to heady fusion. The new album opens with “Slink,” written by the late keyboardist Lyle Mays, Pat Metheny’s longtime collaborator. It closes with “Penelope,” by Shorter, who she notes forced her to be daring by having her play synthesizers in concerts with little experience beforehand. Between those are originals by various ARTEMIS members, collectively covering that full range, including Jensen’s “Timber” and a couple of others on which Rosnes moves from acoustic piano to electric Fender Rhodes. It’s not fusion, per se, but the sense of adventure, the willingness to take chances, comes through sharply.

It’s all open territory for her and for this group, along the frozen North Sea or by the humid Mississippi Delta.

“We’re so lucky,” she says. “To be able to do this music, to play for people for a living, what a joyful thing!” O

Thursday May 4 at 4:20 p.m.

Lagniappe Stage

A Gator and a Dumpster Americana cowpunks Loose

Cattle (finally!) debut at Jazz Fest

BY CREE MCCREE

I’ve been a Loose Cattle devotee since 2017, when they debuted with the instant-classic holiday album, Seasonal Affective Disorder. The album encapsulates the push-pull dynamic of the molten core of my favorite Americana cowpunks in New Orleans: Michael Cerveris, who adores Christmas, and Kimberley Kaye, who is shadowed by the holiday’s darkside.

Over the years, I’ve interviewed them several times, which is always a treat. Like an old (happily) married couple, Cerveris and Kaye frequently finish, and expand on, each other’s thoughts. Which isn’t that surprising. After they met across a microphone in 2008, a relationship that “began as professional turned romantic, then musical, then friendly after they split,” according to their official origin story. They also bonded over their mutual affinity for country and punk, which crosses rowdy Johnnyand-June-Cash romps with the punky L.A. ’tude of X’s John Doe and Exene Cervenka in Loose Cattle’s own close-to-thebones harmonies.

During our latest encounter in early March, they played me tracks off their new album, out later this summer. Already in the can: the album’s first single, a cover of Lucinda Williams’ “Crescent City,” which they recorded in Nashville with Lucinda in the studio and Louis Michot guesting on fiddle.

At long last, after playing French Quarter Fest last year, Loose Cattle will make their Jazz Fest debut on Locals Thursday, May 4, with the crack team behind them: bassist Rene Coman and drummer Doug

Garrison of the Iguanas and free-ranging fiddler Rurik Nunan.

During our conversation, we discussed their commitment to make “Americana music for the people America keeps forgetting,” like people of color and the LGBTQ community. We also took a deep dive into the process of actually getting into Jazz Fest, which can act as a how-to primer for New Orleans musicians still awaiting that fateful call.

Well, it took an entire decade, but you finally made it into Jazz Fest. You’re on the Lagniappe stage, right?

Kimberly: Yes, I love that stage, the sound is really bright. The feel of the space is very community, there’s always a breeze.

Michael: It’s also the only place you can go either before or after going to the food demonstrations. A friend of ours works at them and always gives

us the little samples.

Sounds like “Sidewalk Chicken”! I loved that crazy animated ’toon Caesar Meadows drew for that song, from Heavy Lifting that has a rooster pimp daddy.

Kimberly: Exactly. [laughs] We should coordinate with that and do a Sidewalk Chicken demo.

Are you going to play many songs from the new album at the Fair Grounds?

That’s the plan. And some really good songs from our back catalog.

Every track on Heavy Lifting , your last album, is killer.

Kimberly: The new album is even better. Renee’s been calling it a quantum leap for the band. And I think he’s actually right.

Listening to “Crescent City,” the first single from the album, I had to double check to make sure it really was a cover and, and I wasn’t actually listening to Lucinda.

Michael: She does kind of channel Lu in her own way on it, which I think is really cool. We were trying to recreate this little magical moment in Nashville, where we were in the studio with Lucinda and Louis Michot.

How did that come about?

Kimberly: We came up to do this unofficial Louisiana showcase at the Americana Fest in Nashville that Lilli Lewis and some other people put together because there were no New Orleans or Louisiana artists at Americana Fest. So, we said, hey, you didn’t book us, but we’re playing anyway. And we stayed with Lu because she lives in Nashville. That’s the first single off our new record, which comes out later this summer, but the rest is almost all originals. And at Jazz Fest, we also have the added bonus of Lilli Lewis sitting in on piano.

One of the tracks you just played me is “Mike Stacy”— which, unlike most of your originals, doesn’t have a really clever title. What’s the story behind that?

Kimberly: Last year at Jazz Fest, while I was watching Meschiya Lake, where there were lots of good-looking women who’d come to see Meschiya, this guy handed me his business card. Then he pointed over his shoulder and said, she’s my date for this weekend and next weekend I wanna hire you to hang out with us for the rest of the weekend. And then I want to take y’all to Paris together. He was trying to hire me as a sex worker! And I declined to be purchased. I was so angry about the experience.

It’s hard for me to even picture that happening at Jazz Fest.

Kimberly: I know. He had the Jazz Fest shirt on, he had the straw hat, he had the drink in his hand. He looked like a normal fester. But he was not normal. He was like Uncle Fester from The Adams Family! So, I wrote to Michael about it, and he turned it into this whole story and the band wrote this song. It’s called “Mike Stacy.” We named it after the guy so he can live on in infamy. Alex McMurray plays guitar in that song and Debbie Davis is on it too.

Let’s talk about the process of actually getting into Jazz Fest. How does that work?

Kimberly: There’s a couple of different hurdles that anybody has to clear. One is just name recognition, that Jazz Fest is confident that people will come to your set. Do other local musicians know them and respect them?

Michael: The literal process is you go online and fill out paperwork with details about the band. And send them examples of your music and links to videos. And then you just wait to hear.

So how did you find out you got in?

Michael: You get a phone call first. And I got the phone call because I was the one who had made the submission. I saved it on my voicemail, the call from Jazz Fest. [laughs] And then it’s a phone tag for another week or so because they’re calling how many hundred bands. So, it was a while before I actually got through to the woman who said yes, we want you guys to play.

You’ve both been very active in trying to recruit a more diverse lineup to Americana.

Kimberly: If you take the all-male lineups off the festivals, there’s almost no female or non-binary players.

Joy Clark has done a really good job of putting herself out there, I think.

Kimberly: She has. It definitely helps that Brandi Carlile loves her and she’s been bringing her around. But Joy’s been grinding it out for years. It’s not like suddenly there’s an Americana scene that’s very much led by women and LGBTQ people.

Any songs people should keep their ears open for during your Jazz Fest set?

Kimberly: “Further On.” It’s probably the only song at Jazz Fest that’s gonna mention a gator and a dumpster! O

Soul Food

Dustin Dale Gaspard plays songs to tell his stories

BY JOHN WIRT

Dustin Dale Gaspard makes his Jazz Fest debut this year. It’s a career breakthrough for the soul and swamp pop-inspired singer songwriter from southwest Louisiana. Upon learning he’d be on the Jazz Fest roster, Gaspard felt relieved and grateful. “It was something that I needed in that moment,” he recalled. “I’d been wondering if this whole music thing was going to work out, if I could get a break.”

When Gaspard appears May 5 at the AARP Rhythmpourium Stage, he’ll sing songs from his album debut, Hoping Heaven Got a Kitchen. Dedicated to the Cajun grandparents who raised him in the Vermilion Parish communities of Cow Island and Mouton Cove, the album features 10 emotion-tinged original songs and two torchy swamp-pop classics, “Feed the Flame” and “This Should Go on Forever.”

“It’s big, it’s engulfing,” Gaspard said of the album that pairs his poignant tenor voice with 11 supporting singers and musicians. “But I’m not Lyle Lovett, so I can’t bring an orchestra with me,” he added. Instead, a few supporting players, including harmonica player Paul Piazza and singer Sarah Russo, will join Gaspard at Jazz Fest. “Sarah and I have been arranging the tunes, pulling out the essentials from each song,” he said. “We boiled that down into intimate versions of the songs.”

Inspired by his first visit to an open mic night,

Gaspard started writing songs at 17. By then, he’d already received a good musical education, thanks to his grandfather George “Berton” Lege’s extensive record collection. Lege loved the classic soul of Percy Sledge, Otis Redding and Sam Cooke. He also listened to R&B and swamp pop, Cajun crooner Belton Richard and New Orleans’ Fats Domino. “My grandfather hosted a lot of parties at his house,” Gaspard said. “When people came over, he’d have a bunch of records playing.”

Gaspard’s Jazz Fest debut follows last year’s release of his first album and a sold-out record release show at the Acadiana Center for the Arts. Most of the 11 musicians and singers who contributed to the album joined him on stage at the ACA. Seeing the full house in the theater, Gaspard was almost overcome with emotion.

“I was trembling,” he recalled. “There was a lot riding on that night. I knew when I got up on stage, I couldn’t enjoy the moment as much as I wanted to, because I was on the verge of breaking down. It was [the culmination of] 10 years of heartache and struggle, perseverance and goals accomplished. I stared at the exit sign while I was on stage. That helped me focus.”

Gaspard is reaching for his next breakthrough—a sustainable music career. “Success for me will be doing the music that I want to do,” he said. “If I can travel and play my songs and tell my stories, that’s where I want to be.” O

Friday May 5 at 4:15 p.m.

South Louisiana Marsh Blues

Michael Juan Nunez is an incredibly inspired songwriter

BY DAN WILLGING

No matter how you slice and dice it, 2022 was a banner year for Michael Juan Nunez. After years of writing and preparing for his then-upcoming album Rouxsta, the merciless pandemic delayed its release by three years. Finally, things fell into place. The pandemic subsided, Jazz Fest resumed, and the Erath, Louisiana bluesy guitar slinger finally released his best work to date among a stellar catalog—all deserving national airplay.

Nunez made his Jazz Fest debut in 2022, fronting a band consisting of organist, pianist and accordionist Eric Adcock, drummer Clint Redwing and bassist Chad Meaux. To say things went well is a bit of an understatement. Opening the Blues Tent on that opening Friday morning, the band received a rapturous standing ovation from a mostly packed house of enthusiastic, zealous listeners.

“It was more than I expected,” Nunez says. “We played our hearts out, and the people liked it. Everybody was ready to get their Fest on.”

“You know why that felt good?” asks Adcock. “Eighty percent of the people on their feet cheering, screaming and whistling weren’t from South Louisiana. They were music lovers from all over the world and connected with what Michael Juan and we were putting down. That was very validating for us.”

This year Nunez and krewe return for a second consecutive Jazz Fest appearance on Friday, Cinco de Mayo again, but on the Lagniappe Stage.

While Nunez doesn’t question why they were booked for a second consecutive year, he smiles and graciously accepts the honor. Adcock, Nunez’s longtime collaborator, duo partner, and former bandmate in Roddie Romero’s Hub City Allstars, has his thoughts. “That’s one of the beautiful things about Jazz Fest,” Adcock explains. “They keep their ear to the ground and invest in people who may not have legions of fans yet, right? But they give the people making great music a platform to spread it.”

The buzz about Nunez’s then-upcoming release Rouxsta undoubtedly played heavily into Jazz Fest’s decision to book him in 2022. Compared to his previous records, Rouxsta was made very organically in just two days at Dockside Studio with close friends and special guests like Nunez’s former band leaders Romero and Zachary Richard. His previous record, 2016’s Rise, represented two years’ worth of recording before it dropped. “Yeah, that’s a big difference, man,”

DANIEL BOONE PHOTOGRAPH

Nunez admits. “Left to my own devices, I’ll slip into a rabbit hole and drive myself crazy recording, trying different things, pursuing and mixing different sounds.”

“In records past, Michael Juan, for whatever reason, would chip away at them, a studio here, a studio there, maybe a living room recording,” says the analytical Adcock. “He often played a role in trying to mix and record things on his own, which he’s also talented at. With Rousxta, he was able to let go of the controls.”

This time Nunez focused more on deep songs rather than their production. “I was always really interested in the production, the guitar sounds and the playing,” Nunez says. “The older I get, the more I realize none of that really matters. You have to have great songs, period, you know?”

One of the gems of Rouxsta—though there are several—is “a Jimmy Reed-type thing,” an ode to the legendary Chicago blues musician/songwriter. Nunez captured Reed’s unhurried shuffle groove perfectly while splicing together lyrics from five of his best-known songs.

Nunez sees Reed’s influence stamped all over South Louisiana music. “You listen to Lightnin’ Slim, and that’s Jimmy Reed,” Nunez says. “You listen to Slim Harpo and that’s Jimmy Reed. Clifton [Chenier] often talked about Jimmy Reed. So, Jimmy Reed was a big part of South Louisiana blues, Creole and zydeco.” Nunez also includes guitarist Rudy Richard, who played behind Harpo on such hits as “King Bee” and “Scratch My Back,” among the Reed disciples.

“Jimmy Reed was the king back then,” Nunez says. “He was Elvis before Elvis. Eric Adcock’s dad said the first time he heard Jimmy Reed, he knew music was changing, that this was something new.”

Since Adcock is a pianist, organist and accordionist, one of his bonds to Nunez—besides living in Vermillion Parish—is songwriting, not guitars, as it is between Nunez and Romero. “You know, Michael is ultimately a guitar player,” Adcock shares about his musical brother. “He likes to crank that amp up and play loud, but Rouxsta has a bunch of sweet songs that are less guitar rock and more about the songs. And if I had to label it, it feels like a beautiful South Louisiana marsh blues record.”

Adcock continues by saying Nunez’s an

incredibly inspired songwriter. “He comes from a very deep, intense, thoughtful place,” he says. “His inspiration from lyrics and themes is not light. He’s a thinker, and an observer, and that’s what makes him a great songwriter. His antennas are always up.”

Nunez remembers once talking to fellow guitarist and songwriter CC Adcock (Eric’s brother) about the process of writing songs. “I was like, man, how do I take the life around me, like the colors, smells, and the sounds of Vermillion Parish and put them into a song? Nunez recalls. “And he said, ‘Dude, stop trying, just write a song because you can’t. Nothing that comes out of you will sound like anything else. You cannot sound like you’re not from South Louisiana.’”

Profundity at its best, Nunez got CC’s advice. “I don’t have the talent to mimic very well,” he says. “My talent lies in being original and I can only be me.”

Being himself means being both a highlyregarded songwriter and a top tier South Louisiana guitarist. When it comes to the six-string, Nunez has been around them his whole life. His father, Warren, sang and strummed an acoustic guitar in his country band Warren Nunez and the Skyliners. His group used to play on a radio show on Abbeville’s KVOL. The group also played weekly on a local television show, hosted by Leroy “Happy Fats” LeBlanc. When DL Menard, writer of the mega-popular “Back Door,” made his television debut, he was backed by Warren’s band.

When Nunez started learning guitar, he pretended to play his dad’s acoustic guitar, a 1965 Gibson J45, still his favorite guitar. Eventually,

DANIEL BOONE PHOTOGRAPH

his father realized his son was serious and began teaching him his first chords.

Nunez acquired his first electric guitar at age 14 and became obsessed with it. “Yeah, I was the cat that would sleep with it,” Nunez says with a laugh. “I’d literally take it with me everywhere. That was before PlayStations. Those were our video games, or at least for me and some of my friends.”

After his father died in 2000, Nunez’s brotherin-law AJ Dauphin took him under his wing and showed an interest in his career. Though Dauphin is not a musician, Nunez describes his taste as impeccable, something other musicians pick up on. “He’s my sounding board,” Nunez says about Dauphin. “When we started making records, he’d give me feedback. He could be honest with me when other people couldn’t be. He didn’t need to be nice, but he was looking out for what was best for me.”

“There were no ulterior motives,” Nunez continues. “It was just that I could trust him, and we just built a working relationship like that, besides our obvious family relationship.”

Dauphin has co-produced five of Nunez’s

records (except America Electric). When it came time to review material slated for Rouxsta, one of the things Dauphin suggested was that Nunez sing in a lower register and play in a drop-C tuning for a bigger guitar sound. Rouxsta was recorded live in the studio, and no matter how good the musicians thought the take was, in the end, they looked up to see if Dauphin gave them a thumbs up or would come out of the control room with a suggestion.

Interestingly, Nunez never aspired to be a blues guitarist. That is until the dean of Lafayette blues guitar, Paul “Lil’ Buck” Sinegal, encouraged him during an early Medicine Show performance. Nunez, by chance, played a bluesy original instrumental. “When we walked off stage, Buck walked right up to me and said, ‘That’s the stuff you should be playing,’” Nunez says. “So, I took it to heart, and after that, we would get together every so often. Whenever I played blues, he’d tell me, ‘That’s the stuff you should be playing.’ And, of course, I became a disciple of Buck.”

“I love Buck, man,” Nunez continues. “He just really believed in me and my playing, and he wanted me to pursue the blues.” O

After his father died in 2000, Nunez’s brother-in-law AJ Dauphin took him under his wing and showed an interest in his career. Though Dauphin is not a musician, Nunez describes his taste as impeccable, something other musicians pick up on. “He’s my sounding board.”

Mystic Shredding

Mikey Coltun of Mdou Moctar: We’re just a loud rock band

BY MICHAEL ALLEN ZELL

Mdou Moctar, the man, grew up in a rural Niger religious household dead set against his playing music, which led to him discreetly making his first guitar. Mdou Moctar, the band, features a hypnotic hybrid of churning core and his ripping on electric guitar. Mikey Coltun has the key roles of bassist and producer/recording engineer with the band. They had just returned from an Australian tour when he sat down to talk about this most unique of bands.

When asked if the band describes their sound as “desert blues” or “Tuareg music,” Coltun stressed, “We usually just say we’re a loud rock band. Obviously, that comes from a desert blues

sound. We hate the term “world music” with passion, and we don’t wanna be lumped into that category at all. We are no different than any other rock band that exists out there.”

The band has built an international following. Coltun’s vision from the beginning was that the energy of their shows be no different from the punk shows he grew up going to. They have embraced that and pushed it into that world. “This is dance music and it should feel like a concert,” said Coltun.

The live version of Mdou Moctar will be familiar to those who have heard their recorded music. “I wanna bring out the kind of elements that I think are really special about this band,”

Sunday April 30 at 12:35 p.m. Cultural Exchange Pavilion

Sunday April 30 at 4:10 p.m. Blues Stage

Coltun said. “This is a raw rock band, and I never wanna change the sound into something that it’s not. I wanna be respectful to the tradition that it comes from—however, I do want it to sound like how we play it.”

Those who know and love the performance version of the Mardi Gras Indians and Trombone Shorty will recognize a musical kinship with taking the groove and building on it. “I love that stuff,” said Coltun. When the band is in the studio, they do one take of a long song, and then he is tasked with cutting it to a condensed version for the record. Live, it’s stretched out for as long as they want it to go.

Mdou Moctar’s most recent recordings were the two Niger EPs, Volumes 1 & 2. The ethos is that of the roots of field and cassette recordings, which harkens back to the earliest Mdou Moctar music being passed around via cell phones and memory cards in West Africa. Coltun clarified, “It’s a lot of different types of media that’s not a typical high quality record sound, but it captures the raw band.”

The band also consists of Ahmoudou

Madassane on rhythm guitar, and the newest member, percussionist Souleymane Ibrahim. “We’ve gotten way tighter as a band and have owned this sound. We’re at the place where Souleymane can do whatever he wants and we follow him,” praised Coltun.

This is a rock band, but it’s one different from others, and not just sonically. The Islamic faith is practiced by over 99 percent of Niger. None of the band drink or do drugs. Moctar’s biggest fear was that his family would think temptations would win out if he played music and toured. Coltun made it clear, “Religion is very important to him and he’s respectful of it.”

Mdou Moctar first played Jazz Fest in 2019 and are looking forward to thrilling crowds again. As it turns out, Coltun has been going to Jazz Fest for years. “I love Jazz Fest. My dad’s very into it, so he used to take my brother, sister and me. It’s one of my favorite festivals. I spend a lot of time hanging out in the gospel tent. I think that’s one of the best things there. Some of the bigger acts, it’s cool, but I don’t really care about that as much as some of the local music.” O

A Woman Out On Her Own

Maggie Koerner craves authentic connection

BY KIMBERLY KAYE

Maggie Koerner came screaming into the world louder than any baby her mother had ever heard. This will surprise no one who’s seen the Shreveport native perform live, especially during her stint fronting the wall of sound produced by local funk-jam stars Galactic. Part soul chanteuse, part banshee, Koerner sings story-driven lyrics bleeding with the emotional vulnerability of a wronged shieldmaiden—an exhilarating combination Jazz Fest is smartly featuring on its biggest stage this year.

And after the stagnation of pandemic shutdown, followed by the coitus interruptus of an abbreviated set due to bad weather on the Gentilly Stage in 2022, the Americana rocker is fired up for this latest feature slot under her own name.

“I’m giving up all the fuck this year,” she announces calmly at a coffeeshop table blocks away from the Fairgrounds. “I’m getting out of my head, shedding vanity, and throwing myself into the moment with all these people who pay so much, who come from so far away, to be here for the music. And I’m doing it with TWO drummers, because it just boom, hits so much harder.”

She’s not wrong. A staple of her bigger live shows, Koerner’s use of double drummers—this year it’ll be David Shirley and Dillon Frazier manning the kits—lands like a prize fighter’s one-two punch, giving the singer-songwriter’s bluesy original compositions a witchy, almost

ceremonial feel. Her Jazz Fest 2023 band is rounded out by guitarists George Wilde and Joshua Starkman, pianist Rob Kellner, bassist Eric Vogel, and cellist Rachel Hsieh.

All this talk of banshee energy and doubled percussion shouldn’t suggest Koerner and her big voice aren’t capable of much quieter, gentler moments. Her original ballads, some of which the vocalist brings as low as a tearful whisper, showcase a younger artist transitioning into confident, full-grown adult mastery of her voice. They also make space for Maggie’s remarkable ability to connect with audiences, something she invests in as a healing modality more than a simple performance choice.

“I was playing out with George Porter Jr. recently, and he reminded me how important it is to let things go onstage, to bring fun back to people after

Saturday April 29 at 12:25 p.m. Festival Stage

Saturday April 29 at 4:15 p.m. AARP Stage

this stretch when we were so isolated,” she reflects. “But for me, making sure people feel heard, helping people know that other people are going through hard things too, that’s the purpose of my music.”

She cites personal heroes like Sheryl Crow, Nick Drake, and The Revivalists as particular inspirations in this arena, noting their rare ability to generate “real, authentic energy exchange” with big audiences of real, authentic humans.

Her heartfelt focus on authentic connection instead of TikTok-friendly gimmicks has, with the cavernous unfairness of the commercial music business, been one of the primary reasons Koerner isn’t a nationally famous act yet. “I’ve been told by labels that industry people not being able to pigeonhole me is a problem,” she sighs. It’s never been an issue for live music fans, but as far as selling radio singles, c’est la vie. “But I’ll always pick connecting with a person in the front row genuinely over doing ‘an act,’ because when I’m the one in the audience, that’s what I’m craving,” she resolves.

Fest attendees will get an amuse bouche of Koerner’s rawer, connectivity-centered

approach at the Fair Grounds—she says she’s carefully assembled a set of mostly up-tempo bangers for the Festival Stage—followed by the opportunity to see the artist in a more strippeddown setting during two separate fest-adjacent shows at Marigny Opera house. The April 28 installment will feature Koerner alongside rising queer frontwoman AJ Haynes of the dynamic Seratones. On the evening of May 5, she pairs up with jazz diva Gabrielle Cavassa. Both performances, with a smaller band and more acoustic sound, promise to be a boon for music devotees who share Maggie’s desire to build bridges between audience and artist.

Hopefully, some patrons with deep pockets will be in attendance and love Koerner’s work as much as New Orleans already does. “I’m the singer, the songwriter, the bandleader, the booker—I’m still setting up my own merch! I’m a woman out on her own, and I’m so proud of that,” she says confidently. “But if I had an old-school Renaissance patron to cover that stuff, I could give even more to my audiences. And that’s the reason I’m on this earth.” O

Thursday May 4 at 4:20 p.m. Lagniappe Stage

The Timekeeper

Keeping up with Doug Garrison

BY KIMBERLY KAYE

Doug Garrison nearly missed his Jazz Fest debut in 1989. That was the year the career drummer was backing rock legend Alex Chilton of Big Star fame… and NOPD wouldn’t let the band into the Fair Grounds because they didn’t have a valid parking pass. “It was a debacle,” he recalls with a dry chuckle. “We’d driven through the night from a show in South Florida to get there in time but didn’t know we lacked the right credentials. We missed half our scheduled set just trying to get in.” He pauses. “Yeah, we were not invited back.”

Fortunately for Garrison—and festival audiences—HE was invited back. More times than the drummer, who started playing professionally at 14, can count accurately. This year alone the New Orleans resident is playing with four locallybased standouts at the Fair Grounds alone: The Klezmer All Stars, that frenetic and updated take

on classic Jewish and Eastern European music; The Iguanas, who’ve spent decades marrying Latin-infused New Orleans R&B with vintage rock; Panorama Jazz Band, a pan-global and “genre fluid” celebration of jazz with notable Creole and Caribbean influences; and heavy harmonizers Loose Cattle, the vocally-driven Americana roots rock quintet with a “cowpunk” edge (of which this writer is a member.)

He’s secured proper parking passes for all four shows.

Garrison is unassuming and almost inconceivably affable—every musician who hears his name says something like “that guy is great” or “love him,” a rarity in an industry of big egos and bigger personalities. You’d never peg him as a drummer on sight, let alone one of the most booked and versatile timekeepers in a city that cultivates drummers.

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

He credits his Memphis, Tennessee, upbringing with diversifying his portfolio from a young age. “I went to school and played in the pep band minutes down the road from Elvis’ Graceland. Stax Records was right there. I was listening to Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix because it was that time, but at night my dad was playing Booker T and Al Jackson Jr. records,” Garrison says. “Then I discovered John Coltrane and Art Pepper and that really expanded my view of everything.”

Once Stax Records’ label collapsed, Memphis was left with a glut of very gifted artists struggling to gig through the crisis, making space for young Garrison to start playing alongside stars like blues and funk phenom Rufus C. Thomas. “I couldn’t be starstruck by Rufus because he was such a regular, normal guy in person,” he says, going on to explain how the Stax alums were similar. Which may have influenced his own “regular guy who just happens to be a world class musician” vibe.

“The Memphis side of things always comes out when I’m playing,” notes Garrison. “I don’t try to do that, but there’s a relaxation in the groove that just comes from growing up there.”

The artist’s Jazz Fest presence doesn’t stop at four pretty excellent Fair Grounds appearances. Garrison is a staple of the season’s “after fest” scene, a nighttime orgy of live music pouring out of established venues and guerrilla-style concerts alike. He’s especially excited this year about his annual late-night party at Vaughan’s, the low-key

lounge where The Klezmer All Stars and Iguanas join forces to produce a throbbing, thrilling good time into the wee hours.

Afterwards, The Iguanas will again team up at 1 a.m., this time with Southern soul master Papa Mali for a rollicking, witching hour show they’re billing as “The Maliguanas.” If you’re a nightcrawler, all of that’s going down in May.

If this sounds like a tremendous amount of cross-genre work for one man, that’s because it is. Garrison fortunately loves what he does, something joyfully evident when watching him live. And after three decades playing with The Iguanas, ten years with Panorama, and five with Loose Cattle, he’s happily in the pocket experienced musicians get to relax into. “At this point I don’t play pickup gigs during Fest. The only thing that makes me nervous as a performer is being under-rehearsed or not knowing the music, so I just pick and choose shows where I know and trust everyone else onstage. If you’re not having fun, it’s not really worth doing, you know?” O

“The Memphis side of things always comes out when I’m playing. I don’t try to do that, but there’s a relaxation in the groove that just comes from growing up there.”

All The Crunchberries

Something Else! is infectious soul-jazz with a powerhouse lineup

BY STEVE HOCHMAN

Vincent Herring goes off on a surprising tangent when trying to describe soul jazz, the sub-genre given tribute by the group Something Else!, a stars-filled ensemble which the saxophonist created a few years back and still leads. It’s a powerhouse lineup, with tenor saxophonist James Carter, trumpeter Randy Brecker, pianist Dave Kikoski, guitarist Paul Bollenback, bassist Essiet Okon Essiet and drummer Lewis Nash—all acclaimed forces in their own rights—joining Herring when the group plays in the Jazz Tent on the first Friday of Jazz Fest. Hearing him talk about the music they’ll be playing, though, is not unlike hearing a jazz musician start a solo with a bit of a familiar children’s tune and wondering with delight where it will go.

“Some years ago,” he says from his New York

City home, “Kellogg’s or General Mills, whoever makes Lucky Charms—and I wouldn’t be caught dead eating this, but it fits—they came out with a version of the cereal that was all the marshmallows. It was just like all the charm.”

He pauses for a second to consider how that applies to this music.

“And so, this is like kind of all the charm, just like every melody that you know, subconsciously or not,” he says. “And it’s still great jazz soloists taking you through a variety of music. And it’s fun for me and fun for all the guys in the band. And hopefully it’s infectious to the audiences. Every time we’ve played, audiences are super-engaged and love the music. I haven’t always had that kind of euphoric experience with every audience, but with this band without even trying, it comes off that way for some reason.”

He re-thinks the analogy, afraid it could give a wrong impression, that the music this band does is all sugar, all fluff. “All the marshmallows, that’s bad!” he says. “I shouldn’t even say that. But it’s kind of like that.”

This, by the way, comes after an hour of talking about Something Else! “You know I have this grand problem of description,” he says.

But the truth is that what Something Else! does, and soul jazz itself, simply are hard to describe. Earlier in the conversation he gave it a more prosaic go: “You’ve got a beat and a groove,” he starts. “There’s usually a riff. There’s usually a melodic component to it. Very strong melodic component. You couple that with great soloists and it’s a recipe for an enjoyable evening where you can’t help but to feel the music and pat your foot, move your head—because that’s part of it.”

It was a feeling he had been missing, something he craved when a few years ago he and manager/ booking agent Ina Dittke came up with the Something Else! concept. When they started making calls to other musicians, they found many feeling the same way who were eager to join.

Generally, the soul jazz heyday is seen to have started in the mid-1950s as the more populist thread of post-bebop, running through the 1960s pop evolutions until morphing/splitting into smooth jazz and jazz-funk fusion in the early 1970s. Lee Morgan’s “Sidewinder” is a classic of the style. Ditto Horace Silver’s “Song For My Father” and Ramsey Lewis’ slightly later “The In Crowd.” Herring cites Donald Byrd, Freddie Hubbard, Stanley Turrentine, Herbie Hancock and George Benson among key practitioners. Guitarists Wes Montgomery and Grant Green are others often mentioned.

Even John Coltrane, for all his shattering of conventions, fits in via his classic renditions of “My Favorite Things” and “Chim Chim Cher-ee,” notes Herring, 58, who absorbed all this music while growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area. And there are the classic organ-centric combos, with Jimmy Smith, Larry Young, Brother Jack McDuff and Jimmy McGriff among the stars there.

One name looms large over this project: Cannonball Adderley. Somethin’ Else is a landmark 1958 Adderley album on which the saxophonist leads a group of Miles Davis (who wrote the bluesy title song), Hank Jones, Sam Jones and Art Blakey. Choosing the moniker for the band, with the added “g” and exclamation point for good

measure, is tribute to Herring’s years playing with Adderley’s brother Nat and then, after Nat’s death in 2000, co-leading the Cannonball Adderley Legacy Band. After a stint in the United States Military Academy band the Jazz Knights, and then touring with vibes giant Lionel Hampton, Herring caught Nat’s attention and soaked up everything he could from playing that music.

“When I used to play with Nat, he said to me, ‘You know, one of the things I enjoy most about you, you feel like Cannonball, but you don’t play his notes. I love that about you,’” Herring recalls. “And I was like, ‘Well, I probably would play his notes if I could!’ We laughed and he thought I was kidding.”

But, Herring says, Adderley got—and rejected— audition tapes from players all over the country who did play his brother’s notes.

“He wanted someone that had their own personality, had a certain kind of euphoric feel,” he says. “It was a certain kind of jubilation to the music of Cannonball. And maybe I got it by osmosis.”

Wherever it came from, it’s a thread through his career which saw him as a regular in Cedar Walton’s band for 20 years, as well as playing with stars including Dizzy Gillespie, Art Blakey, Jack DeJohnette, Hubbard and Larry Coryell, Nancy Wilson, James Carter, Kenny Barron and Roy Hargrove among many others, not to mention recording 20 albums as a leader himself.

And the inspiration is something he tries to impart in his role as a professor at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey, and teacher at the Manhattan School of Music. But it comes through most strongly, with this band in his approach both to the Adderley legacy and to that of the whole soul jazz universe.

“Do I see myself as a custodian of the music?” he asks. “No. Am I a custodian of the music? You know, I just really try to play things that I enjoy. I’m writing music. I play music from some other people. And when I list to it”—he laughs— it often sounds connected to those kind of things.”

Herring continues to consider the cereal analogy, hoping it doesn’t give the idea that this music lacks nutrition. This is music with as much substance as pure pleasure. But like a kid with a bowl of a sweet treat in front of him, he can’t help himself and tries another example.

“All the crunchberries,” he says, citing Cap’n Crunch’s favorites. “You know, I shouldn’t even say that one either. But it is kind of like that.” O

Music is Literally in His Blood

RAM from Haiti is now a local New Orleans band

BY JAY MAZZA

Richard A. Morse, the founder and co-lead vocalist, along with his wife, Lunise, for the Haitian band RAM, likes to tell audiences that his band began in 1791. That was year that the Haitian revolution started and was also the beginning of Haiti as an independent nation. It was the only successful slave revolt in the Western hemisphere.

Morse believes that without the freedom to create a culture outside of the French colonial system, much of what we know and love about Haiti, including its art, music and the complex drum rhythms rooted in voudou beliefs, wouldn’t exist. Many parts of that culture found its way to New Orleans when thousands of Haitians fled the island following the uprising.

But Morse actually started RAM in 1990 after the then 28-year-old moved to Haiti to explore his familial roots. It took five years to start the band and over time he discovered that Haitians on both sides of his family were involved in music and culture. So, music is literally in his blood.

The members of RAM have been living in New Orleans in the lower Ninth Ward since October 2022. The political/personal safety situation in Haiti had become untenable and with a daughter married to a New Orleanian, the city was a logical place to set up. They have played a huge number of gigs since settling in, close to 25 in February alone, and are getting fully immersed in the local scene.

But back in the beginning, four years after starting the band, the members of RAM made their initial appearance at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Visa and immigration problems caused the musicians to arrive late, but when they got to the hotel, culture shock set in.

It was the first time most of the musicians had ever left the island and most everything in New Orleans left them perplexed. Morse ordered pizza—they had never even heard of it, never mind eaten it. He laughed at the memory, “We almost lost one musician who was trying to get on the escalator. He put one foot on, and his foot started to leave… it was quite a thrill.”

The 25th anniversary of the festival was in 1994, and a huge parade was scheduled throughout the downtown area with RAM included in the march along with the Prince of Wales Social Aid and Pleasure Club and a brass band featuring James Andrews and a pre-teen Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews. Morse described the scene, “We’re in the van, racing down the street, we can see the parade one block down and we finally parked and started doing our Rara thing (the music they are known for). Right when we got to the crowd, lo and behold, Jimmy Buffet and Ed Bradley were standing there.”

Once they got into the parade Morse said, “No one had heard this particular rhythm and the parade kind of stopped until people started grooving with us. This official came up with a badge and I thought ‘oh, they’re gonna throw us out of here.’ He says, ‘are you supposed to be in this parade,’ I said, ‘yeah,’ and he said, ‘well keep it moving, keep it moving!’”

Fast forward 19 years and RAM made their second appearance at the Fair Grounds. This time around, Jazz Fest producer and director Quint Davis and Buffet visited Morse and his ensemble at the Hotel Oloffson, the group’s home base, in Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti. Morse said, “Jimmy had the idea of doing a Katrina/Haiti earthquake kind of theme for the Jazz Fest and they ended up having eight Haitian bands.” This was six years after the federal levees failed and flooded New Orleans and just over a year after a devastating quake hit the island nation.

At the Jazz Fest, the Haitian Pavilion came to life. RAM was everywhere over the course of

the entire festival. Morse remembered, “They set up a tent. There was drumming and ceremonial type stuff going on. Every once in a while, we did a Rara parade, we did interviews and talked about the relationship between the whole second line thing and the Rara thing.” There was even a replica of a voudou temple.

He paused for a second and then added, “I think that’s probably when I came up with the phrase, ‘Haiti and New Orleans are twin sisters separated at birth.’”

The “Rara thing” is the simplest of the many rhythms the band plays. Many of the beats, like the traditional songs they sing, were brought over by enslaved Africans during the Middle Passage. When asked about the lineage of the songs, he said, “not decades [old], centuries.”

Many are praise songs for the lwas, African deities, which are worshipped in the traditional religious practices of the Kongo and Dahomey peoples. According to Morse, at least 50 percent of the people living in Haiti at the time of independence were born in Africa.

The Rara horns the musicians play when the group parades off stage are central to the group’s sound. Morse said, “Originally the instruments were different size [lengths] of bamboo. So, each note derived from the largeness of the bamboo and the length of it. You [only] have one note and the octave. So, what that means is because no bamboo is the same size and length, you have an infinite scale coming out of Haiti.” He went on to add, “Since the scale is infinite, no two Rara bands have the same notes.”

The horns his band uses are now made of sheet metal. Morse explained, “So now, once the whole thing moved to Port-au-Prince [from the countryside], they started using tin roofing to make the horns.” He continued, “I’ve seen pictures coming out of Texas and Louisiana in the 1920s and ’30s of horns with the same shape. I don’t understand what the connection is. There’s a lot more we have to learn between New Orleans and Louisiana and Haiti.”

When asked what he was looking forward to about playing the Jazz Fest this year, Morse replied, “This is a simple question. I’m looking forward to going to Jazz Fest as a local band. We’ve been here since October. We’ve been playing all these clubs around here and we never really knew how New Orleans functioned. We never really lived that before.” O

Thursday May 4 at 5:30 p.m. Lagniappe Stage

Eclectic Jam Band

The Quickening will tear it up at the Fair Grounds

BY JAY MAZZA

Blake Quick, the guitarist, songwriter and founder of the Quickening, had his first inkling he might someday grace the stages of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in the beginning of high school. While looking forward to seeing some of the bigger acts in 2000, after waiting in line at Blockbuster Video for $20 tickets, he noticed some friends were playing at the Fair Grounds.

He said, “I remember seeing John Michael Rouchell on stage, [he] played with MyNameIsJohnMichael and some other bands, and being like whoa, that kid’s only a year old than me. It’s totally doable for any of us.”

His first-time playing Jazz Fest was in 2012 with Flow Tribe. But by the end of the year, his tenure with that band had ended, as Quick wanted to move in another musical direction. So, 2023 is the 10th anniversary of the founding of The

Quickening and will mark the eclectic jam band’s first appearance at the Fair Grounds. They close the Lagniappe Stage on Thursday, May 4.

As with any young group, the membership of The Quickening has shifted over the years. The pandemic also had an impact. Some of the band members made other choices based on the tenuous nature of the future of the music business in 2020.

Bassist Al Small has been with Quick for the longest of any of the current members. Quick said, “He was really enthusiastic about joining and learning the material and hasn’t missed a gig in six or seven years.” The group also includes drummer Scotty Graves, who has played with Samantha Fish, keyboardist Joe Bouché and the newest member, British-born saxophonist James Beaumont.

Quick said, “James was willing to hit the road with us when were going to Charleston for a little east coast run, pre-pandemic. He breathed a

TIFFANY ANDERSON PHOTOGRAPH

whole new life into the band … kind of instead of confusing things (when the band had pedal steel wizard Dave Easley on board). That’s when I started thinking more along the lines of, is it too much [with all of the instruments]? It started getting a little congested.”

Beaumont adds a lot to the music both in the live setting and while writing songs. Quick said, “He comes up with little melody hooks and even if I’m sitting there in the studio trying to get a solo down, he chimes in with ‘try starting off with this’ and he gives me a little melody to replicate and then says, ‘then try elaborating on that.’” The collaboration is even more apparent when The Quickening plays live.

Longtime fans of the band, as well as all the new fans that will appear after they tear it up at the Fair Grounds, will get to hear some of the new music when the group’s fourth record is released.

The yet-to-be-titled record was recorded at the studio owned by the New Orleans Suspects’ guitarist Jake Eckert during the 2023 Carnival season. The first single, out now, is called “Fool 4 U.”

Quick said, “Jake’s such a huge help with us in the

studio. He helps produce a little bit, but he doesn’t overstep his boundaries at all. He lets the music roll and then adds any influence that he might feel might be necessary after that.” The Quickening also recorded their third album with Eckert.

Blake Quick is a regular at the Jazz Fest as a fan, but it’s been over 10 years since he appeared as an artist. What’s he looking forward to about the 2023 performance? He said, “Man, I’m looking forward to driving my van in there, getting cozy in the camper, and getting some oysters next to the Lagniappe Stage where we’re playing our set.” O

The yet-to-be-titled record was recorded at the studio owned by the New Orleans Suspects’ guitarist Jake Eckert during the 2023 Carnival season. The first single, out now, is called “Fool 4 U.”

Saturday April 29 at 5:45 p.m. Blues Tent

Mississippi Rising

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram is sitting on top of the blues world

BY JOHN WIRT

He’s sitting on top of the blues world. Christened “the next explosion of the blues” by Buddy Guy, 24-year-old Christone “Kingfish” Ingram has already won his first Grammy Award. He’s also topped Billboard’s blues chart; won nine Blues Music Awards; and, moving beyond the usual blues outlets, has been profiled by NPR’s Morning Edition, The New York Times, Rolling Stone and The Washington Post.

Ingram makes his New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival debut Saturday, April 29. His

when he met Guy prior to a show they played together in Virginia. After a second meeting, when Ingram was 16, Guy became a mentor. “From there on is when we developed a relationship,” Ingram said. The elder, Louisianaborn bluesman shared stories about his life and experiences with the rising young musician from Clarksdale, Mississippi. He gave some advice, too, including about who to trust and who not to trust in the music business, and to simply play the music he loves the most.

“Life lessons,” Ingram said. “Mr. Guy puts the crowd in the palm of his hand with one note, with how he phrases his words, what he sings. I learn something new about that every time I see him play.”

Guy’s belief in Ingram extended to financing the singer-guitarist-songwriter’s album debut, 2019s Kingfish. Tom Hambridge, Guy’s drummer, producer and co-writer, spearheaded the project.

appearance this year follows two coronavirus pandemic-prompted Jazz Fest postponements and a cancelation at another New Orleans event, Hogs for the Cause. In 2023, Ingram is also joining Guy for several dates on the 86-year-old blues patriarch’s farewell tour. “This is most I’ve ever been on the road with him,” Ingram said. “I’m excited, for sure, and grateful that he [Buddy Guy] saw fit for me to hang with him.”

Ingram was a precociously talented 13-year-old

“We got a call one day from Tony Coleman, my godfather, who played drums with B.B. King,” Ingram recalled. “He said, ‘Mr. Guy wants to help you out with a record.’ So, we all met in California. I told him (Hambridge) what I wanted to do. A month later I was writing songs at his house in Nashville. A couple of months after that, we were in Nashville recording. Mr. Guy started all of that.”

Straight from the gate, Kingfish earned Ingram his first Grammy Award nomination. His follow-up, 662, won a Grammy last year for best contemporary blues album. “The first year, when I didn’t win, it was kind of a relief,” Ingram

CHRISTONE “KINGFISH” INGRAM

remembered. “Like, ‘Okay. That’s over. Let’s party.’ The second year it was like, wow, this really did happen. It’s an experience. Sometimes I pinch myself, because I can’t fathom that happened. I didn’t think I was going to win. I was just grateful to be in that number.”

Ingram’s third album is in the works. “That’s why I’m out here in California,” he said recently from Los Angeles. “Trying to find some more producers to work with, create some different sounds. I want to go a new way, showcasing my voice in the soul and R&B range. I’m doing sessions out here with people I know already, but I’m still trying to find people outside of the blues world.”

In February, Ingram released a remix of “Another Life Goes By,” a song from his second album. Featuring seamlessly integrated rap by guest artist Big K.R.I.T., it’s a protest song. “We all know the blues was originally protest music,” Ingram said. “Everything that we see going on right now, with unarmed people getting killed by police, unnecessary wars—all of that is the blues of today. That’s what we have to talk about. Big K.R.I.T. was gracious enough to do it and it came out to be a beautiful piece.”

Ingram comes from a musical Mississippi family that includes many gospel musicians and one country star, Charley Pride, first cousin to his late mother, Princess Pride. A Muddy Waters documentary, Can’t Be Satisfied, drew him to play music and study at the Delta Blues Museum in Clarksdale with Richard “Daddy Rich” Crisman and Bill “Howl-N-Madd” Perry. Crisman nicknamed Ingram “Kingfish,” after a character in the TV sitcom The Amos ’n Andy Show.

“Pretty much what I did was go to school, come home and play,” Ingram said of early passion for music. “I’d get on YouTube and look up different blues guys and guys outside of the blues genre. That was my main thing. All of that molded me for this right now.”

At 10 years old, Ingram was performing in his hometown at Red’s Lounge and the Ground Zero Blues Club. Hardworking and dedicated though he was, he credits Clarksdale with helping him be the artist he is today. “Clarksdale has a rich blues history. I was exposed to all of that at an early age. I lived right next to a blues band that was a local legend. Being young and hanging in juke joints, if I hadn’t experienced all of that, I probably wouldn’t be talking to you right now.”

Celebrating Puerto Rico

Jazz Fest features everything Puerto Rican from music to food

BY STEVE HOCHMAN

After Puerto Rico was devastated by both Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, plans were made for the island’s rich heritage to be showcased as the Cultural Exchange for the 2020 Jazz Fest. Valerie Guillet, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival’s Cultural Exchange Pavilion coordinator, quickly turned to Puerto Rican musician and educator Tito Matos for guidance and to take a lead role in the events.

Now, after delays due to the pandemic, the planning is coming to fruition with a vast array of PR music, crafts, culture and food woven through Fest this year. And with Puerto Rico hit hard again last September by Hurricane Fiona, the urgency for awareness remains.

But sadly, it will also serve as a tribute to Matos. The beloved figure died last year of a heart attack in his San Juan home at just age 53.

“He had traveled to many countries and many states,” Guillet says of Matos’ tireless advocacy of Puerto Rican music. “But he had never been to New Orleans. So, he was very excited.”

It has turned this into something very personal,

as Matos was to have been there, helping oversee the programs and performances, as well as leading parades on the grounds.

“He still is,” Guillet says, pointedly using the present tense. “Definitely. We owe him a whole lot.”

His presence will be there through the two weekends of Fest, vividly in a mural is being done by artist Don Rimx with Matos at the center. And each day there will be parades through the grounds put together by the San Juan cultural institution now known as La Casa de la Plena Tito Matos. Proudly leading those parades now will be percussionist Emanuel Santana.

“Tito was my inspiration,” says Santana, who succeeded Matos as director of La Casa, from his home in San Juan. “He was like my father figure. I called him mi pai, which means my father. He used to call me son.”

The intricately rhythmic plena and its older sibling bomba are core to Puerto Rico’s social and ceremonial life going back to when West Africans were first brought to the Caribbean in the slave trade, comparable to the music that rose from slaves in New Orleans and coalesced in Congo Square.

“Some say it is a song ‘newspaper,’” Santana says.

“It talks about our everyday life. It is the music that we have at parties, that we have at funerals, that we have at protests, that we have in many ways. I’ll be representing La Plena at the New Orleans Jazz Festival, which is a very profound privilege and also a very profound responsibility.”

It’s in those parades

Puerto Rican musician and educator, the late Tito Matos.

that this spirit, and that of the late Matos, will be most profoundly and vibrantly felt. But his impact and presence will be there throughout the programming, a wide variety of sounds and sights representing Puerto Rico and its diaspora on the mainland. Santana himself, in addition to his role with the parades, will be bringing his group Emplegoste, with exuberant contemporary sounds tied to the traditions, appearing several times in the second weekend.

Other artists cover the spectrum, including reggaeton (Farruko), traditional Spanish-rooted jibaro (Conjunto Típico Samratino), bomba both rustic (Tambuye and La Raïz) and urban (Tribu de Abrante). The parades will feature Vejigantes, masked characters from Puerto Rican folklore. And New Orleans-based Alynda Segarra of Hurray For the Rif Raff is planning a special performance in the Cultural Exchange Pavilion highlighting her Puerto Rican roots on the second Friday, while electro-percussion band ÌFÉ, whose leader Otura Mun moved from Puerto Rico to New Orleans a few years ago, plays there the next day.

This sweeping range, too, is in the spirit of Matos, who toured the world with his own bands, including the groundbreaking Viento de Agua, as well as performing with Ricky Martin, Miguel Zenón and Eddie Palmieri, among others.

Puerto Rico of course is having a moment now with the global superstardom of Bad Bunny, following generations of artists taking the island’s sounds around the world, via the New Yorkbased salsa and boogaloo of Tito Puente, Willie Colon and Ray Barretto, the boisterous pop of Ricky Martin, the reggaeton of Daddy Yankee— not to mention Puerto Rican-American J-Lo. Santana hopes to show the foundations of all this, the paths back to where the music came from.

“I think they’ll get a very deep experience of our African heritage,” he says.

This extends beyond the music and beyond the shores of Puerto Rico, Guillet says.

“While we have focused on artists from the island, a majority of artists who live and survive on the island, we have elements of the Puerto Rican diaspora with our local groups and some exhibits,” she says. “We want to give that side of the story as well.”

Exhibits will include bomba workshops and a display of traditional bomba attire, photos of Puerto Rican life in the continental US by Wanda

Benvenutti and a presentation of album covers from Puerto Rican artists that shows the history of the music.

And then there’s the food.

“Ah, food! Of course,” Guillet says.

The main dish that will be served at the stand outside of the Cultural Exchange Pavilion will be trifongo, which she calls an “iconic dish of Puerto Rico,” a descendant of West African dishes with seasoning tied to the island’s Spanish legacy. Basically, it’s plantains mashed with yuca and garlic, fried—and then refried—which can be filled with pork, shrimp or served vegetables. Guillet, who has worked for Fest developing the cultural programs for 20 years, admits that on first experience in Puerto Rico she wasn’t sold.

“I thought it was a little too heavy for my personal taste,” she says. “And then we went to the countryside and stopped in a restaurant in the middle of nowhere and it was amazing. Just out of this world.”

She also notes that the pavilion itself, which will host acts from Africa and other international origins in addition to those from Puerto Rico, has been redesigned to accommodate more people and provide better sight lines than has been the case before. One change is that the crafts displays will now be in a new adjacent area. But it will not lose the special qualities that have made it such a popular feature.

“It’s an intimate stage and there’s a very direct connection with the performers,” she says. “The flip side is that the space is limited.

Puerto Rico, with a population of nearly 3.3 million, sits in the northeastern Caribbean, about 1600 miles from New Orleans. It is the third representative of the region to be featured thus at Jazz Fest, with Haiti and Cuba preceding. But it holds a distinct position in that it is not a

“While we have focused on artists from the island, a majority of artists who live and survive on the island, we have elements of the Puerto Rican diaspora with our local groups and some exhibits. We want to give that side of the story as well.”

country, of course, but officially an unincorporated territory of the U.S. with Commonwealth status. It’s neither this nor that situation that leads to some confusion for many less familiar with it. It’s not independent, but it’s not a state. It had a representative in the U.S. Congress, but without a vote. And yet it sent its own team to the recent World Baseball Classic tournament, as if it was an independent nation.

This has for generations made for political clashes over PR’s status, at times turning violent. Many proposals have been voted on among the Puerto Rican population and in the U.S. Congress, but with no changes are forthcoming. As of 2016, many government functions happen with direct oversight from a federal control board. The most recent referendum there, in the 2020 general election, saw 52 percent of voters favoring statehood.

Officially, Jazz Fest has no political position in the presentations, though many participants clearly will share their views. Santana, who sees the Jazz Fest time as an “opportunity for discussion,” favors independence and does not

hesitate to use a strong word to describe PR, politically.

“Colony,” he says, emphatically. “There’s no way around it. That’s what we are. And it is a very sad reality. But by taking our art to the world, representing our music and having a great time with many people, with many different points of view we can have a great time and with our music we are making a statement that we are a country and should be a free country. We are working toward it. We are looking to make a better place, based on love from Puerto Rico.”

This will have a special resonance in New Orleans, with the shared cultural histories, and seems certain to manifest in musical meetings. The idea of getting on stage with some New Orleans musicians or hopping into New Orleans second line parades with Black Masking Indians and brass bands is irresistible to him, as it would have been for Tito Matos.

“We’re looking forward to it,” he says. “It hasn’t been scheduled yet, but I’m sure it will happen. We can’t help ourselves if we see something like that. We’ll play along.” O

Friday April 28 at 3:05 p.m.

Give Me The Power

Luther Kent puts his heart and soul into music

BY JOHN WIRT

After 60 years on the bandstand, Luther Kent doesn’t often rehearse. Not even for his annual spot at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. When Kent, a.k.a. “Big” Luther Kent, and his 13-piece band, Trick Bag, play on Jazz Fest’s opening day, he’ll pick the songs he’s singing while he’s on stage performing. “Whatever feels right for the audience,” the blues, jazz and rhythm-and-blues singer said.

soul music he loves. Kent revels in the sonic force of trumpets, trombones and saxophones. “Give me the power,” he said.

But leading a nine-piece R&B horn band back in 1965, the midst of the guitar-wielding British invasion of America, made being a White rhythm-and-blues band challenging. “There were only a couple of [White] clubs that would book an R&B band—Coconut Grove in Baton Rouge and a place in New Orleans called Soul City,” Kent remembered. “So, the rest of the week, I worked at Black nightclubs and universities. I did that because of the kind of music that we did.”

At the height of the civil rights era that led to the federally mandated end of Louisiana’s state-sanctioned segregation, Kent’s White band wasn’t always quickly accepted by Black audiences. “It wasn’t cool with them at first,” he said. “They would look at us kind of funny—but the minute we started playing, they knew we were there for the right deal. That always overcomes everything.”

Kent has sung at nearly every Jazz Fest since 1979. His Blues Tent performance on Friday, April 28 will be his 43rd appearance at the festival. The nearly 75-year-old singer’s voice is strong despite decades of performing in smokefilled rooms. “As strong as it’s ever been,” he said. “I’ve been fortunate. I’ve never had any troubles with my voice.”

Since the 1960s, when Kent was a teenager performing as Duke Royal, he’s made a point of working with horns, instruments that are essential to the classic rhythm-and-blues and

Wardell Quezergue, the late New Orleans conductor and arranger, witnessed Kent win over a Black audience during a gig they performed together. “Luther stole their heart,” Quezergue said in 2009. “For a White artist doing blues, I don’t hear anyone any better than him. He puts his heart into things, and soul.”

A native of New Orleans, Kent was 13-years-old when his widowed mother moved her family to Baton Rouge. But by then he’d thoroughly absorbed his deeply musical hometown’s rhythm and soul. It helped that Kent’s

older brother performed in a band that played New Orleans rhythm-and-blues favorites as well as the music of such national stars as Ray Charles. “I used to go to gigs with them when I was kid, because I loved the music so much,” Kent recalled. “I’d go sit on the side of the stage and listen to them play all night long.”

Kent’s love for music led to a lifetime of performing and inevitable ups and downs. His near misses at a bigger career included a doomed record deal during the early 1970s with Lou Adler’s Ode Records [as a member of Cold Grits]. Twenty years later, Kent was riding high when he sang the role of R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co.’s popular but controversial cartoon character, Joe Camel. But Joe Camel vanished from Reynolds’ advertising portfolio in 1997 following years of criticism from anti-smoking groups. Another promising high-profile project Kent participated in, the 1990 TV musical-crime series, Cop Rock, was canceled after 13 episodes.

Kent’s career highlights include two 1970s stints with Blood, Sweat, & Tears and his 2009 album, The Bobby Bland Songbook. Quezergue—the masterful arranger for Professor Longhair’s “Big Chief,” Robert Parker’s “Barefootin’,” the Dixie Cups’ “Ike Iko,” Earl King’s “Trick Bag” and the concert film Deacon John’s Jump Blues—arranged the Bland tribute album. For Kent, Quezergue was an extraordinary collaborator and a special friend. “Wardell was a beautiful cat,” he said.

Featuring 12 classics from the Bland catalog, The Bobby Bland Songbook took Kent back to the music that compelled him to sing. He was 12-years-old when he first heard Bland’s recording of “Don’t Cry No More” playing on a corner bar jukebox on Washington Avenue. He’d never heard anything like it.

Bland, a rhythm and blues-influenced blues star, and soul singer James Brown became Kent’s bedrock inspirations. “The Live at the Apollo album by James Brown, the first time I heard that, it completely blew my mind,” Kent recalled. “That and Two Steps from the Blues by Bobby Bland. I used to wear those two albums out.”

At the beginning of his career, Kent wore his voice out imitating Brown. “That about killed me, but I loved doing it,” he said. “I did it for a good while, and I had a band that lent itself to that style of music. A nine-piece band with a four-piece horn section. People really liked it a lot, but I never did it because it was popular.” O

Saturday April 29 at 4:20 p.m. Economy Hall Stage

A Fascinating Background

Catherine Russell will have a good time at Jazz Fest

BY CREE MCCREE

Catherine Russell may be making her Jazz Fest debut in 2023, but her New Orleans roots run deep. Her dad, Luis Russell, recorded with Louis Armstrong in 1929 and 1930 and served as Armstrong’s musical director from 1935 to 1940. She also contributed to Wynton Marsalis’s soundtrack for the 2019 docudrama “Bolden,” which explored the near-mythic life of Buddy Bolden, considered by many (including Armstrong) to be first person to play jazz.

Over the years, the Grammy-winning jazz and blues vocalist has been to town many times, but we didn’t cross paths before now—at least not in New Orleans.

Russell and I go way back in the New York music scene of the early ’90s, But, though I watched her perform years ago in New York, and recently saw her deliver a lively NPR Tiny Desk Concert, I didn’t know anything about Russell’s fascinating background until we finally met via Zoom in St. Louis, where she was in town playing the St. Louis Jazz Festival.

Do you actually make an appearance in the Bolden movie? I do. Playing a madam.

Oh, cool. I bet the costume was fabulous for that. The costume was fantastic. The high button boots that they had me in were great.

Have you spent much time in New Orleans? Yes. The first time I came here was for Doc Cheatham’s funeral, in 1997, and I stayed above Snug Harbor, right there on Frenchmen Street. I’ve been back for three or four Satchmo SummerFests in August, and I was just down there this past week for the Danny Barker Festival.

The first half of the 20th century is pretty much where I live. I love the songwriting [from that time]. I love the way that I have to sing those tunes and I gain a lot of strength from the character of women who sang them. At Jazz Fest, I’ll be playing Economy Hall, the traditional stage.

Will you have any local players with you? Not this time, no. I’ve got a great band and I’m bringing them with me. But I just worked with Dr. Michael White at the Danny Barker festival, I had a masterclass and a presentation, and I worked with Don Vappie too.

People can get a taste of your music on your latest CD, Good Time Music . Will you be selling that at the Fair Grounds? Yes. But what I’m really excited about is a new CD of my dad, Luis Russell’s music, of

recordings that were sitting in my mother’s closet for about 70 years.

Oh my God. What a treasure trove. My husband Paul, who’s also my business partner and historian, had them restored and digitized and remastered. There’s a combination of live Luis Russell with Louis Armstrong between 1938 and 1940. Henry Red Allen and Paul Barbarin and Albert Nicholas, everybody’s on those. Also, the Luis Russell Orchestra and some Luis Russell solo piano pieces. A really beautiful compilation that Paul compiled from the things that I collected.

Your dad was originally from Panama. Have you been to Panama? Do you still have family there? Yes and yes, I did went to Panama the first time 15 years ago, 2008, and did the Panama Jazz Festival. And we just went in January—we did the Panama Jazz Festival again this year, and went to the Boca El Toro Archipelago, where my dad is from. He’s from the tiny islet of Karina Key and we stayed on the island for four days. It was fantastic. I actually stayed right where my dad was born and spent his childhood. I got to look at the same

things my dad looked at as a boy.

Do you do any music from Panama? My dad co-wrote a tune called “Bocas del Toro” and we do that in my show. We found sheet music for that; he had a lot of sheet music of things that he’d never recorded, and I started to do the tune with my own band.

Are there other people you want to see while you’re at the Fair Grounds? I’ve heard about the gospel tent for decades. I’d love to do that because I came up partially in gospel music in my late teens. Also, brass bands. I was able to hear the Treme Brass Band when they played at the Danny Barker Festival, and we were dancing with the Baby Dolls.

The brass band tradition is something that my mother’s father grew up with. He was from Alabama, and a sousaphone player. I played a little bit of tuba when I was in my teens.

What should people expect when they come to see you in Economy Hall? Well, I love to have a good time. That’s the main thing I get out of the New Orleans tradition. We all have fun and people dance. O

Saturday May 6 at 11:15 a.m. Gospel Tent

Joy, Celebration and Comfort

Connie and Dwight Fitch married in life and to gospel music

BY GERALDINE WYCKOFF

Connie and Dwight Fitch, a married couple in life as well as in gospel music, met each other when they were teenagers while she was attending St. Mary’s High School and he was a student at St. Augustine.

“We’ve been together since then,” says Connie with some delight. Dwight then adds that they began performing with each other in a rhythm and blues band called the Exiles.

Their initial, formal entrance into New Orleans’ rich gospel community came in 1971 when the priest at St. Raymond Catholic Church asked them to start a gospel choir. Connie explains that the church always had a choir though not really a “gospel” choir. “We brought it—hand-clapping music.” Meanwhile they also worked under their own names for private events

such as weddings and funerals.

At this year’s New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, the two noted musicians and gospel community activists perform as Connie & Dwight Fitch with the St. Raymond and St. Leo the Great Gospel Choir as they have since after Hurricane Katrina. As Connie puts it, “It was marriage between two churches—they merged.”

At the Fest, the blended members of the male and female, mixed-aged choir will total approximately 45 enthusiastic vocalists. “We try to do a little bit of everything—traditional and contemporary. When we are ministering to a wide audience, we want everybody to be touched.”

The ensemble will, as usual, bring in their own band for its appearance in the Gospel Tent. “I like to use horn players because some of the gospel arrangements that we do require horns—at least a sax and trumpet,” says Dwight who will man the piano in the group that will also include a guitar, bass and drums.

Connie and Dwight, who have been married for 53 years, do all of their own arrangements on classic material as well as tunes from popular contemporary gospel artists. Some they might choose from include Bebe & CeCe Winans, Hezekiah Walker, the Mississippi Mass Choir and the Chicago Mass Choir. They also arrange classics such as “Amazing Grace,” as well as write the arrangements for their original songs, many of which fill the Fitch’s two recordings.

Behind the scenes at Jazz Fest, the two act as consultants

COURTESY OF THE ARTIST

Sunday May 7 at 4 p.m. Alison Miner Stage

and backstage managers. Long before the gates at the Fair Grounds open, the couple poured over submissions by hopeful artists and went out to listen to them. “We kind of scout,” says Connie adding that they provide recommendations while Jazz Fest does the actual booking.

On Sundays, Dwight and Connie can be found at the St. Raymond and St. Leo the Great Church on Paris Avenue. At 8 a.m., Dwight leads the senior choir, the Ambassadors for Christ, in a program of traditional Catholic hymns. For the 10 a.m. mass, Connie directs a choir in more contemporary gospel music.

For 26 years, Dwight has directed and played piano for the Xavier Gospel Choir, and he also directs the Shades of Praise that will be at the Fest again this year. The two founded the non-profit Fitchfield Foundation whose mission is to bring further music education in the community, support musicians and to aid the indigent who might need assistance.

comes together.”

A burst of energy and joyfulness takes place as Rosalee Washington, the Tambourine Lady, weaves her magic on the rhythmic instrument as she dances at the side of the Gospel Tent stage.

“Every time we hit the stage, we invite Lady Tambourine to join us,” says Connie offering that one of their responsibilities as consultants is to find out who wants the always invigorating and smiling tambourine player to take part in their performance.

Naturally, Connie and Dwight truly relish performing in the Gospel Tent as have the many gospel artists who’ve raised their voices in praise at Jazz Fest since its beginnings in Congo Square. An amen to the late great Sherman Washington, the leader of the mighty Zion Harmonizers, for making gospel an important element at the Fest by convincing other gospel artists to participate.

“I think that one of the most rewarding things is the way the music is received by the people,” Dwight says of being on stage at the Gospel Tent. “When they sing along, that’s when you know that you are reaching them—they’re participating. Even to see the hands go up and to see movement among the whole crowd, how exciting is that? After I see that, I know that the word has gone forth.”

Connie enjoys the preparations for their festival appearances: the rehearsals and learning new music, polishing up material and subsequently having the band come in. Then there are meetings to decide—details like choosing the color of their always-coordinated apparel. “We have robes but it’s way too hot to wear choir robes,” she truthfully exclaims. “It’s exciting to see everything that we worked on when it

Usually at separate times, Connie and Dwight do “sneak away” to hear artists performing at the other tents and stages. They mention Stevie Wonder, Allen Toussaint—whom Connie and her sister once worked for as background singers—Connie’s nephew, Davell Crawford, and Elton John. “To be able to get a chance to see some of the artists that Jazz Fest brings to the grounds is phenomenal, it’s phenomenal,” Connie exclaims.

When considering acts to perform in the Gospel Tent, the duo tries to make sure that both small ensembles and choirs that offer a diversity of styles are represented. A handful of artists they suggest folks should check out include old faves like the Zion Harmonizers, the Bester Singers, Leo Jackson and the Jackson Travelers (with the leader often carrying a suitcase), the Archdiocese of New Orleans Mass Choir and Tyronne Foster and the Arc Singers. “He’s a dynamic director,” Connie exclaims. “In the Gospel Tent, the high school choirs be burnin’—they are hot. “Those children can really sing.”

Finally, Connie simply says, “Music can do whatever you need it to do—bring joy, bring celebration, bring comfort. It does all of that.”

“I think what we want people to recognize is that we love what we do, we love music—all kinds of music, we love gospel music. We want people to know that we are sincere about loving the Lord.”

“I think what we want people to recognize is that we love what we do, we love music—all kinds of music, we love gospel music. We want people to know that we are sincere about loving the Lord.”

Saturday April 29 at 3 p.m. Alison Miner Stage

Saturday April 29 at 5:30 p.m. Gentilly Stage

Fly Like An Eagle Steve Miller’s

musical garden

BY MARK GUARINO

Steve Miller was a mainstay of commercial radio in the 1970s based on his steady flow of endurable hits—“The Joker,” “Livin’ in the USA,” “Take the Money and Run,” “Rock’n Me,” “Fly Like an Eagle,” “Jet Airliner,” “Jungle Love,” and “Abracadabra” among them. But most people may not know that his musical roots go beyond the psychedelic rock sound he honed with the Steve Miller Band.

Now 80, Miller grew up in Milwaukee and outside Dallas where his parents, both jazz aficionados, opened their home to blues, gospel, and jazz musicians who were early mentors. Stints in Chicago and San Francisco helped strengthen his virtuosity and songcraft. These days, between touring on his older catalog, Miller is involved curating and hosting shows at Jazz at Lincoln Center where Wynton Marsalis personally invited him to join the board.

Miller, who plays Jazz Fest on Saturday, April 29, talked recently about this career. What follows is an edited transcript of that conversation.

Jazz Fest kicks off another summer of touring for you. What does it mean for you to return? For me, it’s the center of all the culture of the blues. When I go to New Orleans and play, it feels like I’m at home in the middle of it all. You don’t have to explain it to people. It’s a very special thing. It’s like where musically, the racial barriers have come down. It’s this place where everything came together—it’s that gumbo, man. It’s trite to say, but it’s exactly how I feel when I get there.

When people look at your background beyond your hits, you can hear the strains of every kind of American roots music. I know you heard Texas blues when you grew up in that state and Chicago blues when you played with Buddy Guy. But how did you discover New Orleans music? It was part of the neighborhood. New Orleans music was part of our pop music growing up. In the early ’50s, before Top 10 radio got hold of everything, the pop music in Texas was stuff from New Orleans—Fats Domino, Jimmy Reed, Little Walter—that was stuff played on the radio that everybody listened to. That was one of the

THE ARTIST

great things growing up in Dallas, although it was horribly and grotesquely segregated, musically it wasn’t. So, I got exposed to the music on the radio and on records.

You were interacting with Black artists when you were very young. Like Texas, Chicago was famously segregated in the early 1960s when you arrived there. As a young White guitarist, what was that like to navigate when playing with these musicians? I was comfortable from my experience in Texas. When I was 14, we backed up Jimmy Reed. T-Bone Walker was a family friend. I was really comfortable navigating a situation where it was completely racist and yet when I grew up, my father was a Communist. We were a really different family. We weren’t like kids that grew up in Texas with that built-in prejudice. I also was used to moving around. The first time I came to Chicago and saw the blues scene, I was so cocky. I was watching [Paul] Butterfield’s band, which was just phenomenal. I remember walking in and saying, “I could do this shit. This is what this is all about? Give me a bass player and drummer…I want to go to work immediately!”

I was lucky. I had a cousin who was a lawyer who lived on the Near North Side. I had a room in the back. I was three blocks from Rush Street but then started going to the South Side. I remember going over to see Howlin’ Wolf for the first time at Silvio’s on the West Side of Chicago. It was a really, really rough neighborhood. But we went anyway. It was a shotgun house with a long skinny bar. [Guitarist] Hubert Sumlin was on the bandstand playing, the band all had turquoise tuxedos, it was a wedding cake bandstand with the drummer on the top. There was no Howlin’ Wolf. I asked the bartender where he was and was told, “Oh, he’s in the back room.” I opened the door and there was Howlin’ Wolf sitting in a chair with his harmonica singing and entertaining 500 people in a side room that looked like a high school cafeteria. All the lights were on. I slithered around to the back. As I was watching, Howlin’ Wolf said to crowd, “I want you to be nice to these White boys, they’re friends of mine.” I had never met him. So, you just felt protected as a musician. You could go in and out. We all played together.

Your parents were outliers because they hosted Black musicians in their home and exposed you to music that you weren’t supposed to hear. What made them so different from other adults in their day? I had often wondered that. They were raised in Missouri near Jefferson City. They were like country people. But

they were musicians. On my mother’s side, there were three musicians in the family. Everybody played piano. I had an uncle who played hot jazz violin with [bandleader] Paul Whitman. They were just dirt-poor farmers. I always like, “How did these hillbillies from Missouri become so hip? How did they know all this stuff?” I think it was all the radio. They were as hip as they could be about Kansas City jazz. And they had a record collection that wouldn’t stop.

My dad was a pathologist. But he was also a master electrician, a master mason, a master carpenter, a boat builder. And he always had a great hi-fi system. In Milwaukee, there were parties with Les Paul, Charlies Mingus, people like that were kind of around and at our house. They were drinking, they were having parties, they were staying up late. There was this hipster scene going in Milwaukee. When we got out of Milwaukee, the next thing I knew my dad was recording Sister Rosetta Tharpe at some Baptist church in Texas. We didn’t even know who she was. He was a music man. And my mother could sing like Ella Fitzgerald, and her sisters could really sing too. There was lots of singing going on.

My dad would go out to see people play. He’d just ask the musicians, “Can I bring my tape recorder” and they’d always say, “Yeah sure.” There was never a problem about that. It was way before most people had tape recorders. It was a Magnecord, which was the most professional recording machine there was at the time. And the recordings he made were great.

Do any of them survive? I have a bunch of T-Bone. And I have some of Les Paul. And there’s some others that I haven’t really gone into for years. There are 20 cuts of T-Bone that are amazing. They are beautifully recorded and beautifully played. It’s better than his records. And he is with a really great pianist whom I can’t identify. And they were at our house. I was nine at the time. I was sitting next to T-Bone watching him play.

Do you plan to release them? We’re working on that. The plan is to release the T-Bone recordings. I’ve already given away tons of copies to friends and musicians like [the late] B.B. King.

Your last few records focused on music that influenced you. Are you still writing songs? I am. The pandemic was a life-changing thing for me. I’ve been writing lots of music and some lyrics and I’m working with the guys and we’re working up stuff. It’s kind of weird because making records right now is

really like a lost cause. But despite that, we’re still playing a lot of new stuff. I got inspired during the pandemic. I got into writing again. I was also listening to [jazz saxophonist] Eddie Harris and [jazz drummer] Chico Hamilton during the pandemic. They are on my mind all the time. I’m listening to all their recordings and that’s kind of where I think I’m headed.

Audience? There are different places where you can push my audience and some places where you can’t. I played all over the United States for 50 years nonstop. And I love touring. I love live performances and I love my audience. But there have been times where I felt I was really in a box and couldn’t get out of it. I know they’re here to hear me play “The Joker,” I know they want to hear “Jungle Love” and “Take the Money and Run” and “Fly Like an Eagle.” There’re 14 or 15 songs I have to play.

So how do I go from “Jungle Love” to Chico Hamilton and the blues? The good thing is, now that I’ve lived so long and played so long, my audience is getting a lot hipper. It wasn’t like that in the ’90s where it was like, “You gotta play the greatest hits or forget it.” There’s room to expand

now. And the great thing is that it keeps growing. But the greatest hits are a big part of what makes our audience and brings it together and we always respect that. But I also get to do these shows at Jazz at Lincoln Center. So, I do a little bit of both.

You have a catalog of hits that have sustained you for your entire career. Which song are you most proud of?

“Fly like an Eagle.” Just because it’s a piece of music that really states the human condition and confronts it in a very simple and straightforward way. It makes people think without thumping them on the chest with your forefinger. It’s an inspirational song and I always love it because anything can happen. It’s like a plant in a garden—it’s different every time we play it, it’s different every time we water it, it’s different every season. Musically it has all that room, and lyrically it was magical to write. I remember working really, really, really hard on that. I recorded it three different times with three different groups of people until I got it the way I wanted it. I remember doing vocal overdubs and being bored to death getting all these pieces right. Then it came out and people responded to it. It was like I made this compact seed that grew into this unbelievable garden. O

New Beginning

Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. is keeping his father’s legacy alive

BY DAN WILLGING

It’s not always easy following in the footsteps of your major dad, especially when he’s the legendary Buckwheat Zydeco (1947-2016) who brought zydeco to worldwide prominence— more so than his mentor and genre founder Clifton Chenier. After spending three years playing organ in Chenier’s Red Hot Louisiana Band, Buckwheat Zydeco, a.k.a. Stanley Dural, Jr., founded his own group, Buckwheat Zydeco and Ils Sont Parti Band. (Ils Sont Parti means “they left,” a commonly heard cry when the horses sprint out of the chute at a local racetrack.)

Among Buckwheat Zydeco’s accomplishments was being the first zydeco artist signed to a major label, Island Records (home of Bob Marley), and performing at the closing ceremony of the 1996 Atlanta Summer Olympics, viewed by a worldwide audience of three billion. Additionally, he played at President Clinton’s inauguration ceremony twice.

His son Sir Reginald Masters Dural knows that and realizes such herculean feats aren’t easily topped, but that doesn’t deter him. Starting at age 17, Dural was Ils Sont Parti’s rubboard player. As the years wore on and cancer took its toll on Buckwheat, Dural assumed a bigger role by jumping on organ and accordion and handling lead vocals. It was a sad day for zydeco and the Dural Family when Buckwheat succumbed to the deadly disease on September 24, 2016.

The following year, 2017, Jazz Fest organized a Buckwheat Zydeco Tribute featuring Dural,

Nathan Williams, Corey Ledet, and CJ Chenier. At that performance, the torch was symbolically passed to Dural, and Buckwheat’s former band became Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. and Ils Sont Parti Band.

Growing up in Lafayette’s McComb neighborhood, Buckwheat was just “dad” to Dural, even though the youth knew there was something special about his neighborhood of musicians.

Living across the street was Clifton Chenier. “I remember [Chenier] was really tall with big hands and he was really nice,” Dural recalls. “And he was a monster on accordion.”

Chenier’s longtime drummer Robert St. Julien lived around the corner, and three blocks away was Paul “Lil’ Buck” Sinegal, who played guitar for both Chenier and Buckwheat. Some of Dural’s fondest memories of Buckwheat and Chenier performing together were at Lafayette’s Blue Angel Club.

“They used to go at it all the time,” Dural explains. “My dad was on Hammond B3. [Chenier] was on accordion—two talented musicians with lots of respect for one another.”

As a youth, Dural was into sports, playing basketball—his favorite—and football. It wasn’t until later that Dural developed a passion for music. “I was a freshman in high school when I began to take notice of what my dad was doing,” he says. “I started putting my time in on Hammond B3 and accordion, and it just went on from there.”

BUCKWHEAT Z YDECO JR.

Dural says his father’s advice guided him along as a developing musician. “Even though I’m my worst critic, he always told me it’s a blessing to do what I do,” says Dural. “He used to say, ‘Don’t stop doing what I do because I’m good at it. Don’t ever take it for granted.”

Today, Ils Sont Parti includes family members, drummer Ken Menard and bassist Lee Allen Zeno, who both played for years with Buckwheat. Dural’s 17-year-old son, Kyle Anthony SemienDural, heats the rubboard beat while Lance Ellis wails on saxophone. Joseph Chavis replaced the late Sinegal (1944-2019) on guitar.

Now Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. and Ils Sont Parti are rolling again, putting the disruptive pandemic behind it. The group recently toured Switzerland and has performed various concerts around the country, including Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Tucson, Las Vegas and Cocoa Beach’s Mardi Gras, opening for longstanding reggae group Steel Pulse. Obviously, the gig went well. Buckwheat Zydeco, Jr. and Ils Sont Parti are already booked there for 2024.

A new CD titled New Beginning on Dural’s

Bloodline Music imprint was released in mid-April featuring eight originals and two tunes culled from his father’s repertoire. The recording was done at Lockdown Studio by Michael Lockett, who guests on keys.

“My style is similar to my dad’s style but in my own way,” Dural says. “I think people are going to be impressed with the songs. It’s bringing it back to how zydeco used to be.” Onstage and in the studio, Dural alternates between the Hammond B3 and his primary accordion, his father’s bulky, 50-pound, marble-white piano note.

“We’re just trying to keep the legacy going,” Dural says.

It’s paramount for Dural to continue his father’s legacy, which has become a family tradition not only for him but also for his son Anthony. “He [Buckwheat] always said he was going to make this work and bring it to another level,” Dural continues. “He fought really hard, a lot of long nights and little pay, but it was all about the culture. He loved the Creole culture, and he kept pushing, and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.” O

What It Means To Get A Jazz Fest Gig

BY KIMBERLY KAYE

The crowd looks like a psychedelic wonderland of wildflowers. Sometimes clouds cast shadows over the uneven sea of vibrant caftans, gator-patterned buttondown shirts, and festival hats, patches of midday sun illuminating masses of rosy faces. It’s a view familiar to generations of musicians privileged enough to stand on a festival stage—and a thrilling, if nerve-wracking, sight for New Orleans artists making their all-important Jazz Fest debuts.

“I was SO NERVOUS,” recalls 2023 main stage performer Maggie Koerner of her very first appearance roughly a decade ago. “It’s like a debutante’s coming-out ball. I felt like I was finally being included in The Club of New Orleans Musicians.”

“I’m a ball of nerves before taking any stage, but Jazz Fest in particular is such a milestone for me because I grew up watching it as a spectator,” echoes New Orleans native and Loyola alum Mia Borders, who debuted on the Gentilly Stage as a 20-something. “I wound up tearing my vocal cords onstage during [my debut] and couldn’t speak for the next six weeks. Thankfully my performances have gotten less dramatic since.”

It’s been a relief to hear premiere-related nerves are fairly ubiquitous, even amongst crowd favorites with thousands of live shows under their belts. Because full disclosure: My band, Loose Cattle,

debuts its first-ever feature slot not as guests on another artists’ set this year… and I’ve already had one nightmare about getting onstage and blanking every lyric while being jeered by an audience weaponizing their crawfish. (This is not a joke, and yes, I have a great therapist.)

I’m not alone. We’ve been playing shows from NPR’s Mountain Stage to New York’s storied Lincoln Center for years, but something about getting the call to perform your own music at your town’s premiere music event, in front of everyone you know, hits different. My co-frontman and creative partner, Michael Cerveris, is a bonafide Broadway star with two Tony Awards, who’s stood before tens of thousands of people across a 30-year TV and stage career, and even he’s jittery about our formal introduction to Fest fans.

“It’s not just that Jazz Fest crowds are some of the best, most attentive, and discerning anywhere, or that I feel I have to rise to meet their expectations. I also have to compete with my own memories of all the heart-stopping, feet-moving, tear-jerking, smile-beaming, downright rocking shows I’ve seen myself over the decade plus I’ve been coming to the Fair Grounds,” Cerveris says. “More than anything, Loose Cattle wants to gift that kind of experience for everyone who makes their way to see us on the Lagniappe Stage this year. It means everything to ‘be in that number.’”

Paul Sanchez’ Rolling Road Show where Kimberly Kaye and Michael Cerveris performed for the first time at Jazz Fest.

Which is a big thing to admit. Musicians, as a general rule, work overtime not to care whether they’re “in” or “out.” Nothing is less cool than trying to BE cool, and fixating on social hierarchy has a long legacy of murdering the quality of music. But in any community as small as New Orleans, or in an industry as insular ours, it’s nearly impossible not to care whether your band will be chosen to represent the city one lives in and bleeds in daily. Getting “the call” means the years poured into honing musicianship, writing, refining, rehearsing, and grinding through poorly-paid performances at starter venues hasn’t been for naught. Being passed over can make even the most decorated and experienced performers feel unseen, misunderstood, and dismissed.

“I didn’t fully realize how coveted making [the festival lineup] was until hearing the frontman of a very well-known national touring act complain about not getting a festival slot, while they were performing at the Joy Theatre,” says Arsène DeLay, a 13th generation New Orleanian who is debuting her own solo act this year after decades backing family.

This is because DeLay, a legacy performer, began getting hauled onstage at Fest by her aunt Lillian Boutté, and later uncle John Boutté, as an introverted teen. They didn’t stop when she ascended into womanhood, going on to blow the roof off shows as lead vocalist for groups like Funk Monkey and The A2D2 Experience. This year’s solo debut marks a moment she’s been waiting for as an independent singer-songwriter for years, in part because of the opportunity to share her own self-penned works, but also as testimony to how her elders’ investment in the next generation paid off.

“I was rgularly pulled out of my comfort zone by all of my performing family members. One Fest Lillian [Boutté] called a song I didn’t know, so I went to leave the stage. She said, ‘Stay up here,’ put her arm around me, and gave me the line reads for the first round,” recalls DeLay, describing the nerve-wracking New Orleans musical right-ofpassage which is being fed lyrics cold in front of a live audience. “She taught me how to pick [a song] up on the fly. In this business, that’s a life skill worth having.” And a skill that’s contributed to DeLay finally being spot-lit as a stand-alone talent.

For some “old heads”—musicians who’ve played Jazz Fest so regularly they’ve lost count— watching colleagues make debuts is a seasonal

thrill on par with that first mango freeze or playing a packed Tipitina’s. It’s one of the reasons Paul Sanchez often shares his Rolling Road Show set, an annual festival standout, with lesser-known local performers working to build their profile in New Orleans. “I love the look—not just on the face of the performer, but on the faces of their family, friends, loved ones, all the folks who believed in them, all smiling with pride and love because they always knew they’d see their loved one on a big stage,” explains Sanchez, who made his debut with Cowboy Mouth back in 1992.

“I love being surrounded by people I respect and admire and watching them have so much fun making music together,” Sanchez says. “Their smiles seem almost childlike in the purity of the joy.”

He’s most excited this year to share his moment with singer and performance artist niece, Natasha Sanchez, continuing the beautiful tradition of families passing the torch while a crowd of benevolent strangers watch.

If you love heartwarming, full-circle stories, Sanchez was the first New Orleanian and Jazz Fest regular to invite Cerveris and myself onstage to sing with the aforementioned Rolling Road show, somewhere around 2011. He was also the one who told us: “You two should really start a band.” Having taken that advice perhaps too seriously, we’ll be on the very same well-shaded stage Sanchez first welcomed us on to—nervously, but excitedly—May 4.

Whether our tale will have a happy ending is entirely on the band now. Sanchez, Borders, and DeLay have all kindly reminded us that nervousness is just misplaced excitement, a powerful energy source which just needs to be twisted and reshaped, like a balloon animal, into the exhilaration which drives the best kinds of live performances. If we do well enough to get invited back, we’ll have the chance to pay the same debut gift given to us forward in future performances, something that feels as important as nailing harmonies and showing visitors a good time.

Even if the melomaniacs who fly great distances just to enter the Fair Grounds don’t pop by our set, I’m cheering for them to seek out, or stumble upon, as many other premiere performances as possible. Like Sanchez says, getting to see “the look” up close is rare medicine everyone deserves to get a dose of.

And I’m praying one feels a need to use their crawfish shells as a projectile protest at any stage, anywhere. Those suckers really sting on contact. O

Sunday May 7 at 2:10 p.m.

A Forever Family For the Continental Drifters the story is

BY BRETT MILANO

The Flatlanders once claimed they were “more a legend than a band,” but the Continental Drifters are a little of both. Anyone who followed the Drifters in the ’90s-’00s can vouch for the volume of terrific songs, the onstage spirit and camaraderie, and the inexplicability that a band this good never got massively big. And for a band that doesn’t technically exist anymore, they’ll be all over Jazz Fest—playing at least three club shows (the finale will be second Sunday at Chickie Wah Wah) in addition to their first Fair Grounds show in more than a decade.

“We’ve been not a band for so long now that getting back together to play this music feels like a really great thing,” longtime member and multiinstrumentalist Peter Holsapple said. “When we don’t have to be a band all the time, we wind up enjoying each other’s company tremendously. And when you’re not a band, you think that people don’t remember when you were one. But it turns out that they do.”

While everyone is usually up for a reunion, logistics tends to be the problem. So, the fact that they’ve pulled it off now (after a one-week reunion at South by Southwest last year) brings smiles all around. “Each Drifter reunion

not over

is like a Christmas holiday,” says Susan Cowsill. “I look forward to this one and all the joy it will bring. I love these people—my Drifters are forever family.”

Adds drummer Russ Broussard, “It feels like we have a seventh member that’s playing us—like I’m not drumming in the Drifters, it’s drumming me. That happens so rarely in music, but with this band it happens 90 percent of the time. The nuances of drumming change with every band I play in, whether I’m driving a band or riding with a band. I forgot that the Drifters don’t take effort,

so it’s about learning to relax again.”

“I’ve always seen the Drifters as this Hydra,” says Holsapple. “We’re all independent heads attached to this same body. I’ve been in bands, we’ve all been in bands, we all know what that’s like. But for me at least, this is a far more visceral thing.” Adds bassist Mark Walton, “The band has changed considerably since the beginning, but somehow, it’s still the same exact band; it still has the same commitment, the same love and attention to detail. So, it always feels sad again when we separate.”

The band playing Jazz Fest is the Vermilion album lineup, with a few familiar New Orleans faces and a few who’ve drifted elsewhere. Longtime partners Cowsill and Broussard are touring with the Cowsills, and showing up in other local situations, when not playing in their own band. Robert Mache (guitar) is in Lulu & the Broadsides. Vicki Peterson (vocals/guitar) is still a Bangle, but just toured Europe as guest lead guitarist in the Dream Syndicate—also Walton’s regular band since it reunited a few years back. And Holsapple’s in North Carolina, where he made the solo album Game Day a few years back, played a few recent gigs with his old dB’s partner Chris Stamey, and devoted his energy to more songwriting. Holsapple’s album included a song called “Continental Drifters,” which said a lot about the lingering affection its members feel for the band. “I cried when I heard it,” Walton says; and they may even work it up as a band for Jazz Fest.

Defining their music has always been a tough one. All the members have songs in the repertoire, and they’ve got some vast collections to pull cover tunes from. The ’60s pop element got stronger when Peterson and Cowsill joined the band, but the open-road Americana element never went away either. English folk-rock came into the mix as well, but how they’ll juggle those elements depends on the moment. “We’re slaves to our songs,” says Holsapple. “I think the fact that there’s been so many writers in the history of the band makes it hard to plug into a self-evident style. If you take Susan’s songs alone, she’s got ‘Someday’ which is rockin’ to the gills, and then something like ‘Cousin’ which is intensely heavy—and that’s just one person’s songs. If anything ties it together it’s that we can take those songs and make it of a piece.”

They’ve had some memorable Jazz Fests in

the past, including the time they were slotted opposite Phish’s Fairgrounds debut and drew a respectable crowd anyway. Of all the shows they’ve played, the most epic ones may have happened in 2015, at Tipitina’s and a week afterward in Los Angeles. For the first time they had all 10 official Drifters onstage at the same time, going through a sizable chunk of the band’s repertoire. The shows went past four and a half hours—beating Springsteen’s longest one by at least 30 minutes—and could have gone later still if the plug hadn’t been pulled. The notion of doing that again brings a few jokes and demands for onstage bathroom facilities. “This year we’re definitely stopping at three hours, 59 minutes,” Broussard says.

But sadly, it can never happen exactly that way again. Last year the band had its first loss in the ranks, with the passing of Carlo Nuccio in August. It was Nuccio who convinced the band, then based in Los Angeles, to move to New Orleans. Though he left in 1994 (and handpicked then-Bluerunners member Broussard as his replacement), his presence still looms large in the band he co-founded. “I think he’ll always be in the ranks,” says Walton. “There’s always this specter in our heads, making sure we’re doing what we’re supposed to do. He was a largerthan-life guy, so without him it’s hard to continue.” Holsapple had Nuccio on his first solo album as well as the Drifters. “He drove me pretty hard and made me a better writer and musician so I could keep up with him.”

Adds Broussard, “Had I not joined this band I probably wouldn’t have done a deep dive into Carlo’s drumming and his songs; how he feels rhythm and groove and backbeat. And Susan and I would probably never have met. So, man, losing him... I just had a day where it hit me again. It’s like everything has changed, like a 400-year-old oak tree in front of my house is no longer there.”

It may be a while before everybody’s schedules can align again, but meanwhile there’s a few things underway. Catalogue reissues are on the table; you might even see some of their albums on vinyl. Writer and musician Sean Kelly has a book about them coming out, and there’s even a strong possibility of a tribute album. So as Madonna would put it, maybe there’s finally enough love. “I think the love has always been out there from the people who’ve heard us and appreciate what we do, and that’s what enables us to continue,” says Walton. “So, I don’t think the story is over.” O

Friday April 30 at 11:25 a.m. Lagniappe Stage

Homegrown Indie Pop

Joe Adragna and The Junior League’s melodic songs

BY BRETT MILANO

Any talk with Junior League mastermind

Joe Adragna is bound to come around to the glories of classic pop. He’s been immersed in that world since he heard “I Want to Hold Your Hand” on the radio at age four, and his knowledge of pop’s back pages informs his savvy as a songwriter. Name a deep track by the Monkees or the Cyrkle and he can probably sing you the chorus hook, and then he might go off and write one of his own.

The trick is how he channels all those hooks in his head and come out with songs that may evoke a particular mood or era but are undeniably his. “Because I’m not as good as anything I listen to, it’s always going to sound like me,” he deadpans. “I wish I could say how the process works, but I truly have no idea. When I’m messing around with a

song, it’s like being a kid, the way it felt when you pretend to play. You’re shooting for a target in your head, but you miss that and wind up hitting something else. Trying to get somewhere and wherever you end up, it winds up being you.”

Junior League’s Jazz Fest appearance is notable on two counts: It gets some homegrown indie pop into the Fest, something that doesn’t happen often enough. And it marks a live appearance for a band that doesn’t play out that often. This will in fact be the first Junior League show since the band played the Circle Bar, about a week before COVID hit. On record it’s largely a one-man operation with various friends pitching in, but the Fest show will feature a full band including members of like-minded bands: Lee Barbier of the Myrtles, DC Harbold of Clockwork Elvis and Bipolaroid,

Liam Catchings of Barisal Guns, and Keith Simoneaux of Thoughts of Mary.

Hailing from the New York area, Adragna left the band he was playing with there and moved to New Orleans in 2000 when his wife took a job locally. Not being drawn so much to characteristic New Orleans music, he fell in with bands who were more into the garage and psychedelic side of things—most often playing drums in Bipolaroid and Clockwork Elvis. But it all came together for him the night the Minus Five—the spinoff band led by Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows) and Peter Buck (R.E.M.) played the House of Blues. He wound up making friends with both and taking them around to buy records at the nearby Magic Bus, and the show proved to be a life-changer.

“At the time I didn’t really know anybody here and didn’t have much of anything going on. I did have a bunch of songs that I’d written over the last couple of years and since I could play a bit of everything myself, that’s what I did—kind of doing it McCartney II style. After New York I lived in Florida for a while, and nobody ever came around to play. So, when the Minus Five came to New Orleans I was really excited to see a band with so many great pop/rock songs.” He also worked up the gumption to introduce himself after the show. “I had a couple of drinks at the Irish pub [Kerry Irish Pub] near the HOB [House of Blues] because I was feeling so awkward. But they were great, and that night I went home and decided I was going to record all these songs I had written. And it was an important night for me because Scott’s been a friend ever since.”

McCaughey became one of the musical friends who contribute to Junior League albums, but they remain to large extent a one-man, multi-overdub operation. “I basically come in with an idea of what I want to do. I’ll put down a guitar track and work with ProTools at home. I’ll have, for lack of a better word, a vibe in mind. After I’ve put down as many instruments as I can, I’ll go to friends and say ‘Hey, check this out, what do you think?’ They may take it in a direction that you don’t expect.” The most recent album, Bridge & Tunnel, came partly out of a wave of nostalgia for New York; the songs mix ’60s ambiance with a bit of the CBGB era, with lyrics nodding back to Studio 54 and to Andy Warhol’s Factory. “I’d written a few songs that were New York-centric, and a couple of friends suggested I use

that as a backdrop through the record; that spurred me on to write a few more.” Which meant calling on his own teenaged dreams of what he might find there: “I got the idea of a suburban character who always dreamed on the big city, heaving-about place like 54. I remember going in and finding the stores where you could buy used Levis and vinyl bootlegs—everything seemed possible.”

Adragna’s also become a full-fledged member of the Minus Five, touring and recording alongside their rotating cast of indie-pop luminaries (the last album Stroke Manor included him, Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy, the Dream Syndicate’s Steve Wynn and his partner Linda Pitmon, and Sleater-Kinney’s Corin Tucker alongside Buck and McCaughey); some of the above have also been on his records. It’s a loose arrangement, he says: “We’ve done a few dates here and there, and whenever Scott needs me, I’m there.”

But like many good things in life, it always comes back to the Beatles—specifically the thrill of hearing the above song for the first time. “That was it, I could not stop singing ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’. We had Beatles cake toppers that my parents got me at Carvel’s Ice Cream. I’d shut the blinds in my bedroom and move them around to the Beatles at Hollywood Bowl album.” The Fabs also inspired him to start playing—first on drums, then he picked up guitar, bass and keys—and drew him ever deeper into the well of pop from that era and beyond. The Monkees are another fave rave; he’s even played in a Monkees tribute band called Missing Links with some Junior League pals.

“I do listen to other things; I grew up with the Smiths and R.E.M. Sometimes I’m looking through the prettiness of a Beatles song filtered through the liveliness of Graham [of Blur]

Coxon’s guitar playing. Of course, everything you filter through yourself is going to sound different. But I’ll always love melodic songs that last from two to four minutes.” O

“That was it, I could not stop singing ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’. We had Beatles cake toppers that my parents got me at Carvel’s Ice Cream. I’d shut the blinds in my bedroom and move them around to the Beatles at Hollywood Bowl album.”

REVIEWS

New Breed Brass Band captures the spirit of New Orleans

New Breed’s leader and snare drummer Jenard Andrews, who is trumpeter James Andrew’s son, Shorty contributes more than his ability on horn or as a composer: he’s got these guys fine-tuned. No bad notes here.

laid-back Caribbean party. This style of sway is familiar to folks on a second line as it’s often used by bands to calm a crowd after a particularly frenetic number.

New Breed Brass Band Made in New Orleans

(525 Worldwide)

New Breed Brass Band’s totally kickin’ recently released album could only be, as the title and music indicate, Made in New Orleans. It’s doubtful if anyone can argue with that because the Crescent City’s street culture permeates the attitude and beats that are heard emanating from the social and pleasure clubs’ parades, the Black Indians, and yes, hip-hop that also lives among the longer-established traditions—and is embraced by a next generation of musicians and friends who hang and play together.

Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, who has demonstrated his savvy on how to keep his feet on the street and his finger on the pulse of the world arena, produced the album with those successful elements prominent. Working with his cousin,

Made in New Orleans gets goin’ on “Come On Out” with Jenard rhythmically leading the procession. Sousaphonist Michael Brooks, a co-composer along with Troy and Jenard, powerfully lays down the essential bottom. Next, the music helps demand “Drop It How You Feel It,” with pushin’ vocals by late 5th Ward Weebie and Wild Wayne.

“Can’t Let Go,” written by the same three as are many of the tunes, melodically has Trombone Shorty’s stamp all over it. It’s one of several instrumentals with most of the cuts coming in on at a little over three minutes. Like when you’re “on a line,” ya gotta keep up.

Various guest artists give each tune a different punch. When trumpeter extraordinaire Nicholas Payton steps in on “Move Something” the Breed’s horns evolve stylistically to act as a big band section to compliment his contemporary jazz edge. When saxophonist Jeff Coffin, best known with the Dave Matthews Band, arrives for “Treme Island,” it becomes a

Made In New Orleans salutes the Mardi Gras Indians on the album’s closer, “Won’t Bow Down” featuring the vocals of Spy Boy Nut.

The New Breed Brass Band’s Made in New Orleans truly captures the spirit of this city’s “we are one” street culture that has been vital to their lives.

New Breed Brass Band perform at Jazz Fest on May 5 at 3:50p Jazz & Heritage Stage.

—GERALDINE WYCKOFF

Johnny Vidacovich Out Da Box (Paw Maw Music)

Johnny Vidacovich’s name is magic in circles where great rhythm and finesse are king. That Out Da Box boasts the drummer’s handle makes sense in arousing strong interest. His stamp is definitely here though he is credited as a co-composer on only one of the 12 tunes on the disc.

In reality, the excellent ensemble itself with Vidacovich, keyboardist, co-producer and arranger Michael Pellera, bassist Grayson Brockamp and saxophonists Tony Dagradi and

Khari Allen Lee, maintains predominance. Vidacovich’s old friend, drummer Jeffrey Meyer, who contributed material to and produced three of Vidacovich’s previous fine albums Mystery Street, Bank Street and ’Bout Time is back as the major composer and producer.

Paraphrasing the late great James Brown, Meyer’s and Pellera’s “Steely Magnolia” “wouldn’t be nothing, nothing without” the groove set by Vidacovich. Next the drummer pounces on the title cut with Khari Allen Lee blowing some mean alto. “Puree,” bebops acoustically with Pellera moving from Fender Rhodes to acoustic piano. Brockamp enjoys some open space to further explore the tune on bass.

Dagradi returns on tenor for one of the few ballads, the beautiful “So Long.” Vidacovich’s impeccable brush work— he’s one of the best-ever with brushes—enhances the mood.

One of the interesting aspects of the recording is the use of two saxophonists—Lee and Dagradi. They turn up on separate cuts as well as blowing together as they do on “Don’t Eat My Grits” and others. We hear Vidacovich count out in scat-like style the opening of the Latin-flavored “Chick Ole.” He

recites his sweet, Aesop fabletype tale on “Oneida” the words of which are featured on the album sleeve.

There is a certain comfort zone found within Out Da Box rising from like minds and old friends coming together. These talented artists use it to their advantage in providing diversity, sincerity and musical imagination.

Johnny Vidacovich performs with Astral Project at Jazz Fest on May 4 at 4:40p Jazz Tent.

—GERALDINE WYCKOFF

and blues.

Backed by her band and special guests, such as Ivan Neville, the proceedings roll in a classic Memphis soul vibe with sharp, strutting horns, keys, and fatty bass lines. More importantly, Howard’s originals are an open book where one gets a sense of who she is. She finds joy in singing publicly (“Microphone”) and encourages others to follow their dreams as well (“Take a Hand”). The boogie-slamming “Pocket Fox” has a similar theme: pursue what makes you happy. As evidenced by “Better Than You Think,” Howard’s songs are centered around positivity. She shares her gratitude for life, marriage and family on “Hold On,” which producer André Bohren’s comforting piano accompaniment makes particularly touching.

Her lyrics couldn’t be more honest. As noted in “Laying Down the Law,” she admits she’s not perfect regarding relationships but is always willing to dialogue.

The musical tale of Jenn Howard could be construed as the prodigal daughter returning home and eventually finding her muse. Initially, she did the rock thing and flirted with national stardom with her group Project NIM. When it was over, she returned to her native New Orleans and resumed a normal life and career path. In 2009, she cut the full-tilt rock sizzler Up All Night with members of Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes. Yet, when a friend introduced her to an Etta James recording, she realized her gritty, Janis Joplin-like pipes were better suited to R&B, soul

“Valiant Woman,” the last song and title track, make an abrupt departure from this groove-bound affair. It’s just her strumming an acoustic guitar, singing about her pivotal journey to the person she has become. Her singing is unbelievably raw, passionate, and pain-filled, to the point of being uncomfortable. Yet understanding the story’s significance and her bravery to perform it makes her the valiant woman.

Jenn Howard performs at Jazz Fest on May 4 at 5:50p AARP Stage. —DAN WILLGING

Jenn Howard Valiant Women (Independent)

REVIEWS

territory. In steps Rossignoli, who reinforces that journey.

Booth’s bowed bass, generally lower tonal qualities and a kind of rumbling that begin Walker’s “Song #37: Alaya or “The Still Small Voices” give it a somber edge. As do the previous cuts, it evolves especially as Walker picks up the higher- and lighterpitched soprano sax.

Brad Walker + Extended Side By Side

(Independent)

On Side By Side saxophonist

Brad Walker teams up with the trio of musicians—keyboardist Oscar Rossignoli, bassist Matt Booth and drummer Brad Webb—known collectively as Extended. It’s a familiar setting for him—as well as them— having hooked up fairly often at live performances. They also share a certain like-mindedness in the way they musically converse on primarily original material coming from the pens of Walker, Booth and Webb.

The album opens with Booth’s lovely title cut. The exchanges between Walker and Rossignoli hold a sweetness accented by the keyboardist’s use of the upper notes of the acoustic piano. A roll of the drums marks the turning point of the selection as it, and particularly Walker’s tenor, becomes insistently passionate.

The calm and beauty of the first tune continue on Johannes Brahms’ “Intermezzo Op. 117, No. 2” that was arranged or perhaps more accurately described as re-imagined by Rossignoli. It too takes off in unexpected directions with the saxophonist heading out and the group entering into Latin jazz

The drummer’s brushes and the individual notes from Booth’s bass begin another gently serious cut, “Music for Dancers,” that almost suggests, thanks to Rossignoli, a classical piece. Walker’s breathy horn offers deep emotion.

A big change comes as wavering electronic effects, prayer bells and just a touch of drums fill Walker’s “Ouroboros.” Though the chant-like, repeated phrases of the piano echo the spiritual nature of the tune’s beginning, it too moves on to lift itself into the joyfulness of freedom.

Side By Side should stand as an ear-opener for those who have yet to discover these exceptional musicians who have become the rising stars on the New Orleans jazz scene today.

—GERALDINE WYCKOFF

Marc Stone

Shining Like a Diamond (Independent)

If I were Marc Stone, I’d have a hard time telling people what kind of music I played. He’s certainly a bluesman, but one of the more eclectic ones around. And his latest shows how many ways there are to make a hip, modern blues record without relying on the obvious guitarslinging thing.

The opener “Whatcha Gonna

Do” bears that out—starting as a somber acoustic blues, then shifting into an upbeat ’50s New Orleans vibe for the chorus. It’s an unlikely mix but it works: The verses ask what life’s all about, and the groove provides the answer.

The guest list here includes a few big local names, but he takes them slightly out of the

comfort zone. Guitarist Leo Nocentelli guests on “Digitize” but plays bluesy electric slide instead of Meters funk (it’s also the first time he’s ever played on a song about internet disinformation). Jazz singer Meschiya Lake appears on a Stax-style R&B duet, “When We Were Cheating,” which isn’t your usual confession song: They sing that they had a great time cheating with each other and wish they were still doing it. George Porter Jr. and his trio are on “Love is Everything,” which has the slow-burn of a vintage Allman’s ballad. And “the Truth” features most of the band that’s played as the New Soul Finders—including the great singer Marilyn Barbarin, who’s been around since the ’60s—and plugs them into a modern bit of funky gospel.

Though a fine guitarist, Stone chooses not to play a lot of big

solos, save for an expressive one on the title track. He’s more concerned with serving the song, and these songs are worth the care they get.

Marc Stone performs at Jazz Fest on May 5 at 11:15a Blues Stage.

—BRETT MILANO

surprise moments like the big solo on “Givin’ Up,” where the guitar is framed by what sounds like a vintage Mellotron.

Shawn Williams

Sulking in Love (Independent)

Singer/songwriter Shawn Williams has been prolific in recent years, and this is the least strictly country album she’s made—and the most strictly herself. If you know her previous albums, you can expect her to write unflinching songs about the more intense parts of love relationships—which is definitely the case here, and this time she plugs into a more eclectic musical setting that suits the tangled emotions of the songs.

One key element is producer Mark Howard, a longtime Daniel Lanois collaborator who worked on Peter Gabriel’s Us and the Nevilles’ Yellow Moon among other milestones. Like those albums, this one has a layered and textured sound where different instruments emerge in the mix—congas here, popping basslines there. He adds

He also draws the strongest vocals Williams has done on disc and allows her to get dramatic. The songs mostly fall into a clear storyline: After a string of impendingbreakup songs, “Lonesome Blues” is the album’s centerpiece, a six-minute ballad that she emotes for all it’s worth. The mood picks up just a bit afterwards: “Stars” is quite explicitly about sex, with a vocal distortion adding to the effect; while “Where I Stand” expresses hope for a new affair, the closest she’s come to writing an outright pop song. (The one outlier is “Society,” a protest about New Orleans gentrification, but it’s one worth including).

Williams visits some dark emotional territory here, but she makes it a fascinating place. And probably a healthier one to visit on record than in real life.

—BRETT MILANO

Marc Broussard

S.O.S. 4: Blues For Your Soul (KTBA Records)

With a portion of the proceeds from each of Marc Broussard’s S.O.S. philanthropic album series benefitting a different nonprofit, his latest installment targets Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation, which “fuels the passion for music by funding national relief grants and music education programs for students and teachers.” Keeping the Blues Alive Foundation’s founder is none other than blues-reining

superstar Joe Bonamassa, who co-produced Blues For Your Soul and contributed his searing guitar on four cuts. Yet, it’s not another Bonamassaflavored record. It’s Broussard’s inaugural blues plunge with deep cuts from guitar icons Howlin’ Wolf, B.B. King, and John Lee Hooker; and legendary vocalists Bobby “Blue” Bland, Little Milton, and Al Green.

With a stacked line-up including co-producer and guitarist Josh Smith,

keyboardist Reese Wynans, and Soulive’s Eric Krasno, it’s the best of both worlds: Broussard’s commanding soul pipes and torching soloists keeping the groove rolling.

If it’s the latter that resonates with the listener, then there’s plenty to appreciate in the arrangements. Son House’s “Empire State Express,” originally acoustically rendered, sports a jarring, bombastic, out-of-control intro. Little Milton’s “That’s What Love Will Make You Do” provides a slippery, funky foundation for Broussard’s swaggering vocals reminiscent of Buckwheat Zydeco. Fueled by Dennis Gruenling’s blistering harmonica howling, Broussard channels Howlin’ Wolf’s

REVIEWS

gruff vocals on “I Asked for Water.” Smith’s playing on Hooker’s “Locked Up in Jail (Prison Blues)” deviates from the predominant muscular sound with trancelike passages and a dangling, suspenseful ambiance.

While most of the guests reside outside the Pelican State, Broussard made the excellent decision to include Acadiana’s Roddie Romero. Among the bigger-name guitarists, Romero holds his own with his riveting, gutbucket playing on “Cuttin’ In.” Lyrically, it’s the album’s most vivid storyline: a guy breaking up a dance to patch things up with his girlfriend.

All this sets the stage for Broussard’s authentic, souldrenched pipes. They’re the kind that comes around once every generation, a throwback to the killer R&B-soul crooners of the ’60s and ’70s. Comparisons to Bobby Womack aren’t that farfetched, and even though that era is now a gone pecan, Broussard couldn’t have captured it any better. This is the path he should stay on.

—DAN WILLGING

Krasno Moore Project Book of Queens (Concord Jazz)

Soulful, contemplative and full of warmth, drummer Stanton Moore and guitarist Eric Krasno’s first-ever studio recording sees the frequent collaborators tackle instrumental renditions of songs made famous by a range of women vocalists, from

Amy Winehouse to Kacey Musgraves to Nina Simone.

Working alongside Hammond B3 organist and keyboardist Eric Finland— with cameos by Branford Marsalis, Cory Henry and Robert Randolph—Krasno and Moore are at their best here when they lean into the ’60s soul-jazz organ trio tradition, opting for slow-simmering grooves over big, burning solos. It’s a subdued aesthetic, particularly given Krasno and Moore’s respective work in their more jam-oriented projects Lettuce, Soulive and Galactic, but it gives each player space to stretch out without detracting from

pushing up against a thick and rolling beat. Taken together, the dynamic creates a layer of tension that feels more playful than the drama embedded in Winehouse’s darker original. Later, on the Marsalis-assisted “Fever,” the saxophonist’s first batch of warm, round tones complement Krasno’s bluesy riffs before things change direction and Marsalis takes the reins, pitching the tune into new, fiery territory. Henry’s contribution—he trades trombone for keys on Brittany Howard’s “Stay High”—is a highlight, too, replete with laidback, sunny grooves that give way to a climactic finish. The standout, though, is the gospel and blues-drenched take on “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free.”

Written by Billy Taylor but largely associated with Simone after the stirring cover she recorded for 1967s Silk and Soul, the tune welcomes pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph to the mix, layering soaring peels of sound to close the album with a freedom that doubles as a trip to church.

the album’s overall balanced trio sound. The organ trio vibe—particularly the lack of a vocalist—also opens new musical doors, highlighting unexpected elements of some songs and casting new light on others, courtesy of shifts in mood or rhythm.

The opener is a case in point. A dreamy, psychedelic version of Winehouse’s “You Know I’m No Good,” Krasno and Moore’s take features a reverb-heavy melody

It’s a bit odd that a recording billed as a celebration of women in music features only men, particularly given the album’s multiple guest spots. And some of the more pop-centric covers, like Billie Eilish’s “Lost Cause,” never quite find their footing. But between the open feel of the material here—and the additional guest artists who’ve surfaced on Krasno and Moore’s spring tour—the project seems designed with room to grow.

—JENNIFER ODELL O

Jazz Fest is here, and while it’s common knowledge that there are plenty of food options on the grounds, sometimes it’s nice to venture out and experience some of the other fantastic food that New Orleans has to offer. Whether you’re in the mood for fine dining or a breakfast that will get your day started on the right foot, we have you covered with some “can’t miss” food spots that are sure to satisfy your hunger.

NEW HIGH-END RESTAURANTS

Dakar NOLA: 3814 Magazine St., 504-493-9396 Chef Serigne

Mbaye’s Dakar NOLA offers a beautiful and unique Senegalese tasting dinner menu. The menu changes daily but is always authentic Senegalese food. Past dishes include Akara, Gulf Fish a la Senegalaise, and Thiebou niebe.

MaMou: 942 N. Rampart St., 504-381-4557 Chef Tom

Branighan and sommelier Molly Wismeier opened this French brasserie on Rampart Street late last year. Here you’ll enjoy exquisite French dishes in a cozy space. The menu includes Gulf Fish ‘Court Bouillon,’ Escargot Tartlet, and Poisson a la Florentine.

Yakuza House: 2740 Severn Ave., 504-345-2031 Chef Huy Pham delicately molds and shapes nigiri and hand rolls right before your eyes at Yakuza House. With traditional practices and a menu to match, Yakuza House is as close as you can get to authentic sushi in New Orleans, and your meal here will be memorable.

OFFBEAT EATS

You’re covered with these “can’t miss” food spots

BY MARIELLE SONGY

NEW CASUAL RESTAURANTS

Devil Moon BBQ: 1188 Girod St., 504-788-0093 Pitmaster Shannon Bingham is cooking up barbecue with a Louisiana focus. You’ll find some classics here, like brisket and sausage, with uniquely New Orleans sides like dirty rice, sauce piquante, and white beans and rice.

Miss Shirley’s: 3009 Magazine St., 504-354-2530 Formerly the owner of Royal China with her husband, chef Tang Lee, Shirley Lee has brought her beloved menu of Chinese classics to Magazine St. The menu includes Dim Sum and Noodles as well as other favorites such as Moo Shu, Fried Rice, and Sesame Chicken.

Mucho Mas Mexican Eatery & Lounge: 8201 Oak St., 504-3241616 At Mucho Mas, Chef Julio

Machado has created a fun space where “Mexican meets modern.” With a menu that includes ramen with a Mexican flair, Mexican favorites such as tacos and enchiladas, and an extensive cocktail menu, you will surely get a taste of something delicious on Oak St.

OLD STANDBYS, HIGH-END

Clancy’s Restaurant: 6100 Annunciation St., 504-895-1111

Clancy’s has served the people of New Orleans since the late 1940s. This restaurant is one of my absolute favorites and is a must for any special occasion or visit to the city. The menu includes New Orleans classics such as Crawfish Étouffée, Gulf Fish Almondine, and Crawfish Gumbo. And you can’t miss the bread pudding for dessert—I think it’s one of the best in town!

Rosedale’s BBQ Shrimp

OFFBEAT EATS

Pêche Seafood Grill: 800 Magazine St., 504-522-1744 Chefs Donald Link, Stephen Stryjewski, and Ryan Prewitt designed Pêche Seafood Grill with the cooking of South America, Spain, and the Gulf Coast in mind. The menu includes Baked Drum with Mushroom Broth and Calas; Grilled Tuna with Lentils, Carrots, and Kumquats; and Grilled Hanger Steak with Salsa Verde.

La Petite Grocery: 4238 Magazine St., 504-891-3377 Chef and Owner

Justin Devillier puts a creative spin on traditional New Orleans cuisine with dishes like Gulf Shrimp and Grits, Panéed Rabbit, and Alligator Bolognese. One of the restaurant’s signature dishes is Blue Crab Beignets, served with malt vinegar aioli and lemon.

OLD STANDBYS, CASUAL

Domilise’s Po-Boy & Bar : 5240 Annunciation St., 504-899-9126

Domilise’s was founded around 1918 by Peter and Sophie Domilise as a neighborhood bar with a friendly and welcoming vibe. This spot has fed generations of New Orleanians. The menu here is classic, with an assortment of po-boy options such as fried shrimp, hot smoked sausage, and, of course, roast beef.

R & O Restaurant and Catering: 216

Metairie-Hammond Hwy., 504-8311248

If you’re in the mood for some Italian classics, look no further than R & O Restaurant and Catering. Founded in 1980 by Ora and Roland Mollere, R&O has an extensive menu that includes lasagna, spaghetti and meatballs, and soft-shell crab parmesan. The restaurant also serves a variety of po boys and pizzas.

BREAKFAST AND BRUNC H

3rd Block Depot:316 Chartres St., 504-552-4095 Executive Chef Nick Ocheltree serves brunch in a lively, welcoming atmosphere. Located in the W New Orleans hotel in the French Quarter, 3rd Block Depot’s menu features dishes such as Bananas Foster French Toast, Boudin Benedict, Pecan Crusted Gulf Fish, and a wide selection of fun cocktails. Every Saturday and Sunday, the restaurant hosts “Legs and Eggs” featuring burlesque dancer Bella Blue, who performs with live music while guests dine on two creative courses and bottomless bellinis and mimosas.

Birdy’s Behind the Bower: 1320 Magazine St., 504-302-2992

Chef Graham Wolfe has created a menu of brunch classics with a New Orleans flair at Birdy’s Behind the Bower. Menu selections include Fried Chicken Biscuit, Bubble Waffles, Birdy’s Burger, and a Brunch Board. The atmosphere is fun, with bright colors and outdoor seating.

Saint John: 1117 Decatur St., 504-581-8120 Chef Eric Cook brought the magic he stirred up at his Uptown restaurant Gris Gris to his restaurant on Decatur Street. Saint John has become a brunch destination in the French Quarter in just over a year. Brunch menu selections include Catfish Amandine, Grits and Grillades, and Pain Perdu. This spot also offers daily bottomless Mumm Mimosas with a choice of Mumm Napa Brut Prestige or Brut Rose for only $45.

NEW ORLEANS-STYLE FOOD

Gabrielle: 2441 Orleans Ave., 504-603-2344 Since 1992, Chef

Greg Sonnier has served his take on Cajun food with New Orleans flair at Gabrielle. The restaurant’s Duck, Rabbit, and Guinea Hen Gumbo is considered one of the best gumbos in town. Other menu highlights include Slow Roasted Duck, Seafood Cassoulet, and Filet of Gulf Fish.

Lil Dizzy’s Café: 1500 Esplanade Ave., 504-766-8687 Founded by Wayne Baquet, Sr., in 2005, Lil Dizzy’s is a family-owned restaurant famous for its fried chicken and gumbo. Other menu selections include po boys, seafood platters, and delicious sides such as mac and cheese and southern greens.

Rosedale Restaurant: 801

Rosedale Dr., 504-309-9595

Since 2016, Chef Susan Spicer has been serving her take on Southern cuisine in a building that used to be a police station. The menu here includes a cochon de lait po boy, shrimp creole, and my personal favorite, fried chicken with mac ’n’ cheese, smothered greens, and Tabasco honey.

Vaucresson’s Creole Cafe & Deli: 1800 St. Bernard Ave., 504-7273653 Vance Vaucresson is a 3rd generation sausage maker who has been making sausage since he was eight. Vaucresson’s Creole Café and Deli is a nod to Vaucresson’s father, Robert “Sonny” Vaucresson, and Vaucresson meat markets, which have been a staple in the neighborhoods of the seventh ward for 122 years. The menu here includes a selection of sausages such as Creole hot sausage, crawfish sausage, and Italian sausage served on platters or po boys.

JAZZ FEST BIBLE

SEAFOOD AND CRAWFISH

Crabby Jack’s: 428 Jefferson Hwy., 504-833-2722 Owner of Crabby Jack’s chef Jacques Leonardi opened Crabby Jack’s because he wanted to own a restaurant that served fresh seafood and po boys at the lowest prices in town. Crabby Jack’s is famous for its overstuffed shrimp po boy and gumbo. You are guaranteed to leave this restaurant full.

Salvo’s Seafood: 7742 LA-23, Belle Chasse, 504-393-7303 Salvo St. Philip opened Salvo’s Seafood in 1984. Located just across the river in Belle Chasse, Salvo’s is known for its down-home feel and fresh seafood. The menu includes seafood plates, overstuffed po boys, daily specials, and more unusual selections such as fried frog legs and Cajun-fried alligator. Salvo’s is also known for its “all you can eat” seafood special after 5 p.m.

Seither’s Seafood: 279 Hickory Ave., Harahan, 504-738-1116 Chef and owner Jason Seither opened the seafood destination Seither’s in 2004. Since then, his name has become synonymous with fresh, local seafood made to order and spiced to perfection. Seither’s went national when featured on Guy Fieri’s Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Menu selections include fried and boiled seafood platters, soft shell crab, and crawfish.

RESTAURANTS WITH MUSIC

Buffa’s : 1001 Esplanade Ave., 504-949-0038 Buffa’s is a New Orleans institution known for its live music and late-night kitchen. This spot hosts all-ages shows every night and serves

a Sunday brunch and a menu packed with delicious food like red beans and rice, boudin balls, and the famed Buffa burger. Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro : 626 Frenchmen St., 504-949-0696 Snug Harbor has been hosting jazz musicians on Frenchmen Street for 40 years. Charmaine Neville, Ellis Marsalis, Germaine Bazzle to name a few have taken the stage here. Not only that but this spot has a restaurant, so you can have dinner before seeing a show. Menu highlights include a seafood platter, a fried oyster platter, and BBQ shrimp and of course the famous hamburgers served with a fully loaded baked potato, lettuce, tomato, onions and pickles.

Three Muses: 536 Frenchmen St., 504-252-4801 Miss Sophie Lee serves up music and dinner in a relaxed, casual atmosphere on Frenchmen St. Three Muses’ menu is inspired by Lee’s Korean heritage and includes Pork Belly Bao, Korean Fried Chicken, and Tempura Shrimp. A customer favorite is Ms. Moon’s Bulgogi Rice Bowl, a dish of thinly sliced marinated beef, kimchi, bean sprouts, spinach, and ssamjang created by Lee’s mother.

LATE NIGHT EATS

Cleo’s Mediterranean Cuisine: 940 Canal St., 504-522-4504 Owner Tarek Madkour offers more than your typical late-night fare at Cleo’s Mediterranean Cuisine. A firm believer that delicious food shouldn’t just be an option during working hours, Madkour’s menu includes fried chicken, hummus bowls, sautéed vegetables, and grilled fish, all inspired by his Egyptian culture.

Dat Dog 601 Frenchmen St., 504-309-3362 Constantine Georges founded Dat Dog in 2011 as a simple hot dog stand. Today Dat Dog has multiple locations throughout New Orleans and boasts a menu packed with over ten varieties of hot dogs, including a gator dog, a crawfish dog, and a Chicago dog. They even have a vegan option (and that’s nothing to bark at!).

Melba’s: 1525 Elysian Fields Ave., 504-267-7765 Scott Wolfe and Jane Wolfe own this 24-hour po boy and breakfast spot that has been feeding the late-night crowd since 2012. Dubbed “America’s Busiest Po Boy Shop,” you can get more than just the famous sandwich here. The menu includes chicken wings, hot plates, desserts, and even daiquiris! O

Snug Harbor Shrimp with Loaded Potatoe

JAZZ FEST A TO Z

BY OFFBEAT STAFF AND CONTRIBUTORS

It can be daunting to choose from the panoply of cultures, rhythms and sounds available at Jazz Fest when mapping out a day at the Fairgrounds. This handy guide should help ensure your experience hits all the right notes. It’s arranged alphabetically by band name so you can search when your

STAGE CODES

(AARP): AARP Rhythmpourium

(AM): Alison Minor Music Heritage Stage

(BLU): Blues Tent

(CEP): Cultural Exchange Pavilion

(CON): Congo Square Stage

(ECO): Economy Hall Tent

(FDD): Sheraton New Orleans Fais Do-Do Stage

(FLS): Folklife Stage in Louisiana Folk Village

favorite act is playing by stage and time, with handy reference bio information. It’s easy to use on any mobile device to look up info by band, day, time or stage. Just go to our responsive site OffBeat.com

Happy Festing! Please note that performance information may change.

(FS): Festival Stage

(GEN): Shell Gentilly Stage

(GOS): Gospel Tent (GOS)

(J&H): Jazz & Heritage Stage

(JAZ): WWOZ Jazz Tent

(KID): Kids Tent Stage

(LAG): Lagniappe Stage

(PAR): Parades

3D Na’Tee, 4/29, CON, 12:20p: Samantha Davon James better known by her stage name 3D Na’Tee is a rapper and native of the 3rd Ward in New Orleans. She once was a student at New Orleans Center for Creative Arts for visual arts.

6 HEARTS of Prince Edward Island, 5/4, CEP, 12:35p; 5/4, FDD, 4:15p: After the loss of several members of two of Prince Edward Island’s best-known traditional bands, Vishtèn and The East Pointers, they came together to form 6 HEARTS. The six surviving band members of the two bands all felt the presence of six beating hearts in rehearsal, thus the name. The band includes a fusion of Acadian fiddle, whistle, percussion and songs that combine into a unique blend of contemporary East Coast traditional music.

79rs Gang, 4/28, AM, 12:30p; 4/28, J&H, 3:20p: Big Chief Jermaine Bossier and Big Chief Romeo Bougere from the 7th and 9th Wards come together to form the 79rs Gang. Bossier’s baritone voice combines with Bougere’s alto voice as they sing about the Mardi Gras Indians’ unique culture.

7th Ward Creole Hunters, Black Feathers, and Buffalo Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/5, PAR, 1:10p: Big Chief Jermaine Bossier leads this 7th Ward-based Mardi Gras Indian gang. The Buffalo Hunters tribe is led by Big Chief Spoon.

9th Ward Black Hatchet, Wild Squatoulas, and Comanche Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/6, PAR, 12:50p: Mardi Gras Indian parade led by Big Chief Alphonse “Dowee” Robair.

Adonis Rose & the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra featuring Jazzmeia Horn, 4/30, JAZ, 4:10p: Adonis Rose, the artistic director of the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, released the critically acclaimed Songs: The Music of Allen Toussaint in 2019. Rose has performed and recorded with the biggest names in jazz, including Terence Blanchard, Betty Carter, Dianne Reeves, Marcus Roberts, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, Harry Connick Jr, Wynton Marsalis, and on six recordings with longtime friend Nicholas Payton.

Alex McMurray with Glenn Hartman, 5/6, AARP, 1:25p: Singer songwriter and guitarist Alex McMurray with accordionist Glenn Harman are referred to as “The Kings of the Small Time” on their Facebook page. McMurray was a member of Royal Fingerbowl; Hartman was with the New Orleans Klezmer Allstars.

Alexey Marti, 4/29, JAZ, 1:30p: After relocating to New Orleans, Cuban-born conga player and percussionist Alexey Marti has become a key fixture on the local Latin scene, performing a mix of jazz, funk, salsa, son, rumba and more.

Algiers Warriors Black Masking Indians, 5/7, PAR, 2:15p: Big Chief Alphonse “Dowee” Robair leads this West Bankbased Mardi Gras Indian tribe.

All for One Brass Band, 4/30, PAR, 4:40p: Bandleader and trombonist Keanon Battiste formed this band in 2003 with friends from Warren Easton Senior High School. Members include saxophonist Corey Hosey; trumpeters Terrence Foster, Louis Brown and Jeremy Haynes; tubist player Brandon Ewell; snare drummer Phillip Armand; bass drummer Brandon Blouin; and percussionists Kenon Hudson and Mark Cunningham.

Allison Russell, 4/28, AM, 2:30p; 4/28, FDD, 4:20p: Canadian singer-songwriter, musician and activist. Born in Montreal, Russell has received Grammy nominations in the Americana category. Russell has collaborated with Brandi Carlile on the song “You’re Not Alone.”

Alynda Segarra, 5/5, CEP, 1:55p; 5/5, AM, 4p: Segarra, who records as Hurray for the Riff Raff, developed a highly personalized, often stark and haunting take on Americana while living in New Orleans. From the Bronx, New York, Segarra is now based in Nashville. Her latest synth-rock, folk balladry album Life on Earth received critical acclaim. Segarra is interviewed by Lily Keber.

Amanda Shaw, 5/5, GEN, 1:30p: This Cajun fiddle prodigy has been in the spotlight since age 10. Her sets can jump from teen-friendly pop to straight-up Cajun, with a classic rock cover or two thrown in. Amanda Shaw has dominated the best violinist category at OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Awards.

Anders Osborne, 5/6, FS, 1:25p: Swedish-born guitar hero and songwriting titan Anders Osborne has charted a difficult path since his arrival in New Orleans more than 30 years ago. Osborne writes songs about all the stages he has gone though. He first played Jazz Fest in 1992 and has done so every year since.

André Bohren + The Electric Yat Quartet presents Peter & The Wolf, 5/5, KID, 4:15p: Pianist, Andre Bohren with the Electric Yat Quartet will bring classical music to Jazz Fest. Prokofiev’s “Peter and the Wolf” was written in 1936 for orchestra and narrator and is one of the most frequently performed works in the classical repertoire.

Andrew Duhon, 4/30, AM, 2p; 4/30, LAG, 4:10p: With his achingly tender voice and penchant for lyrical depth, folk-pop singer songwriter Andrew Duhon taps into personal experience to tug at listeners’ heart strings while strumming his way through original music that echoes the blues. Andrew is interviewed by Keith Spera.

Ángel “Papote” Alvarado y el Grupo Esencia, 4/29, CEP, 1:45p; 4/29, J&H, 4:50p; 4/30, FS, 12:20p; 4/30, CEP, 4:45p: Ángel “Papote” Alvarado y el Grupo Esencia is from Ponce, Puerto Rico.

Angelique Kidjo, 4/29, CON, 4:05p: Beninese American singer-songwriter, actress, and activist. Kidjo has won five Grammy Awards. The Afropop, Congolese rumba, jazz, funk and gospel artists’ repertoire includes the Talking Heads, Jimi Hendrix, Nina Simone and others. Kidjo’s is a commanding presence and has a superb band, expect a mind-blowing performance.

Anna Moss, 5/6, LAG, 1:45p: Moss is a multi-instrumentalist with roots in Arkansas. Now living in New Orleans, her music is a mix of jazz and R&B. Moss calls her music “bedroom pop from New Orleans.”

Anne Elise Hastings & her Revolving Cast of Characters, 4/29, LAG, 11:30a: A New Orleans based folk rock band. They are inspired by the sounds of Hastings Appalachian roots. Her songs contain hints of Emmylou Harris and Townes Van Zandt.

Anthony Brown & Group TherAPy, 5/6, GOS, 4p: This Maryland-based gospel artist is known for his intricate vocal arrangements and creative approach to songwriting. Archdiocese of New Orleans Choir, 4/29, GOS, 12:05p:

The Archdiocese represents the largest religious demographic in New Orleans. Its choir upholds a tradition of Crescent City Catholicism dating back to 1793.

Arhoolie Records’ Chris Strachwitz with Quint Davis, CJ Chenier, Lars Edegran, and Rachel Lyons, 5/5, AM, 12p: Arhoolie Records produced music by previously obscure artists such as Lightnin’ Hopkins, Snooks Eaglin, and Bill Gaither. Interviewed by John Leopold.

Arrianne Keelen, 4/28, GOS, 12:55p: Vocalist, songwriter, and Hurricane Katrina survivor, Arrianne Keelen’s song

“I Still Love You” landed her a spot as an amateur night contestant on Its Showtime at the Apollo. Keelen won the grand prize in the Dream New Orleans Talent Search.

Arsene DeLay, 4/28, AARP, 2:50p: Vocalist Arséne DeLay is the youngest of the Boutté family and takes her roots in jazz and soul and combines it with rock and roll.

ARTEMIS, 5/4, JAZ, 4:05p: Named for the Greek goddess of the hunt, Artemis is the brainchild of composer Renee Rosnes. Each member of this all-female band is a virtuoso. Artemis performs original music to arrangements of eclectic material. Expect high power and intensity.

Arthur & Friends Community Choir, 5/7, GOS, 5:10p: This New Roads, Louisiana-based gospel choir, founded by Arthur Gremillion, focuses on fostering a spirit of togetherness through music.

Arthur Clayton and Anointed For Purpose, 4/28, GOS, 5:05p: Singer songwriter Arthur Clayton IV is from Marrero Louisiana. Along with his gospel group Anointed for Purpose they will undoubtedly perform his 2018 hit “He Never Fails.” It’s a song for Sunday morning church choirs to sing that encourages those dealing with life issues.

Astral Project, 5/4, JAZ, 2:40p: All four members of this band—guitarist Steve Masakowski, saxophonist Tony Dagradi, bassist James Singleton and drummer Johnny Vidacovich—are influential bandleaders in their own right. Together, they’ve been one of New Orleans’ premiere jazz groups for three decades.

Atabal, 5/4, J&H, 1:50p; 5/4, CEP, 4:45p; 5/5, FS, 11:20a; 5/5, CEP, 4:45p: An Afro-Puerto Rican band, emphasizing plena, bomba and salsa.

Aurora Nealand’s Royal Roses, 5/4, ECO, 1:40p: Inspired by Sidney Bechet and Django Reinhardt, singer/saxophonist Nealand is a player whose non-Roses work spans performance art-inspired improvisation and the rockabilly of Rory Danger and the Danger Dangers.

Baby Boyz Brass Band, 4/28, J&H, 6p: The next generation of players from the Tremé neighborhood, Baby Boyz is led by trumpeter Glenn Hall III who is often joined by Glen David Andrews.

Bamboula 2000, 5/6, J&H, 12:15p: “Bamboula” was originally a ceremony held in the earliest days of Congo Square. Bamboula 2000 leader Luther Gray brings that ancestral spirit into the present with a troupe of drummers and dancers.

Banu Gibson, 5/4, ECO, 4:20p: Singer/dancer Banu Gibson, a longtime staple of the New Orleans music scene, specializes in swing, hot jazz and the Great American Songbook.

Bassekou Kouyate and N’Goni Ba of Mali, 4/28, CEP,

1:55p; 4/28, J&H, 4:40p: Kouyate is a master of the ngoni an ancient traditional lute. His music has veered toward rock but expect a subtle rootsy performance. N’Goni Ba is the backup band.

BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet, 5/6, FDD, 4:15p: Fiddler Michael Doucet’s venerable Cajun band was the first of its genre to win a Grammy in 1998. The band has explored eclectic influences from West African music to James Brown and beyond.

Betty Winn & One A-Chord, 5/5, GOS, 12:35p: Formed in 1995 by Betty Winn and her husband Thomas, this sprawling choir traces the history of gospel from slave spirituals to new compositions. They perform with as many as 40 singers.

Big 6 Brass Band, 4/30, PAR, 12p: Big 6 Brass Band was formed in 2017, is hugely popular in the city’s second line community. With a repertoire bridging traditional with hiphop, R&B, gospel and more, the group will perform a set of New Orleans classics plus original material.

Big Chief Bird & The Young Hunters Tribe, 5/5, J&H, 11:15a: Coming out of the Carrollton neighborhood each year since 1995, The Young Hunters tribe of Mardi Gras Indians is led by Big Chief “Bird.”

Big Chief Bo Dollis Jr. & the Wild Magnolias, 5/7, J&H, 3:10p: Big Chief Bo Dollis Jr. carries on the legacy of his father, leading the Wild Magnolias’ impassioned, funk-inspired Mardi Gras Indian music. On his release, My Name Is Bo, Dollis combines a traditional Indian session with a cross section of other genres from funk and blues to zydeco and reggae from producer Cyril Neville.

Big Chief Donald Harrison Jr., 5/5, CON, 3p: Saxophonist Donald Harrison is a renaissance man of New Orleans who has explored reggae, funk and Mardi Gras Indian music through the filter of jazz.

Big Chief Dow & the Timbuktu Warriors and Young Seminole Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/4, PAR, 2:15p: The Mardi Gras Indian tribe of the Timbuktu Warriors are led by spy boy Dow Michael Edwards, a lawyer from New Orleans. Big Chief Dow’s slogan: “I kill’em dead with the needle and thread.”

Big Chief Juan & Jockimo’s Groove, 5/5, J&H, 6:15p: Skillful Golden Comanche Chief Juan Pardo, who grew up with the sounds of elder Mardi Gras Indians like Monk Boudreaux and Bo Dollis, updates classic and original Mardi Gras Indian songs with a mix of funk and R&B.

Big Chief Kevin Goodman & Flaming Arrows Mardi Gras Indians, 5/7, J&H, 11:20a: Singer and Big Chief Kevin Goodman, who’s called Austin home since evacuating during Hurricane Katrina, leads this Mardi Gras Indian tribe and stage band, the Flaming Arrows.

Big Chief Monk Boudreaux & the Golden Eagles, 4/30, J&H, 3:45p: Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, who performed for many years alongside Big Chief Bo Dollis in the Wild Magnolias, is one of the most prominent Mardi Gras Indian performers and a soulful vocalist. The Golden Eagles’ reggae-heavy performances often get into heady, nearpsychedelic territory.

Big Chief Trouble & Trouble Nation, 5/7, PAR, 2:15p: This tribe’s Big Chief Markeith Tero also rolls with the Revolution Social Aid & Pleasure Club.

Big Freedia, 4/28, FS, 2p: All hail New Orleans’ queen diva who’s emerged from the “sissy bounce” subculture to become a nationally known personality, helping to bring other bounce divas (Katey Red, Sissy Nobby) into the spotlight. Big Freedia has guested on singles by Drake, Kesha and Beyonce.

Big Nine, Keep n It Real, and We Are One Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/28, PAR, 3p: Listen for cries of “way downtown” on the parade from this social aid and pleasure club.

Big Sam’s Funky Nation, 5/5, FS, 2:15p: The charisma of former Dirty Dozen trombonist Sam Williams makes him an able focal point for a musical party that blends brass, Meters-style funk, hip hop and rock.

Bill Summers & Jazalsa, 4/30, J&H, 1:25p: Known for his membership in Los Hombres Calientes and Herbie Hancock’s Headhunters, legendary percussionist Bill Summers explores Latin and world music with his Jazalsa band.

Black Feathers, Buffalo Hunters, and Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians, 5/5, PAR, 2:15p: Mardi Gras Indian Parade.

Black Flame Hunters and Golden Comanche, 4/28, PAR, 1p: The Black Flame Hunters will present a Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Black Foot Hunters, Young Brave Hunters, and Uptown Warriors Mardi Gras Indians, 4/30, PAR, 1p, One of the newer Mardi Gras Indian tribes is led by Big Chief Donald Claude.

Black Magic Drumline, 4/29, J&H, 12:10p; 5/6, KID, 1:40p; 5/6, KID, 3:45p: Black Magic Drumline is a New Orleans group that formed at Xavier University of Louisiana in 2007.

Black Mohawk and Cheyenne Mardi Gras Indians, 5/4, PAR, 1:40p: Big Chief Byron Thomas leads this Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Blato Zlato, 5/4, LAG, 11:30a: From New Orleans, Blato Zlato plays Balkan music and traditional Eastern European folk music. OffBeat described the band: Aggressive… a band rocking out with exotic sounds and gorgeous voices.

Blodie’s Jazz Jam, 5/6, JAZ, 12:20p: Blodie is better known as Dirty Dozen trumpeter Gregory Davis, whose jamming partners include other members of Dirty Dozen, Other horn men will join him on stage.

Bobby Jones and the Nashville Super Choir, 4/30, GOS, 3:55p: Gospel singer from Tennessee. Jones has released 14 albums, toured internationally and won a Grammy award for his single with Barbara Mandrell, “I’m So Glad I’m Standing Here Today.” He also wrote the first black gospel opera, Make a Joyful Noise.

Bomba and Plena traditions of Puerto Rico, 5/7, AM, 1p: Puerto Rican music traditions interviewed by Dan Sharp. Bon Bon Vivant, 5/7, GEN, 11:20a: Formed in 2013, Bon Bon Vivant is a collection of musicians steeped in the traditional jazz of New Orleans. Their original songwriting includes blues and folk music that makes for a unique sound.

Bonerama, 5/4, GEN, 3:45p: Mark Mullins and Craig Klein’s trombone-centric jazz/funk/rock combo is as comfortable with James Brown as it is with Black Sabbath.

Their release Plays Zeppelin showcases the music of Led Zeppelin. Vocalist Michael McDonald joined Bonerama to record Mark Mullins song “Empty World” a tribute to the late Allen Toussaint.

Bonsoir, Catin, 4/28, FDD, 11:15a: This Cajun music supergroup features rhythm guitarist Christine Balfa (a founder of the Louisiana Folk Roots organization), accordionist Kristi Guillory, fiddle expert Anya Burgess, Feufollet vocalist Ashley Hayes, electric guitarist Meagan Berard, and drummer Danny Devillier.

Boyfriend, 5/6, GEN, 1:25p: Part rapper and part performance artist, Boyfriend’s “rap cabaret” shows are entertaining and intellectually engaging experiences that make destroying gender norms fun for everyone. Boyfried won the Best Rap/Hip-Hop/Bounce at 2022 Best of the Beat Awards.

Brasshearts Brass Band, 4/29, KID, 4:15p: Brasshearts Brass Band formed in 2017 as high school students from the North Shore. They cover the New Orleans brass band repertoire as well as original material. Mandeville resident Miguel Seruntine, leader of the band, plays trombone and sousaphone.

Brazos Huval’s Student Showcase, 4/29, KID, 11:30a: Music instructor and multi-instrumentalist Brazos Huval leads students from his school in Breaux Bridge, Louisiana. Huval teaches fiddle at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and is a member with his siblings in the Huval Family Band. Huval is also a bassist for the Mamou Playboys.

Brother Tyrone & The Mindbenders, 4/30, BLU, 11:10a: Tyrone Pollard, a.k.a. Brother Tyrone, is a deep-soul vocalist whose original songs could pass for long-lost vinyl tracks.

Bruce Daigrepoint Cajun Band, 5/6, FDD, 1:40p: A New Orleans-reared Cajun, this self-taught accordion player and songwriter is back hosting his popular fais do do dances at Tipitina’s. OffBeat, featured Bruce Daigrepont in its My Music series in 2022.

Buckwheat Zydeco Jr. and The Ils Sont Partis Band, 5/5, FDD, 11:15a: Carrying on his father’s legacy Stanley Dural Jr. leads his father’s band Ils Sont Partis Band that will have you dancing in the isles.

Buddy Guy, 5/4, FS, 3:25p: At age 86, Buddy Guy is the most esteemed survivor of the Chicago blues heyday (but not quite the oldest, as long as Bobby Rush is around). He laid the groundwork on his late-’60s/early-’70s records with Junior Wells, including landmarks like “Messin’ With the Kid” and “Everyday I Have the Blues.”

Calliope Puppets, 5/4, KID, 12:40p: Humor and satire are priorities in performances by this Louisiana-based puppetry group, which features hand-carved and sculpted puppets.

CASMÈ, 4/28, CON, 11:15a; New Orleans singer songwriter is a powerhouse vocalist. She was a backup singer for Trina Braxton, Keith Urban and others. Her music ranges from R&B to hip-hop to gospel to pop.

Catherine Russell, 4/29, ECO, 4:20p: Jazz vocalist Russell, a native of New York, is the daughter of pianist, composer and Louis Armstrong’s musical director, Luis Russell. She received a Grammy Award as a featured artist on the soundtrack album for “Boardwalk Empire.”

Cedric Watson et Bijou Creole, 4/29, AARP, 12p; 4/29, FDD, 3:05p: A popular young fiddler, accordionist and singer, this four-time Grammy nominee boasts equal parts star power and skill. Cedric Watson’s influences range from Creole and Cajun to West African music and beyond. Ceferina Banquez of Colombia, 5/4, CEP, 2p; 5/5. J&H, 2:45p: Dubbed as the Queen of Bullerengue, Banquez has been crucial in bridging audiences in cities across Colombia, as well as Europe and the United States, to the centuries-old black tradition. Bullerengue is a musical genre and dance from the Caribbean Region. It is sung and preserved primarily by elderly women, accompanied by local artisan drums.

Cha Wa, 4/30, CON, 1:30p: New Orleans brass bandmeets-Mardi Gras Indian outfit Cha Wa radiates the energy of the city’s street culture. My People, the band’s follow up to their Grammy-nominated album Spyboy, feels like pure joy, a distillation of generations of New Orleans

expression.

Charlie Gabriel & Roger Lewis, 4/30, JAZ, 1:35p: Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s clarinetist and vocalist, Charlie Gabriel now 90 years of age, is joined by the Dirty Dozen Brass Band’s baritone saxophonist Roger Lewis, ten years younger at age 81.

Charlie Gabriel and Ben Jaffe, 4/29, AM, 12p: Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s clarinetist and bassist are interviewed by Jason Berry.

Charlie Gabriel and Friends, 5/7, ECO, 4:20p: Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s clarinetist and vocalist. The band includes Kyle Roussel on piano, Ben Jaffe on bass, Shannon Powell on drums, Kevin Lewis on trumpet and Craig Klein on trombone and others. Though the band will focus on traditional New Orleans music, Gabriel often credits the vitality of jazz with its unique ability to reflect the modern experiences of those who interpret it along with the history in which it’s rooted.

Charlie Musselwhite, 4/28, AM, 1:30p; 4/28, BLU, 4:30p: Blues harmonica player born in Mississippi raised in Memphis and schooled on the south side of Chicago, is a revered elder blues statesman. At 79 years of age, Musselwhite is known for his Chicago-style blues, but his roots are in the country blues. His daughter Layla lives in New Orleans and hopefully will take the stage with her dad. Musselwhite is interviewed by OffBeat contributor John Wirt.

Charlie Sepulveda & The Turnaround, 5/4, CEP, 3:20p; 5/4, JAZ, 5:45p: Latin jazz trumpeter from the Bronx Charlie Sepúlveda music is a mix of Latin jazz, hard bop and Afro American rhythms. Other band members include pianist Emanuel Gambaro, saxophonist Ivan Renta, bassist Gabriel Rodriguez, on drums Francisco Alcala, congas Gadwin Vargaz and Sepulveda’s wife Natalia Mercado on vocals.

Charmaine Neville Band, 4/29, BLU, 12:30p: An exuberant jazz singer whose influences run the gamut of New Orleans music styles, Charmaine Neville has long been a staple of the city’s live music scene, particularly at Snug Harbor.

Chris Thomas King, 5/5, BLU, 1:30p: Second-generation Baton Rouge bluesman Chris Thomas King made a game-changer album with 21st Century Blues…From da Hood, a pioneering fusion of blues with rap and metal riffage recorded in 1995. He’s appeared in numerous films, including O Brother Where Art Thou and Ray, where he portrayed Lowell Fulson.

Christian McBride, 5/5, AM, 3p: Interviewed by Ashley Kahn.

Christian McBride’s New Jawn, 5/5, JAZ, 5:45p: Preeminent contemporary jazz artist and impresario Christian McBride’s band New Jawn consists of bassist, Christian McBride, saxophonist Marcus Trickland, trumpeter Josh Evans, and drummer Nasheet Waits.

Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, 4/29, BLU, 5:45p: Blues guitarist and singer from Clarksdale Mississippi is a virtuosic guitar player, stunning vocalist, and memorable songwriter. He is confident and masterful on stage. Influenced by Hendrix, Prince and many blues greats, Kingfish is a high-energy blues performer. Hopefully he will close with Hendrix’s “Hey Joe.”

Chubby Carrier & The Bayou Swamp Band, 5/6, BLU, 12:20p: One of the most energetic zydeco groups around, Chubby Carrier and band won the 2010 Cajun/Zydeco Grammy for the album Zydeco Junkie.

CJ Chenier & The Red Hot Louisiana Band, 5/5, FDD, 6p: Zydeco king Clifton Chenier’s son has long emerged as a bandleader in his own right. His 2011 album, Can’t Sit Down, has a killer version of Tom Waits’ “Clap Hands.”

Clive Wilson’s New Orleans Serenaders, 4/29, ECO, 11:15a: Known for their lively interpretations of old New Orleans classics by Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, and others, the members of the Serenaders have played together in various musical contexts since the ’60s.

Coltrane Legacy featuring Tony Dagradi & Trevarri, 5/5, JAZ, 1:30p: Tony Dagradi is a saxophonist and music educator who recently was the recipient of OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Lifetime Achievement in Music Education. Dag-

radi is also a member of Astral Project. Trevarri Huff-Boone is also a saxophonist and leader of his group Trevarri. They feature the music of John Coltrane and his legacy.

Comanche Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/6, J&H, 11:15a: Mardi Gras Indians led by Big Chief Alphonse “Dowee” Robair.

Conjunto Típico Samaritano, 4/29, CEP, 11:30a; 4/29, FDD, 1:50p; 4/30, CEP, 1:55p; 4/30, J&H, 5:05p: Conjunto Típico Samaritano consists of accordionist, guitarists and percussion and Tambuyé which has four percussionists with women vocalists.

Connie & Dwight Fitch, 5/7, AM, 4p: Husband and wife gospel singers are interviewed by Joyce Jackson.

Connie & Dwight Fitch with the St. Raymond & St. Leo the Great Choir, 5/6, GOS, 11:15a: Seventh Ward couple Connie and Dwight Fitch sing romantic R&B as well as gospel. She has sung in the past with Ray Charles and Dr. John.

Continental Drifters, 5/7, GEN, 2:10p: The late Carlo Nuccio was a founding member of the Drifter who were formed out of weekly jam sessions. Originally and currently fronted by three singers-songwriters—Peter Holsapple, Susan Cowsill and Vicki Peterson, the Continental Drifters current membership also includes Russ Broussard on drums and Robert Mache and Ray Ganucheau on guitars. Coolie Family Gospel Singers, 4/29, GOS, 11:15a: Gospel group from New Orleans. They have performed at Jazz Fest for many years.

Corey Ledet Zydeco, 5/4, FDD, 2:50p, Corey Ledet was already two years into his music career when he switched from drums to accordion at age 12. His latest self-titled release has been nominated for a 2022 Grammy Award.

Cory Wong, 4/29, AM, 2p; 4/29, JAZ, 5:35p: Jazz and funk guitarist from Minneapolis. He has collaborated with Jon Batiste, Dave Koz and others. Wong is noted for his high-speed improvisational skills. Interviewed by Snug Harbor’s Jason Patterson.

Cowboy Mouth, 5/4, FS, 12:30p: They’ve been on the road for nearly 30 years, and still tend to pull out the stops for Jazz Fest shows. Go ahead and knock them for working so hard to be inspiring: If Fred LeBlanc, John Thomas Griffith and the newer guys get it right, by the end of the set you’ll be jumping in the air waving your fists to “Jenny Says” along with everybody else.

Craig Adams & Higher Dimensions of Praise, 5/7, GOS, 6:05p: Hammond player and Houston/New Orleans native Craig Adams leads this dynamic, 16-piece gospel group.

Craig Klein’s Musical Conversations on Lucien Barbarin, 4/28, ECO, 5:45p: Trombonist Craig Klein’s tribute to Lucien Barbarin. Talkative Horns: A Musical Conversation on Lucien Barbarin is Klein’s 2021 album that honors his fellow trombonist and friend, Lucien Barbarin who died in 2020. Expect to hear “Lucien in the Sky (With Angels), and original composition by Klein.

Creole Osceola Black Masking Indians, 5/6, PAR, 1:40p: Big Chief Clarence Dalcour, who counts Bo Dollis as an early Indian mentor, leads this downtown tribe.

Creole String Beans, 4/30, FDD, 12:25p: Creole String Beans is a sextet playing New Orleans rock ’n’ roll from the

glory days of J&M Studios. Rob Savoy (bass/vocals) and Rick Olivier (guitar/vocals) front the band with Brian Rini (keyboards/vocals) and Mike Sipos (drums/vocals) rounding out the rhythm section. The powerhouse “Terrytown Horns” adds punch and brass with Travis Blotsky on tenor, and Derek Huston on baritone sax.

Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians, 4/29, J&H, 11:15a: Big Chief Walter Cook leads the Creole Wild West Mardi Gras Indians.

Culu Children Traditional African Drum & Dance Ensemble with Stiltwalkers, 5/7, KID, 4:15p: Founded in 1988, this New Orleans-based company has toured the US and performed for Winnie Mandela.

Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble, 4/28, FDD, 2:55p: After getting his start as a drummer with Cajun country music stars like Steve Riley and CJ Chenier, Curley Taylor switched to accordion and launched a successful career as a bandleader. His blues-infused sound is a staple on the Lafayette and Opelousas zydeco scenes.

Cyril Neville, 4/30, GEN, 2:35p: In addition to stints playing with the Meters and the Neville Brothers, reggaeloving percussionist and singer Cyril Neville has helmed funk outfit the Uptown Allstars and conducted a successful solo career.

D.K. Harrell, 5/4, BLU, 11:15a: Harrell is a 24-year-old Louisiana blues guitarist from Ruston. He is dedicated to preserving the music and style of B.B. King.

Da Lovebirds featuring Robin Barnes and Pat Casey, 4/29, AARP, 1:25p: Vocalist Robin Barnes, known as the “Songbird of New Orleans” with her husband bassist Pat Casey are Da Lovebirds. The duo present soulful R&B.

Da Souljas Brass Band, 5/6, PAR, 12p: This next-generation brass band plays in the hot, modern style that makes a second line roll.

Da Truth Brass Band, 4/30, J&H, 2:35p: Da Truth’s high-energy, tight renditions of New Orleans second line classics and originals have made them one of the best new brass bands in the streets on Sundays.

Dancing Grounds Elite Feet Dance Krewe & Youth Co., 5/7, KID, 2:45p: Dancing Grounds is a nonprofit community arts organization that provides dance education in New Orleans.

Darcy Malone and The Tangle, 5/6, GEN, 11:15a: Led by the daughter of the Radiators’ Dave Malone, husband-andwife team Darcy Malone and Christopher Boye blend their tastes for soul and indie rock.

Dave Jordan & the NIA, 4/29, LAG, 2:55p: Formerly of the funk band Juice, Dave Jordan earned his rep as a first-class roots/rock songwriter when Anders Osborne produced his solo debut and Art Neville recorded one of his songs. The NIA (Neighborhood Improvement Association) has been his vehicle for the past few years and has released several critically acclaimed albums.

Davell Crawford with Special Guest Benny Turner, 4/30, BLU, 1:20p: Grandson of the late New Orleans R&B great James “Sugarboy” Crawford, Davell is an energetic singer/keyboardist drawing from R&B, jazz and gospel. He is joined by bassist Benny Turner, the younger brother of Freddie King and the one time bandleader for Marva Wright.

David & Roselyn, 4/28, KID, 3p: Local duo David Leonard and Roselyn Lionheart’s blues and jazz sounds have been a French Quarter staple for years. They’ve also performed on the Smithsonian Institute’s PBS River of Song documentary. A favorite at festivals, they have played Umbria Jazz Festival in Italy and Pori Jazz in Finland.

David Batiste & the Gladiators, 5/4, CON, 1:30p: Keyboardist David Batiste leads his funk and soul band the Gladiators. The Gladiators consist of his sons, David Russell Batiste Jr., Damon J Batiste Sr., Jamal Batiste and Ryan David Batiste.

David Reis, 4/30, AARP, 12p: Pianist David Reis has played with Tom McDermott, Joshua Paxton, Joe Krown and Tom Worrell. Previously at Jazz Fest, Reis performed the music of James Booker.

David Shaw, 5/6, GEN, 2:35p: Frontman for the Revivalists, David Shaw released a self-titled solo effort in 2021. Revivalists fans should feel right at home. Shaw’s vocals are still honest and soul-infused, and the songs have plenty of well-crafted hooks.

David Torkanowsky: A Tribute to The ELM Music Company, 5/7, JAZ, 2:40p: ELM Music Company was founded by the late pianist and composer Ellis Marsalis. Pianist David Torkanowsky has collaborated with many including Irma Thomas, Allen Toussaint, Danny Barker, Dianne Reeves and more. Torkanowsky commented to OffBeat regarding Ellis: “Never have my inadequacies as a pianist been so concentrated in one moment as when I played with Ellis Marsalis. I’m Ellis’s unworthy disciple.”

Deacon John, 5/6, BLU, 2:40p: Singer-guitarist Deacon John’s long history in New Orleans music includes leading the band at debutante balls, performing at the Dew Drop Inn and playing on such classic records as Aaron Neville’s “Tell It Like It Is” and Ernie K-Doe’s “Mother-In-Law.”

Dead & Company, 5/6, FS, 4:30p: American rock band consisting of former Grateful Dead members guitarist, Bob Weir, drummers, Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann along with guitarist John Mayer (taking Jerry Garcia’s spot), bassist Oteil Burbridge and keyboardist Jeff Chimenti. Don’t expect the magic of the Grateful Dead, but Weir and drummers Mickey Hart and Bill Kreutzmann can still jam like it’s still 1973.

Deak Harp, 4/29, BLU, 11:20a: Blues harmonica player returns to Jazz Fest. His style ranges from Chicago blues to Mississippi Hill Country blues. His one-man shows have become legendary at the King Biscuit Blues Festival and the Juke Joint Festival in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Expect a high-energy show.

Debbie Davis & Josh Paxton, 5/6, AARP, 4:15p: Debbie Davis sings blues, jazz, and show tunes with brassy candor and a twinkle in her eye. Her collaboration with pianist Josh Paxton produced a well-received album, Vices and Virtues.

Dee Dee Bridgewater, 5/6, AM, 12p; 5/6, JAZ, 4:05p: Three-time Grammy winning singer songwriter born in Memphis, now a New Orleans resident. Bridgewater is considered one of the leading ladies of jazz. On her 2015 album Dee Dee’s Features she collaborated with Irvin Mayfield and the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra. This could be Mayfield’s New Orleans return to the stage. Bridgewater

is interviewed by Karen Celestan. Dee-1, 4/30, AM, 4p: This New Orleans-based rapper’s music features biting commentary about the music business and society at large embedded within an addictive flow. Interviewed by Holly Hobbs.

Deelow Diamond Man, 5/5, CON, 1:45p: Hip-hop artist, producer, app designer and jeweler from New Orleans. Raised in the 7th Ward of New Orleans, DeeLow has worked with Lil Wayne, Curren$y, Manny Fresh and many others. A full-time rapper who simultaneously makes beats with good energy. Her takes the stage with Kris Baptiste. Delfeayo Marsalis & the Uptown Jazz Orchestra, 5/7, JAZ, 4:05p: The trombonist, composer and producer recently released Uptown on Mardi Gras Day. Delfeayo Marsalis’s energetic Uptown Jazz Orchestra sets balance humor and fun with tight ensemble interplay and memorable solos.

Delgado College Jazz Band, 5/5, JAZ, 11:15a: This modern jazz and big band-focused student ensemble hails from the emerging music program at the city’s largest community college.

Divine Ladies and Family Ties Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/30, PAR, 4:40p: This Uptown social aid and pleasure club’s annual parades generally kick off in serious style at St. Charles and Jackson Avenues.

DJ Arie Spins, 4/29, CON, 3:45p; 4/29; CON, 5:20p: DJ Arie Spins is a New Orleans native. She is known as a vocalist and pianist. DJ Arie has shared the stage with R&B artists, Sevyn Streeter, Kelly Price and PJ Morton.

DJ Captain Charles, 5/7, CON, 3:05p; 5/7, CON, 5p: The self-proclaimed “most renowned DJ in New Orleans,” Captain Charles has been fortifying his music collection for more than 20 years.

DJ Ro, 4/28, CON, 3:50p; 4/28, CON, 5:15p: Electronic dance music is DJ Ro’s forte.

DJ Shub presents War Club Live, 5/4, J&H, 4:25p: Considered to be the Godfather of PowWowStep a fusion of Native American music with modern electronica and dance. Canadian, DJ Shub, is a member of the Mohawk tribe. DJ Shub won the 2022 JUNO award for Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year. War Club Live blends traditional indigenous drums with modern day electronic beats and hip-hop sensibility.

Dominic Scott, 4/29, CON, 11:15a: New Orleans Dominic Scott is a songwriter, producer and videographer, and a rising R&B artist. He has produced singles and videos for glbl wrmng collective and played BUKU and Essence Festival. His mixtape “Color Theory” is a study of emotions and vibes.

Don “Moose” Jamison Heritage School of Music, 5/7, LAG, 11:20a: These student players aged 11 to 17 hails from the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation’s principal education program and study under the artistic direction of Kidd Jordan.

Don Vappie & his Creole Jazz Serenaders, 5/7, ECO, 3p: This eclectic banjo player and singer has made a career of exploring his Creole heritage through music, whether it’s traditional jazz, island music, or joining bluesmen in the Black Banjo Project.

Donald Lewis, 5/5, KID, 1:50p: Local actor and educator Donald Lewis Jr. teaches drama and storytelling and performs regularly with the group Young Audiences of Louisiana.

Donny Broussard and the Louisiana Stars, 5/4, FDD, 11:15a: Cajun accordionist Donny Broussard performs traditional Cajun music. The band is powered by accordion and fiddle. Donny Broussard’s grandfather Will Marceaux founded the Louisiana Stars in 1944.

Doreen’s Jazz New Orleans, 4/28, ECO, 1:40p: Clarinetist Doreen Ketchens and her band perform traditional New Orleans jazz all over the world, and have played for Presidents Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr. and Clinton.

Dr. Brice Miller & Mahogany Brass Band, 4/29, J&H, 12:50p: Trumpeter and ethnomusicologist Brice Miller leads this long-running traditional New Orleans jazz ensemble, his go-to band when he’s not delving into other pursuits like avant-garde jazz and electronic music.

Dr. Michael White’s Original Liberty Jazz Band featuring Thais Clark, 5/6, ECO, 3:05p: A clarinetist and jazz scholar, Dr. Michael White frequently fuses traditional and modern styles in his Liberty Jazz Band. Vocalist Thais Clark is his regular at Jazz Fest.

Dragon Smoke, 4/28, GEN, 3:35p: Dragon Smoke is a super group from New Orleans consisting of Ivan Neville, Robert Mercurio, Eric Lindell, and Stanton Moore. Basically, Galactic with Neville and Lindell. The music centers around Lindell’s blue-eyed soul.

Dumaine Street Gang and Original Pigeon Town Steppers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/6, PAR, 12p: The Tremé-based Dumaine Street Gang Social Aid and Pleasure Club hits the Sixth Ward’s hottest spots during its annual parade.

Durand Jones, 5/4, GEN, 2:10p: From Indiana, vocalist Durand Jones is joined by drummer and vocalist Aaron Frazer, guitarist Blake Rhein and keyboardist Steve Okonski. Their music is described as synthy modern soul and disco beats dotted with strings. Their shows are joyous and energetic.

Dustin Dale Gaspard, 5/5, AARP, 2:50p: Singer songwriter from Louisiana, Dustin Dale Gaspard, started the Freetown Sound (now on hiatus) performing swamp pop and classic soul and rock ’n’ roll. The death of his grandmother and grandfather during the pandemic produced piercing original songs. Expect Gaspard to play an acoustic guitar and sing in a lonesome tenor voice.

Dwayne Dopsie, 5/6, AARP, 12p; 5/6, FDD, 2:55p: Dwayne Dopsie is a second-generation accordion slinger who carries on the blues-infused style of his dad, Rockin Dopsie Sr., often with a whole lot of added speed and volume.

Dynamic Smooth Family of Slidell, 5/5, GOS, 2:15p: A cappella gospel harmonies are the specialty of this group based in Slidell, Louisiana. Evangelist Rosa Lee Smooth founded the Dynamic Smooth Family group three decades ago, and her daughter Cynthia Smooth Plummer now leads the group.

E’Dana, 5/6, GOS, 2p: Gospel singer and stage actress E’Dana has been touring and recording since she was 15. She hits the Fair Grounds with her Louisiana-based group,

Divinely Destin.

Ed Sheeran, 4/29, FS, 5p: The English singer songwriter, Sheeran, is one of the world’s best-selling musical artists. Sheeran, also an actor, appeared in the 2019 film Yesterday. Although his music is pop he often incorporates rap into his music. His musical influences are the Beatles and Eminem.

Eleanor McMain High School “Singing Mustangs”, 5/4, GOS, 12:05p: The McMain Secondary School Gospel Choir, a.k.a. the McMain Singing Mustangs, return under the guidance of Clyde Lawrence.

Emplegoste, 5/6, CEP, 4:45p; 5/7, CEP, 1:50p; 5/7, J&H, 5:50p: Emplegoste meaning something messy, is AfroPuerto Rican music.

Eric Gales, 5/5, BLU, 5:45p: Left-handed blues guitarist, Gales, released his first record at age 16. Often compared to Jimi Hendrix, Gales’ style is a unique hybrid of blues and rock.

Eric Johanson, 4/30, AARP, 2:50p: Blues based guitarist, vocalist and songwriter. Johanson grew up in Alexandria, Louisiana and started playing guitar at age five. His repertoire includes Americana, roots rock and New Orleans funk. He has performed with Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne and others. OffBeat called his latest album a crowning achievement.

Eric Lindell, 5/5, BLU, 4:15p: Once a California skate punk, Eric Lindell had more success as a blue-eyed soul

singer and bluesman after moving to New Orleans. His tight backing band explores the slightly country-influenced edges of Louisiana roots rock.

Erica Falls and Vintage Soul, 5/6, CON, 1:50p: This soulful R&B vocalist has sung with Allen Toussaint and Irma Thomas, but her chops and songwriting skills demand attention on their own merit.

Ernie Vincent & The Top Notes, 5/7, BLU, 11:15a: Guitarist, vocalist and composer Ernie Vincent has been a staple on the New Orleans music scene since the 1970s. His band the Top Notes are best known for the 1972 funk anthem “Dap Walk.” His latest album Original Dap King takes a bit of a different track and heads to Mississippi to team with members of the multi-faceted group Squirrel Nut Zippers. Evangelist Jackie Tolbert, 5/7, GOS, 2:50p: Preaching through song and witness, Baton Rouge-born Jackie Tolbert brings it a little jazzier than most of her contemporaries, yet there’s no denying the power of her faith—and voice.

Farruko, 5/6, CON, 3:35p: Puerto Rican singer and rapper born Carlos Efrén Reyes Rosado has received several Grammy nominations. He recently asked forgiveness for the lyrics in his songs and declared that Farruko is retired, and Carlos is here now devoting himself to preaching about God. Apparently Farruko did not retire as evidence that he is performing at Jazz Fest.

Fermin Ceballos Band, 5/7, CEP, 12:40p; 5/7, AAPR,

2:50p: Accordionist, guitarist, bassist and vocalist Jose Fermin leads this Latin band. They perform Caribbean music with New Orleans rhythms. An acoustic set is later in the day.

Feufollet, 5/6, FDD, 11:15a: This Grammy-nominated crew of young Cajun musicians helmed by Chris Stafford recently expanded their sound by adding keyboardist Andrew Toups violinist/singer-songwriter Kelli JonesSavoy, who co-wrote much of the group’s 2015 release, Two Universes.

Fi Yi Yi & the Mandingo Warriors, 4/30, J&H, 12:20p: The Fi Yi Yi tribe of Mardi Gras Indians uses African instead of the traditional American Indian themes. Big Chief Victor Harris marched for 25 years with legendary Big Chief Tootie Montana.

First Division Rollers, Furious Five, and New Look Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/30, PAR, 12p: An esteemed branch of the historic Young Men Olympian, Jr. Benevolent Association.

Flagboy Giz, 5/4, J&H, 11:20a: Flagboy Giz, the hip-hop vlogger/activist turned Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indian, was OffBeat’s cover subject for the February Mardi Gras issue. Giz has become a force in the Mardi Gras Indian music world and beyond, landing deals with Mannie Fresh and making a headdress for production designer Hannah Beachler of the Black Panther movies. Flow Tribe, 5/7, LAG, 5:25p: “Backbone cracking music” is the chosen genre of this party-friendly funk/rock band, which adds Red Hot Chili Peppers and hip hop to the Meters on its list of funk influences.

Forgotten Souls, 5/4, J&H, 5:55p: From New Orleans the Forgotten Souls Brass Band pay their respects to the unique musical traditions of New Orleans with a special blend of second line, traditional jazz, modern jazz, funk and hip hop.

Franklin Avenue Baptist Church Choir, 4/29, GOS, 1:55p: One of New Orleans’ largest and most powerful church choirs, Franklin Avenue is a former winner for Best Gospel Group at OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Awards.

Free Agents Brass Band, 5/7, PAR, 3p: Bass drummer Ellis Joseph formed this band in September 2005 with other musicians who’d returned to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina before their regular bands did. Don’t miss their moving hit, “Made It Through the Water,” a modern riff on the spiritual “Wade In the Water.”

Free Spirit Brass Band, 4/28, PAR, 3p: A local festival favorite, the young and heavy-hitting Free Spirits are known for bringing a rock edge to the typical brass band sound that proves a dance-friendly fan favorite.

Gabrielle Cavassa, 5/6, AARP, 2:50p: New Orleans based, Gabrielle Cavassa is a vocalist and composer born in California. Her distinctive voice and intimate expression earned Cavassa co-winner of the 2021 International Sarah Vaughan Jazz Vocal Competition. Her influences range from Billie Holiday to Amy Winehouse.

Gal Holiday and the Honky Tonk Revue, 5/7, FDD, 1:40p: Big-voiced Maryland native Vanessa Niemann fronts one of New Orleans’ leading Western swing bands, which plays originals, honky-tonk favorites, and less obvious choices like Dylan’s “Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright.” They are often

winners at OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Awards.

Galactic featuring Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, 5/7, FS, 1:55p: Approaching their music with open ears, Ben Ellman, Robert Mercurio, Stanton Moore, Jeff Raines and Rich Vogel draw inspiration from quintessential New Orleans musicians such as The Meters and the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, as well as from each other. Brass band elements, old-school soul and hard rock figures as prominently as the funk for these long-running jam-band stalwarts who are known for their high-energy sets that often feature vocalist Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph.

Gary Clark Jr., 4/30, FS, 3:15p: From Austin, guitarist Clark was playing local clubs at age 12 before developing a decidedly Hendrixian tone. He is known for his fusion of blues, rock and soul music with elements of hip hop.

Geno Delafose & French Rockin’ Boogie, 4/28, FDD, 12:20p: Originally the drummer in his late father John Delafose’s band, Geno took to accordion and became a popular bandleader specializing in country-styled zydeco, when not raising horses and cattle at his Double D Ranch outside Eunice, Louisiana.

George Dean & the Gospel 4, 4/28, GOS, 3:50p: George Dean is the lead singer and songwriter of this gospel group from Memphis. Although their gospel music is considered modern, they remain true to traditional gospel rhythms.

George French & New Orleans Storyville Band, 4/30, ECO, 12:25p: As a bassist, George French played on some landmark ’60s-era sessions with Earl King, Red Tyler and Robert Parker. As a vocalist, he brings a silky touch to jazz and blues standards.

George Porter Jr. & Runnin’ Pardners, 5/6, FS, 12:05p: Best known as the bassist and singer of The Meters, George Porter Jr. brings a silky touch to jazz and blues standards. His latest album, Crying for Hope, reaches back into funk history while establishing a new standard for modern-day recording techniques.

Gerald French & the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, 5/5, ECO, 12:35p: The late drummer and colorful WWOZ personality Bob French led this band for 34 years, schooling young talents like Shamarr Allen and Kid Chocolate. When he retired from the band, French passed the torch to his nephew Gerald, also a drummer. The Original Tuxedo Jazz Band is the oldest established jazz band in the world, organized in 1910 by Oscar “Papa” Celestin.

Germaine Bazzle, 4/28, JAZ, 2:50p: This locally prized jazz singer can caress a ballad or scat-sing an uptempo number with the best. Her history includes a stint playing bass on Bourbon Street with Alvin “Red” Tyler. Both OffBeat and the Jazz Journalism Association have honored her 50-plus years of work in music education.

glbl wrmng, 4/28, CON, 12:20p: glbl wrmng is a collective of New Orleans songwriters, singers, musicians, emcees and others in the creative arts. Lead by Pell and Nate “Suave” Cameron, glbl wrmng’s music is expressive and heavy on instrumental vibes. You never know who will take the stage, maybe Kr2wcial, HaSizzle or others in the collective.

Glen David Andrews Band, 5/6, BLU, 1:30p: This singer/ trombonist, cousin of Troy and James Andrews, is a brass traditionalist and a testifying R&B vocalist who honed his

entertaining chops in Jackson Square.

Glenn Hartman and The Earthtones, 5/5, KID, 12:40p: Accordionist Glenn Harman, a native of California, moved to New Orleans at age 18. He has played with the New Orleans Klezmer Allstars and currently performs frequently with Alex McMurray.

Golden Sioux Mardi Gras Indians, 4/28, PAR, 2p: Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Golden Star Hunters, Apache Hunters, and Black Hawk Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 4/29, PAR, 1p: Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Good Fellas Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/7, PAR, 1:35p: Social aid and pleasure club parade at Economy Hall.

Gray Hawk presents Southeastern Native American Lore & Tales, 4/28, KID, 1:50p: This resident of Houma, Louisiana, shares stories from his Choctaw heritage.

Gregg Martinez & the Delta Kings with special guests

TK Hulin and Johnnie Allan, 4/28, LAG, 3:05p: Gregg Martinez is a powerhouse swamp pop vocalist from Cajun country. He inspires audiences through his big, emotional performances of classic swamp pop and R&B. Joining Martinez are vocalists TK Hulin and Johnnie Allan. Hulin, from St. Martinville, Louisiana, recorded his first single, “Many Lonely Nights,” at the age of 14. Allan, from Rayne, Louisiana, a pioneer of swamp pop, recorded “Lonely Days, Lonely Nights,” his first single, in 1956. If it’s swamp pop you want to explore, don’t miss this set.

Gregg Stafford & his Young Tuxedo Brass Band, 5/6, ECO, 12:25p: Trumpeter Gregg Stafford made his Bourbon Street performing debut in 1970; he has led the Young Tuxedo Brass Band for more than three decades.

Gregg Stafford’s Jazz Hounds, 4/30, ECO, 1:40p: Gregg Stafford’s other traditional New Orleans jazz ensemble, the Jazz Hounds, have been under his direction since the death of Danny Barker in 1994.

Grey Seal Puppets, 4/29, KID, 3p: Puppeteers that create

custom built puppets and mascots.

Guitar Slim, Jr., 5/6, BLU, 11:15a: Blues guitarist and singer from New Orleans. He was born Rodney Glenn Armstrong. His father Guitar Slim is best known for the song “The Things I Used to Do.” His 1988 album Story of My Life was nominated for a Grammy. His repertoire relies on his father’s material.

H.E.R., 5/6, CON, 5:25p: Singer and multi-instrumentalist Gabriella Wilson known as H.E.R. (Having Everything Revealed) is an R&B singer. She plays guitar and piano and her sets include original material and covers. Expect the Grammy award winning song of the year “I Can’t Breathe” and covers such as “I Love Rock and Roll” and “We Will Rock You.”

Hardhead Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/6, J&H, 3:45p: Big Chief Otto “Fiyo” DeJean leads this parade of Mardi Gras Indians.

HaSizzle, 5/6, CON, 12:30p: HaSizzle known as “The King of Bounce” is a master of beats. His music has been sampled by Drake and others. His shows are filled with free-styled scatting, rapping, and instructions that set the blueprint for how to let loose.

Helen Gillet, 4/28, LAG, 12:40p: This Belgium-born cellist and singer performs avant-garde jazz and French chansons with gusto. She’s become a cornerstone of the city’s music scene in recent years, lending her skills to multiple improvisational projects.

Herbert McCarver & The Pin Stripe Brass Band, 4/29, J&H, 3:25p: One of the best young bands playing traditional brass band music in town, the YPS represents a new generation of the Original Pin Stripes, founded by McCarver’s father.

Herbie Hancock, 5/7, JAZ, 5:40p: A contender for the most popular jazz artist now living, not least due to his ability to play anything from straight-ahead acoustic jazz to pop and hip-hop crossovers. His set will undoubtedly take in some of his visionary Afrocentric fusion from the late ’60s.

High Steppers Brass Band, 5/7, J&H, 12:25p: This local brass band mixes traditional New Orleans brass sounds with plenty of hip-hop influences.

Higher Heights Reggae Band, 4/29, J&H, 6p: Performing an array of Studio One classics and other hits, this New Orleans-based reggae act is a staple of Frenchmen Street’s growing reggae scene.

Honey Island Swamp Band, 4/30, GEN, 1:20p: Formed in San Francisco by Katrina exiles who’ve since returned to town, the HISB is a hard-driving rock band with roots in R&B, country and funk.

Horace Trahan & the Ossun Express, 4/29, FDD, 11:20a: Accordionist and vocalist, Horace Trahan, is a Cajun and zydeco artist. Born in Ossun, Louisiana, he formed the Ossun Express consisting of accordion, fiddle, guitar, bass, drums, and sometimes a triangle. His influences range from Iry LeJeune, Aldus Roger, Boozoo Chavis, Beau Jocque, Clifton Chenier, Bob Marley, and Bob Dylan.

Hot 8 Brass Band, 5/4, CON, 2:45p: The storied Hot 8 is a study in survival, having lost three members in shooting deaths. But the band has endured, and they carry on traditional brass band music while adding elements of hip hop and jazz. Their music often interprets classic tracks from Joy Division, Michael Jackson and George Benson.

Hot Club of New Orleans, 4/28, LAG, 5:35p: These guys almost singlehandedly spearheaded the great Crescent City gypsy jazz revival by perfecting a more modern, less studious, more swinging style.

Hurray for the Riff Raff, 5/6, GEN, 3:45p, Alynda Segarra, the New Orleans-based singer-songwriter who performs as lead vocalist for Hurray for the Riff Raff, has developed a highly personalized and often stark and haunting take on Americana.

ÌFÉ, 5/6, CEP, 12:45p: ÌFÉ is percussionist, composer and producer Oturan Mun. From Puerto Rico, ÌFÉ lives in New Orleans. His music is hypnotic consisting of drums and percussion and while Afro-Caribbean via New Orleans is the focus, the consciousness is informed by the larger picture of the African diaspora.

Ingrid Lucia, 5/5, LAG, 12:35p: Born into a family of street musicians, Ingrid Lucia sang with the family band, the Flying Neutrinos, from age 8. Her voice is sometimes compared to Billie Holiday, but Lucia’s delivery is upbeat and naughty.

Inspirational Gospel Singers, 4/28, GOS, 11:15a: Gospel group from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Irma Thomas, 5/5, FS, 3:50p: One of this city’s musical treasures, Irma Thomas came out of the ’60s with a catalog to die for—including many of Allen Toussaint’s greatest songs plus the first and best version of “Time Is On My Side.” She then recorded some equally fine, grown-up R&B for Rounder. While her pop sets are always wonderful, it’s her Gospel Tent appearances that absolutely can’t be missed.

ISL Circus Arts, 4/28, KID, 4:15p: Students from the International School of Louisiana in New Orleans make up this young group of acrobats, stilt walkers and clowns.

Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, 4/30, FS, 1:35p: The well-traveled keyboardist makes some of the deepest funk of his career with this band, which features double bass

guitars, giving it one of the fattest bottoms in town. In response to the pandemic, Dumpstaphunk released a new album, Where Do We Go from Here?, bursting with powerfully funky original songs and instrumentals, as well as timely remakes, the album and its socially conscious lyrics address America at this moment.

J & the Causeways, 5/4, GEN, 12:40p: Founded at the Maple Leaf on a hot summer night, J & The Causeways is a group spearheaded by singer-songwriter Jordan Anderson. Together with his pulsating rhythm section, intricate horn and guitar melodies and robust vocals, lead singer/ keys player Anderson’s music is soul dipped in old-school rhythm and blues.

J. Monque’D Blues Revue, 5/5, BLU, 12:20p: “Monk” is a true example of the classic “Yat” native of the 20th century, and his gritty, dirty blues has made him one of New Orleans’ most beloved sidemen.

Jackson Square All Star Brass Band, 5/5, PAR, 12:10p: The Jackson Square All-Star Band is a rotating group of New Orleans musicians usually found entertaining the crowds at Jackson Square.

Jambalaya Cajun Band, 5/7, FDD, 12:30p: This group was founded in 1977 by fiddler Terry Huval. The band is joined by singer Johnnie Allan.

James Andrews & the Crescent City Allstars, 5/7, BLU, 2:45p: Nicknamed “Satchmo of the Ghetto,” trumpeter James Andrews (the grandson of Jessie Hill and brother of Trombone Shorty) has taken a funky, expansive direction with his All-Stars, yet Louis Armstrong remains a key influence.

James Rivers Movement, 5/6, JAZ, 1:35p: Perhaps the city’s only jazz/funk saxophonist who doubles as a bagpipe player, James Rivers was also known for a longtime (now discontinued) Sunday brunch at the Hilton Riverside, and for scoring Clint Eastwood’s movie The Bridges of Madison County.

Jamie Cullum, 4/30, JAZ, 5:40p: British jazz and pop singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist is the UK’s biggest selling jazz artist of all time. His shows have something for everybody—a stellar pianist, sublime crooner, and beautiful interpretations from Dinah Washington’s “What a Diff’rence a Day Makes” to Brian Wilson’s “God Only Knows.”

Jamil Sharif, 5/4, ECO, 12:25p: This local trumpeter studied with Ellis Marsalis at NOCCA and went on to do a number of soundtracks, including the Ray Charles biopic Ray, for which he was music coordinator.

Jason Marsalis with special guest Warren Wolf, 4/28, JAZ, 1:30p: New Orleans, vibraphonist and drummer, Jason Marsalis is joined by vibraphonist Warren Wolf. Warren Wolf has established himself as the foremost straight-ahead vibraphonist, a bop torchbearer. A world of mallets indeed.

Javier Gutierrez & VIVAZ!, 4/30, CEP, 3:15p: This energetic and dance-inspiring Caribbean/Latin jazz fusion band, led by the Bolivian-born guitarist Javier Gutierrez, highlights the Cuban tres, a double three-stringed guitar.

Javier Olondo and AsheSon, 4/29, J&H, 2:05p: Local guitarist Javier Olondo leads this ensemble primarily through the songs of his native Cuba while drawing on the

traditions of other Latin American countries, including Guatemala and Puerto Rico.

Jazmine Sullivan, 4/29, CON, 5:45p: This Philadelphia born neo-soul and R&B singer has performed with Stevie Wonder at 13. Sullivan graduated from the City of Brotherly Love’s high school for the creative and performing arts. Her voice has an old-school hip hop sound.

Jazz Funeral for Walter “Wolfman” Washington feat.

One Mind Brass Band with VIP Ladies, Original Four and Sisters of Unity Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/4, PAR, 12:45p: This ten-member group is influenced by the Rebirth Brass Band, New Birth Brass Band, Soul Rebels, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, and Stooges Brass Band. Their sound is a unique mix of traditional jazz, R&B, blues, soul and rap.

Jeffery Broussard & The Creole Cowboys, 5/5, FDD, 1:40p: Once a member of the funky Zydeco Force, singer/ accordionist Broussard turns to old-school Creole and zydeco with this group.

Jenn Howard, 5/4, AARP, 2:50p: Gritty and bluesy singer songwriter from New Orleans. Her latest release Valiant Women features a collaboration with Ivan Neville.

Jeremy Davenport, 5/7, JAZ, 1:30p: Schooled as the featured trumpeter in Harry Connick Jr.’s band, the St. Louis native has carved out a solo career with a tender tone to both his playing and singing on romantic standards and originals.

Jermaine Landrum & The Abundant Praise Revival Choir,

5/6, GOS, 5:15p: Jermaine Landrum, the director of this New Orleans-based choir, has been leading gospel groups since the age of 9.

Jesse McBride, 5/6, JAZ, 2:45p: Pianist Jesse McBride has led The Next Generation for more than ten years, taking over for his mentor Harold Battiste who passed away in 2015.

Jessica Harvey & the Difference, 5/6, GOS, 12:10p: This gospel group from New Orleans are billed as “Just a group of ladies that serve a God who is ‘Simply Amazing.’” Leader Jessica Harvey is also a vocal music teacher at John F. Kennedy High School in New Orleans.

Jill Scott, 4/30, CON, 5:40p: Singer songwriter, poet and actress, Scott was born in Philadelphia. Her voice has infused jazz, opera, R&B, and hip-hop is sometimes called neo-soul. She is often compared with Minnie Riperton and Deniece Williams.

Jimmy Robinson, 4/30, AARP, 4:15p: Guitarist Jimmy Robinson is a member of the New Orleans Guitar Masters with John Rankin and Cranston Clements.

Joe Dyson Look Within, 5/7, JAZ, 12:20p: One of the most respected drummers in New Orleans, Joe Dyson has played with some of the city’s best like Nicholas Payton, Donald Harrison or Christian Scott.

Jo-EL Sonnier, 5/4, FDD, 6p: Singer songwriter and accordionist from Rayne Louisiana. Sonnier performs country and Cajun music and has released 35 albums with

five Grammy nominations and one Grammy award.

John “Papa” Gros, 4/28, GEN, 12:40p: New Orleans funk scene stalwart John “Papa” Gros took his music in a new direction after disbanding Papa Grows Funk in 2013. The powerhouse keyboardist, singer and French horn player recently took vocal lessons to improve the tone and range of his powerful tenor voice, the results of which are evident on his latest album, Central City.

John Boutté, 5/5, JAZ, 4:10p: A local favorite with a high and haunting voice, Boutté is an inspired, passionate interpreter of songs. His acclaim spread widely after his tune “Tremé Song” became the theme of the hit HBO series Tremé.

John Fohl, 4/28, AARP, 12p: Singer songwriter and guitarist from Montana who has worked with Bo Diddly, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Spencer Bohren and many others. Fohl moved to New Orleans in 1996 and is one of the busiest guitarist in town. Fohl recently collaborated with Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and Johnny Sansone.

John Hiatt & The Goners, 5/6, FDD, 5:45p: Singer songwriter and guitarist is characterized by his gravelly voice and pulsating blues rhythms on guitar. His new album features Louisiana’s slide guitarist, Sonny Landreth. His songs have been covered by many artists including Aaron Neville, Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt, Buddy Guy and many others. Hiatt appeared as a performer in the sixth episode of the second season of Treme, with the episode title taken from his song “Feels Like Rain.”

John Lawrence & Ven Pa’ Ca Flamenco Ensemble with Antonio Hidalgo of Spain, 4/29, CEP, 12:50p: This awardwining flamenco dance troupe has been performing in New Orleans for more than 15 years.

John Mahoney Big Band featuring Meryl Zimmerman, 4/30, JAZ, 12:25p: Trombonist, pianist and Loyola music professor Mahoney leads this large modern jazz ensemble, featuring a slew of the city’s top horn players including vocalist Meryl Zimmerman.

John Michael Bradford and The Vibe, 4/29, JAZ, 12:20p: New Orleans trumpeter, composer, and band leader. John Michael Bradford has worked with Jon Batiste, Herbie Hancock, Harry Connick, Jr. and many others. Bradford started playing the trumpet at age nine. He won the Seeking Satchmo trumpet competition and has been a member of the Young Fellaz Brass Band, Preservation Hall’s Brass Band and Jessie McBride’s Next Generation.

John Mooney & Bluesiana, 5/4, BLU, 1:30p: Real enough to record for Ruf and Blind Pig and to sit in with Snooks Eaglin and Professor Longhair, John Mooney more or less invented the melding of Delta blues with New Orleans funk.

Johnette Downing and Scott Billington, 4/30, KID, 2:15p: This local duo, comprised of children’s author and guitarist Johnette Downing and Grammy-winning producer and author “Making Tracks” Scott Billington, present a medley of Louisiana roots music dubbed “Swamp Romp.”

Johnny Sketch & the Dirty Notes, 4/29, GEN, 11:20a: They’re a funky rock band with a few gonzoid touches. The band’s philosophy can best be summed up by the sentiments of the single and video, “Dance Dance Dance Dance Dance.”

Jon Batiste, 5/5, FS, 5:30p: Long before he scored his prime gig as Stephen Colbert’s bandleader, Batiste was known here as a dazzling funk and jazz keyboardist who was open to modern pop and hip-hop influences. His latest album We Are was Album of the Year at last year’s Grammys.

Jon Cleary & the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, 4/30, GEN, 4p: Since moving over from the UK in the ’80s, Cleary’s earned a place in the frontline of New Orleans blues singers and keyboardists. He won a Grammy Award for the album GoGo Juice. Cleary has been named Songwriter of the Year and Best Pianist (multiple times) at OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Awards.

Jon Roniger and The Good For Nothin’ Band, 4/28, LAG, 1:55p: Singer songwriter Jon Roniger plays with his quintet The Good for Nothin’ Band. A Nashville songwriter veteran Roniger can be found frequently performing on Frenchmen Street.

Jonathon “Boogie” Long, 5/7, BLU, 12:20p: This soulful Baton Rouge-based blues guitar slinger has opened for B.B. King and performed with Dr. John, Kenny Neal and many others.

Jonté Landrum, 4/30, GOS, 2:50p: No stranger to Jazz Fest, Landrum sang with the Johnson Extension. A songwriter Landrum said “whatever I’m singing, you will see the Lord in me. I’m ministering, but my church is bigger. It’s the world.”

Jordan Family Tribute to Kidd Jordan featuring Stephanie, Rachel, Marlon, and Kent Jordan, 4/30, JAZ, 2:45p: The late “Kidd” Jordan was one of the most in demand jazz sax men. His family on vocals, flute, violin, and trumpet— all of whom are already leading lights on the stage pay tribute to their father.

Josh Kagler & Harmonistic Praise Crusade, 5/5, GOS, 1:25p: This 20-member gospel group from New Orleans, founded in 2004, was originally known as Harmony. Following Hurricane Katrina, they regrouped with a new name and expanded to 20 members.

Jourdan Thibodeaux et les Rôdailleurs, 5/7, FDD, 2:55p: Jourdan Thibodeaux is a fiddle-playing farmer from Cypress Island, Louisiana. Diagnosed with throat cancer at the age of 21, Thibodeaux said doctors planned to remove his larynx. He requested that his voice be recorded before it totally disappeared. Now cancer-free with his voice intact, Thibodeaux cherishes his newfound celebrity while his folksy personality and work ethic remain unchanged.

Joy Clark, 5/4, LAG, 3:05p: New Orleans singer-songwriter and guitarist Joy Clark has performed with Water Seed and Cyril Neville. Her influences range from Tracy Chapman to Anita Baker. She gained notoriety as the founding member of Soulkestra.

Judith Owen & Her Gentlemen Callers, 5/6, ECO, 4:30p: Welsh born and New Orleans based vocalist and pianist Judith Owen’s primary residence, with her husband, actorwriter-satirist Harry Shearer, is in the French Quarter. On her new album Come On And Get It, she pays homage to the female voices of the ’50s and ’60s. The band includes pianist David Torkanowsky, trumpet Kevin Lewis, saxophonist Charlie Gabriel and many other local musicians.

Julio y Cesar Band, 5/6, LAG, 11:30a: This duo of local

brothers performs Latin American music on twin classical guitars and have recently expanded into a larger band.

Kai Knight’s Dance Academy, 4/30, KID, 11:30a: This New Orleans troupe aims to teach young African American women about positive image and self-expression through dance.

Kane Brown, 5/5, GEN, 5:20p: Singer from Chattanooga whose music ranges from country to arena-rock to hip-hop. Brown has a clear, capable voice that naturally exudes emotion. Expect the dance-pop tune “One Thing Right” and the power balled “Heaven.”

Kat Walker Jazz Band – Scat with Ms. Kat, 4/28, KID, 12:40p: Kids learn the art of scat singing with a live jazz band, karaoke style.

Kathryn Rose Wood, 4/30, AARP, 1:25p: New Orleans based singer songwriter and instrumentalist best known for her music therapy. Her music is eclectic with influences from Lauryn Hill to Chaka Kahn.

Keb’ Mo’, 5/6, BLU, 5:45p: Singer songwriter and guitarist, Kevin Moore better known as Keb’ Mo’ performs American blues or specifically Delta blues. He is a guitar and storytelling master. Wait for his performance of “She Just Wants to Dance” to watch the women slide into the aisles and dance without partners.

Kelly Love Jones, 5/5, AARP, 1:25p: Kelly Love Jones calls her music New Orleans Swag. Influences include second line, R&B, hip-hop and folk.

Kenny Loggins: His Final Tour, 4/30, GEN, 5:30p: Singer songwriter and guitarist Kenny Loggins is an award-winning songwriter. His songs include “Footloose,” “Danger Zone,” “What a Fool Believes,” “This is It,” “I’m Alright” and too many others to mention. His collaboration with Jim Messina, formerly of Poco and Buffalo Springfield, produced other hits, including “You’re Mama Don’t Dance,” and “Angry Eyes.” This may be your last chance to see the 75-year-old singer songwriter who says the show will include 90 percent of the hits, and 10 or so percent of the deeper cuts.

Kenny Neal, 4/30, BLU, 2:50p: Neal may be the best living guitarist in the Baton Rouge swamp-blues scene.

Kermit Ruffins & the Barbecue Swingers, 4/28, CON, 2:45p: One of New Orleans’ most beloved trumpeters and personalities, Kermit Ruffins digs swingin’, smokin’ and partyin’ traditional style.

Kermit Ruffins’ Tribute to Louis Armstrong, 5/7, ECO, 5:35p: Kermit Ruffins shows off his more serious side in this set devoted to his hero, New Orleans’ own Satchmo. Kevin & The Blues Groovers, 4/28, BLU, 11:15a: New Orleans vocalist and pianist Kevin Gullage was born into a musical family. His father Tony played bass with Henry Butler, Carol Fran and others and his brother is hip-hop artist Kr3wcial. Gullage appeared on American Idol with Lionel Richie saying: “You got so much flavor.”

Khris Royal & Dark Matter, 5/4, FS, 11:15a: Dark Matter is fronted by New Orleans native and saxophonist Khris Royal. The band could be called an alternative funk band. Royal went to Berkelee College of Music in Boston on a full scholarship.

Kiara Hicks, 5/4, GOS, 2:40p: Gospel singer, songwriter, recording artist and minister. Hicks born in 1999 calls herself a “Gen-Z Pastor.” Hicks latest single “I Made It” is more R&B with hints of gospel.

Kid Simmons’ Local International Allstars, 4/28, ECO, 11:15a: An early devotee of George “Kid Sheik” Cola, trumpeter Kid Simmons has been active in traditional jazz since his arrival in New Orleans in 1966. He cut his teeth in Harold Dejean’s Olympia Brass Band and the Young Tuxedo Brass Band.

KID smART Showcase, 4/28, KID, 11:30p: This organization brings arts initiatives to a range of public schools in Orleans and Jefferson parishes, and its student groups have been a fixture in the Kids Tent at Jazz Fest.

Kim Carson & The Real Deal, 5/6, LAG, 5:40p: A longtime New Orleans local who now resides in Houston, Kim Carson is a classic-model honky-tonk angel, able to charm with bawdy humor and then break hearts with a ballad.

Kim Che’re, 5/5, GOS, 3:10p: Gospel singer Kim Che’re Hardy has wowed Jazz Fest audiences. According to music writer Keith Spera, “She sounded a bit like a younger Patti LaBelle, with a slightly huskier voice, minus LaBelle’s overthe-top, upper-register histrionics. And she was every bit the show-woman that LaBelle is.”

Kinfolk Brass Band, 5/6, FS, 11:15a; 5/6, J&H, 2:35p: Formed in 2006, the Kinfolk are true to the traditional brass band sound, performing classics like “Bourbon Street Parade” and “I’ll Fly Away” along with original songs.

King Oliver Creole Jazz Band Centennial led by Don Vappie, 4/28, ECO, 4:25p: King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band was one of the best and most important bands in early Jazz, that featured Baby Dodds, Louis Armstrong, Johnny Dodds, Lil Hardin-Armstrong and others including band leader, King Oliver. Vappie is both a fine player and a scholar of the jazz banjo tradition, steeped in the music of King Oliver and Jelly Roll Morton and performing it with the original Creole inflections.

Kris Baptiste and DeeLow Diamond Man, 5/5, CON, 1:45p: New Orleans singer, songwriter and rapper Kris Baptiste incorporates jazz, rhythm & blues and hip-hop into his music. He has collaborated with Dani’Wright, Kourtney Heart and others. His most popular song is “Secret Lover.”

Kris Tokarski Jazz Band, 5/5, ECO, 5:50p: New Jersey born jazz pianist, Kris Tokarski, moved to New Orleans to complete his master’s degree at UNO and remained. His interest in the music of Jelly Roll Morton, James P. Johnson, Earl Hines combined with his bebop roots allowed Torkarski to develop a unique jazz voice. He has recorded and toured with the Squirrel Nut Zippers.

Kristin Diable & The City, 4/30, LAG, 2:55p: This deepvoiced Baton Rouge native made a name for herself in New York City’s singer-songwriter community before returning to New Orleans. NPR likened her singing on Create Your Own Mythology (2015) to that of a lighter hearted Amy Winehouse.

Kumbuka African Drum & Dance Collective, 4/30, J&H, 11:15a: Founded in 1983 and based in New Orleans, this troupe brings African music and dance to grade schools throughout Louisiana; members range from ages 10 to 55.

L. B. Landry High School Gospel Choir, 5/4, GOS, 12:55p: A 40-plus member gospel choir from the West Bank.

La Casa de la Plena Tito Matos of Puerto Rico, 4/28, CEP, 4:20p; 4/29, CEP, 4:20p; 4/30, CEP, 4:20p; 5/4, CEP, 4:20p; 5/5, CEP, 4:20p; 5/6, KID, 12:35p; 5/6, CEP, 2:55p; 5/7, CEP, 4:15p: Puerto Rican carnival parade featuring hand drums, horns and guitars.

La Raíz – Bomba Mayagüezana, 5/5, J&H, 1:30p; 5/5, CEP, 3:10p; 5/6, CON, 11:20a; 5/6, CEP, 2p; 5/7, CEP, 3:15p: From Puerto Rico, La Raíz – Bomba Mayagüezana is a group of percussionists with women vocalists.

La Tribu de Abrante, 4/28, FS, 12:35p; 4/28, CEP, 3:15p; 4/29, CEP, 4:45p: La Tribu de Abrante from Puerto Rico was founded and is led by singer, songwriter Hiram Abrante.

Ladies of Unity, 4/28, PAR, 3p: Social Aid and Pleasure Club parade.

Lady & Men Rollers and The Perfect Gentleman Social

Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/5, PAR, 3:30p: Social Aid and Pleasure Club parade.

Lady Prince of Wales, Women of Class, Men of Class Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/4, PAR, 3p: Social Aid and Pleasure Club parade.

Lady Tambourine, 4/28, GOS; 5/5, GOS: Rosalie Washington is Lady Tambourine. She has become a presence at the Gospel Tent playing her tambourine with enthusiasm.

Lafayette Louisiana Legends: Lee Allen Zeno & Major Handy, 5/5, AM, 2p: Interviewed by Herman Fuselier.

Lane Mack, 4/29, LAG, 12:35p: Lafayette singer songwriter and guitarist Lane Mack plays country or Americana music. He has performed with Marc Broussard, Eric Lindell and Sonny Landreth and many others.

Larkin Poe, 5/4, AM, 3:30p; 5/4, BLU, 5:45p: Larkin Poe is a roots rock band from Georgia, currently based in Nashville. They are fronted by sisters Rebecca Lovell and Megan Lovell, both Grammy nominated singer songwriters. Their music is soulful, reflecting their Southern heritage. Earlier Jennifer Odell will interview Larkin Poe.

Lars Edegran’s New Orleans Ragtime Orchestra, 5/7, ECO, 12:25p: Lars Edegran played the first Jazz Fest in 1970 with the Ragtime Orchestra. Born in Sweden, Edegran most often plays piano but also plays the guitar, banjo, mandolin, clarinet, and saxophone. His theatrical arrangements include the music for One Mo’ Time.

Leah Chase, 4/29, JAZ, 2:45p: A classically trained opera singer who turned to jazz, Chase is also the daughter of the late Leah Chase one of New Orleans’ most famous restaurateurs.

Lena Prima, 5/7, LAG, 4:05p: The youngest daughter of Louis Prima performs her dad’s classics along with her own jazz-pop material. Lena Prima’s recent album, Prima La Famiglia, issued by Basin Street Records, interprets her father’s repertoire.

Leo Jackson & the Melody Clouds, 5/7, GOS, 12:05p: This family group, known for its rousing vocals and synchronized steps, was formed in 1965 and is now led by founder Leo Jackson’s son.

Leo Nocentelli, 4/29, GEN, 2:45p: The original Meters guitarist played a key role in shaping New Orleans funk, working Hendrix-inspired guitar leads into the band’s slinky setting. He was also the most prolific songwriter in the group, taking the lead on “Cissy Strut,” “Hey Pocky Way” and other signature songs. With the discovery of a solo album recorded in 1971, it’s likely that Nocentelli’s Jazz Fest set will showcase original work from the earliest years of his career.

Leon Bridges, 5/4, GEN, 5:30p: Bridges, who first introduced himself to the world with 2015’s Sam-Cooke-meetsswamp-pop single “Coming Home,” practices actual Soul with a capital S—Cooke and Otis are two names most often thrown around when describing his voice.

Leroy Jones & New Orleans’ Finest, 4/28, ECO, 3:05p: Trumpeter Leroy Jones is a protégé of the legendary Danny Barker. At age 13, he was leading the Fairview Baptist Church Marching Band. In 1991, Jones joined Harry Connick Jr.’s band. He has also appeared with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band and Dr. John.

Les Freres Michot, 5/6, LAG, 12:35p; 5/6, AM, 4p: This acoustic Cajun family band known for its harmonies formed in 1986. The original lineup consisted of five brothers, Rick Michot, Thomas C. Michot, Bobby Michot, David Michot, and Mike Michot. The band today plays primarily as a trio but will appear as a quintet for Jazz Fest. Members of the group, Tommy, Rick, Patrick and Andre Michot are interviewed by Patrick Mould.

Leyla McCalla, 5/6, FDD, 12:25p; 5/6, AM, 3p: A firstgeneration Haitian American, Leyla McCalla made a name for herself by mixing ancestral Creole folk with Cajun fiddle and Dixieland banjo—among other innovations—on the streets of the French Quarter. Interviewed by Eve Abrams.

Lil’ Nathan & the Zydeco Big Timers, 4/30, AM, 12p; 4/30, FDD, 1:40p: This young accordion player from Lafayette scored a regional hit with “That L’Argent,” a hip-hop flavored zydeco tune about the power of money. His dad is Nathan Williams of the Zydeco Cha Chas. Earlier Scott Billington interviews Lil’ Nathan, Dennis Paul & Naylan Williams.

Little Freddie King Blues Band, 4/30, BLU, 12:20p; 4/30, AM, 3p: The Mississippi Delta-born Little Freddie King plays raw juke-joint blues with style, and he’s one of the best dressed performers found on any stage. King was recently honored with OffBeat’s Lifetime Achievement in Music Award. Little Freddie King is interviewed by Peggy Scott Laborde.

Lizzo, 4/28, FS, 5:25p: American singer, rapper and flutist. Lizzo was born Melissa Jefferson in Detroit. Her music incorporates hip hop but is also infused with soul, funk-pop and R&B. The Guardian credited Lizzo for resurrecting the flute—the flute’s brightest champion.

Loose Cattle, 5/4, LAG, 4:20p: New Orleans based roots rock band was founded by OffBeat contributor, vocalist Kimberly Kaye and actor, singer, and guitarist Michael Cerveris. Also in the band are Renè Coman, Doug Garrison and Rurik Nunan. OffBeat contributor Cree McCree says the band is her favorite Americana cowpunks in New Orleans.

Los Güiros, 5/6, J&H, 1:25p: Led by Corina Hernandez, Los Guiros blends traditional Columbian cumbia folkloric dance rhythms with trippy guitar driven sounds of Peruvian chicha all with modern electronic instruments. They are one of the hottest Latin bands from New Orleans.

Los Lobos, 4/30, FDD, 5:45p: They’re best known for two ’80s Ritchie Valens covers in “La Bamba” and “Come On, Let’s Go,” but this five-piece has been holding down the tradition of Mexican American music since they changed all the rules of Latin rock with “Will the Wolf Survive?”

Lost Bayou Ramblers, 4/30, FDD, 4:20p: This band typically plays traditional Cajun music but incorporates Western swing, rockabilly, and punk rock elements. Leader Louis Michot has revived forgotten classics and sings almost entirely in Cajun French. The Lost Bayou Ramblers have collaborated with many artists, including Spider Stacey of The Pogues. The band’s 2017 release Kalenda received a Grammy for the Best Regional Roots Music Album.

Louis Ford & his New Orleans Flairs, 5/5, ECO, 11:20a: Clarinetist and saxophonist Louis Ford’s father was Clarence Ford, who played with Fats Domino. Louis will lead his old-time New Orleans jazz band through a set of traditional music.

Louisiana Repertory Jazz Ensemble, 5/6, ECO, 11:15a: Fred Starr leads this local traditional jazz septet with a focus on tight arrangements of tunes by Sam Morgan and other music from the turn of the century.

Low Cut Connie, 5/7, FS, 11:20a: This rock band is from Philadelphia and is led by pianist and songwriter Adam Weiner. Low Cut Connie is described as “unmatched in all of rock” earning praises from Elton John (one of his favorite bands) to Bruce Springsteen. They performed at President Biden’s inauguration and their music appears on President Obama’s Spotify playlist.

Loyola University Jazz Ensemble, 4/28, JAZ, 11:15a: Students from Loyola’s jazz program—the oldest in the city—make up this group.

Ludacris, 5/5, CON, 5:55p: American rapper and actor his style is described as dirty South hip-hop. Ludacris, Christopher Brian Bridges, is a showman and will interact with the crowd. Expect some classics like “All I Do is Win” which usually closes the show.

Lulu & the Broadsides, 5/7, LAG, 12:30p: Singer-songwriter Dayna Kurtz wanted to be a broad she named Lulu all her life. The band plays “lost songs” of all types and has been described as if the American standard moved down to New Orleans, got drunk and had a baby. Kurtz also includes some original material.

Luther Kent & Trickbag, 4/28, BLU, 3:05p: This Southernfried soul man, who fronted Blood, Sweat & Tears for a short stint in the ’70s, is joined by the funky Trickbag.

Lyle Henderson, 4/28, GOS, 2:45p: A former radio DJ at R&B and gospel stations for WYLD, Lyle Henderson also coordinates the gospel brunches at the House of Blues.

Maggie Koerner, 4/29, FS, 12:25p; 4/29, AARP, 4:15p: Maggie Koerner earned plenty of new fans when she held down the vocal role during a series of Galactic tours a few years back, but her powerful voice and intense stage presence make her solo shows equally exciting.

Mahmoud Chouki, 5/4, LAG, 12:40p: Born in Morocco and now living in New Orleans, Mahmoud Chouki is a classically trained guitarist, oud and banjo player. Chouki composed the music score for the 2021 Sundance Award winning film “Ma Belle, My Beauty.” In 2021, Chouki was named Best Emerging Artist at the 2020 Best of the Beat Awards. He is often joined by local musicians, including saxophonist Brad Walker, Khris Royal and bassist Martin Masakowski and others.

Malcolm Williams with the New Orleans Celebration Choir, 5/5, GOS, 4:05p: Singer songwriter, gospel artist Malcolm Williams leads the New Orleans Celebration Choir.

Malentina, 5/7, CEP, 11:30a: The Mambo Queen of the South, Michelle Malentina, is a film actor, singer songwriter from Puerto Rico who is currently based in Lafayette, Louisiana. Her music is influenced by Spanish and Afro-Cuban music.

Marc Stone, 5/5, BLU, 11:15a: Singer-songwriter and guitarist Marc Stone is a roots and blues slide guitarist. Stone was born in New York but arrived in New Orleans more than 20 years ago. Stone has collaborated with Walter “Wolfman” Washington, John Mooney, Alvin Youngblood Hart, Rockin’ Dopsie, Jr., Shannon McNally and many others.

Marcia Ball, 5/5, FS, 12:40p: A Jazz Fest perennial, the singer, songwriter and pianist born in Texas and raised in Vinton, Louisiana, is a multi-award-winning artist. Her work with Tracy Nelson and Irma Thomas for “Sing It!, was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Marcus King, 4/30, BLU, 5:40p: Singer songwriter and guitarist from Greenville South Carolina. His father is Marvin King a well-known blues guitarist. His genre-blending music has garnered attention in the Americana genre. Dan Auerbach of the Black Keys produced his albums.

Margie Perez & Her Trio Latino, 4/28, AARP, 1:25p: Vocalist and songwriter, Margie Perez, was born in Washington DC, her parents are Cuban immigrants. She is the frontwoman for this vibrant Latin trio consisting of

Michael Skinkus on percussion, Gabriel Case on bass and Victor Campbell on piano. Guitarist (tres) and vocalist Yusa of the Yusa Cuban Jazz Quintet will be a special guest.

Mariachi Jalisco, 5/5, CEP, 12:40p: Baton Rouge-based alumni of Cuba’s Mariachi Real Jalisco reunite to perform music from their hometown of Havana.

Mariachi Jalisco, 5/5, J&H, 5:05p: Baton Rouge-based alumni of Cuba’s Mariachi Real Jalisco reunite to perform music from their hometown of Havana.

Mariachi Jalisco celebrate Cinco de Mayo, 5/5, FLS, 2:30p: Baton Rouge-based alumni of Cuba’s Mariachi Real Jalisco reunite to perform music from their hometown of Havana.

Mark Braud’s New Orleans Jazz Giants, 5/5, ECO, 3:15p: Mark Braud is the musical director of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. This trumpeter and vocalist lead a different cast of traditional jazz players for a change of pace.

Mark Brooks & Friends, 5/6, ECO, 5:50p: Considered New Orleans’ most talented and versatile bassists. Brooks is a protégé of Alvin Batiste and his recent album release with the New Orleans Gentlemen of Jazz earned him high praise from Ricky Riccardi; “Mark Brooks is swinging and pushing this band the whole time.”

Martha Redbone, 5/7, AM, 12p; 5/7, BLU, 1:30p: Martha Redbone is a blues and soul singer. She is part Choctaw, European and African American. Her music is a mix of rhythm and blues with soul music influences, fused with elements of traditional Native American music. Earlier Redbone is interviewed by Brenda Dardar Robichaux. Mavis Staples, 4/28, BLU, 6p: She’ll take you there. The Grand Dame of Gospel’s first family, who stoked her street cred when the family funked in the ’70s on hits like “Respect Yourself” and “I’ll Take You There,” is getting even more respect today with her solo career; no one else at the Fest combines the sexy throaty passion of R&B with the sweet release of gospel.

Max Moran & Neospectric, 4/28, JAZ, 12:20p: Max Moran is best known as a member of the Bridge Trio as well as a bassist who’s much-called up on the New Orleans jazz scene. Neospectric finds its strength in Moran’s superior compositions played by some of New Orleans’ most accomplished musicians.

Maze featuring Frankie Beverly, 5/7, CON, 5:30p: Though lesser known in much of the country, Frankie Beverly and his smooth-funk crew are royalty in New Orleans, which was one of the first cities to take the Philly-bred band to heart when the single “Happy Feelin’s” came out in 1977. Maze recorded its first live album at the Saenger Theater in New Orleans in 1980 and the group has played the closing set on Congo Square for too many years to count.

Mdou Moctar, 4/30, CEP, 12:35p; 4/30, BLU, 4:10p: Dubbed “the Hendrix of the Sahara” by the UK’s Guardian newspaper, this Tuareg musician was forbidden to buy a guitar by his religious parents, so he built his own. He is among the first to play traditional Tuareg music in a rockguitar format and has starred in a film loosely based on Prince’s Purple Rain.

Melissa Etheridge, 5/7, AM, 3p; 5/7, BLU, 5:40p: Melissa Etheridge, a singer-songwriter and guitarist, is known for

her raspy, smoky vocals and pop-based folk rock. Etheridge is the lead guitarist in her band and is usually backed by guitarist and keyboardist Max Hart, bassist David Santos and drummer Eric Gardner. Etheridge has received 15 Grammy nominations, winning two, in 1993 and 1995. In 2007, she won an Academy Award for “I Need to Wake Up” from the film An Inconvenient Truth. Earlier Etheridge is interviewed by Alison Fensterstock.

Meschiya Lake & the Little Big Horns, 5/4, BLU, 12:15p: Once a Royal Street performer, Meschiya Lake made herself a marquee name in the local traditional jazz scene. Lake and her band are getting more attention worldwide thanks to her vintage sass and great storytelling.

Mestre Curtis Pierre “Samba Man”, 5/7, KID, 11:30a: The self-professed “Samba King of New Orleans” leads the Afro-Brazilian troupe he founded in 1987 in a series of parades and performances.

Mia Borders, 4/29, GEN, 12:40p: A native of New Orleans, singer-songwriter Mia Borders has great vocals and compelling songwriting. Her album Quarter-Life Crisis was produced by Anders Osborne and described by OffBeat Magazine as “a record of great music and great intensity.” Her recent album, Good Side of Bad, is “well-steeped in classic soul.”

Michael Doucet & Chad Viator avec Lâcher Prise, 5/4, FDD, 12:20p: Best known as the frontman for BeauSoleil, Michael Doucet’s solo project Lâcher Prise includes guitarist Chad Viator. The music includes Doucet’s originals that are not necessarily Cajun songs but a bluesy take on Louisiana songwriting great Bobby Charles. Lâcher Prise is founded on musical freedom and the concept of “letting go,” a loose translation of the Cajun French phrase. Doucet said, “I’ve reached a point in my life and career where I can do whatever the hell I want to do.”

Michael Juan Nunez, 5/5, LAG, 4:15p: Michael Juan Nunez, a singer-songwriter and guitarist from South Louisiana, has toured with Zachary Richard, Doug Kershaw, Henry Gray, Sonny Landreth and many others. Nunez de-

scribes his music: “Think of Magic Sam channeling Clifton Chenier... or R.L. Burnside fronting a zydeco band.” Nunez may pull vocabulary from a few different vernaculars, but he is fluent in his own tongue.

Midnite Disturbers, 4/30, J&H, 6:10p: This all-star brass band only comes together at Jazz Fest when schedules allow, and the planets align. Drummers Stanton Moore and the late Kevin O’Day cofounded the band; among those who’ve been part of the lineup are Mark Mullins (Bonerama), Ben Elman (Galactic), Matt Perrine (Tin Men), Big Sam (Funky Nation) and many other notables.

Mississippi Mass Choir, 5/7, GOS, 3:55p: Frank Williams founded this large, award-winning choir in Mississippi in 1988.

Mitch Woods & His Rocket 88’s, 4/29, BLU, 1:40p: A redhot “rock-a-boogie” pianist and singer, Woods has spent the past four decades perfecting his blend of ’40s-inspired blues and swing with a modern feel.

Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway, 5/5, AM, 1p; 5/5, FDD, 4:15p: Molly Tuttle is a virtuosic multi-instrumentalist and singer, songwriter from California. The music is bluegrass but pushes the genre into new directions. Her latest album is co-produced by dobro player Jerry Douglas. Earlier Tuttle is interviewed by Molly Farr.

Monogram Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/7, PAR, 2:15p: James Harris, aka Big Chief Yam, created this uptown gang after stints with the Creole Wild West and the Wild Magnolias.

Morgan Heritage, 5/4, CON, 5:40p: Two-time Grammy award-winning reggae group from Jamaica, Morgan Heritage, was formed in 1994 by five children of reggae artist Denroy Morgan. Although most family members have left the group, they continue to release critically acclaimed albums.

Motel Radio, 4/28, GEN, 11:20a: This local quintet performs Americana with an indie rock streak.

Mount Hermon Baptist Church Delegation Choir, 4/28, GOS, 6p: Bishop Sean T. Elder, who writes much of his

group’s music, leads this choir from a church on North Broad Street in New Orleans.

Mumford & Sons, 5/7, FS, 3:35p: Folk rock band from London. Singer songwriter and lead singer Marcus Mumford fronts the band. The music is influenced by the Old Crow Medicine Show.

Musical Diversity in India with Andrew McLean and Mehnaz Hoosein, 5/4, KID, 11:30a: New Orleans’ tabla drummer Andrew McLean and singer songwriter Mehnaz Hoosein present classical Indian music meets jazz. Mehnaz moved to New Orleans in 2012 and she is frequently featured with pianist Lawrence Sieberth.

Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas, 5/7, FDD, 4:15p: Nathan Williams sprung from his brother’s club, El Sid O’s in Lafayette, to become one of zydeco’s biggest names—and to write its two greatest porcine songs, “Zydeco Hog” and “Everything on the Hog is Good.”

Native Nations Intertribal, 4/28, FLS, 12p; 4/28, FLS, 1:15p, 4/28, FLS, 3:15p; 4/29, FLS, 12:10p; 4/29, FLS, 1:25p; 4/29, FLS, 4:05p; 4/30, FLS, 12:05p; 4/30, FLS, 1:15p; 4/30, FLS, 2:35p: Daily exhibition of pow wow performances include traditional shawls, straight dance, grass dance, and jingle, hoop, southern cloth and stomp dances. The groups include Grammy winners Northern Cree of Canada and Native Nations Intertribal.

Naughty Professor, 4/30, GEN, 12:15p: Naughty Professor is a New Orleans-based jazz-funk sextet, The band’s 2017 album Identity represents all the good things that have been happening to New Orleans music in the past decade.

New Birth Brass Band, 5/7, J&H, 4:30p: Featuring trumpeter Will Smith and other former students of the famed Olympia Brass Band, this long-running ensemble boasts Glen David Andrews and Trombone Shorty among its alumni.

New Breed Brass Band, 5/5, J&H, 3:50p: These high school marching band alums fold hip hop, funk, and soul into the New Orleans brass tradition in clubs and second lines around the city.

New Generation Brass Band, 5/5, PAR, 3:30p: New Generation Brass Band will be parading with Lady & Men Rollers and Scene Boosters Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs. New Generation Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 4/30, PAR, 2:55p: Social aid and pleasure club parade in Ecomony Hall.

New Hope Baptist Church Mass Choir, 4/29, GOS, 6:05p: This 100-plus choir is from Birmingham, Alabama. Gospel greats Ruby Boyd and Dr. John David Brown previously led the choir. Currently, the choir is led by Reverend Prince E. Yelder.

New Leviathan Oriental Foxtrot Orchestra, 4/30, ECO, 11:15a: A multi-generational, always-entertaining large ensemble that plays only ’90s music—as in the 1890s, when the shipboard dance music and early jazz they favor was first created.

New Orleans Classic Recording Revue featuring The Dixie Cups, Clarence “Frogman” Henry, Wanda Rouzan, and Al “Carnival Time” Johnson, 4/28, BLU, 1:40p: This annual revue (clearly copied from OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Award show) remains the only place to catch some of

the originals of local R&B. Expect to hear essentials like “Chapel of Love,” “Carnival Time,” “Ain’t Got No Home” and the Rouzan Sisters’ “Man of War” direct from the sources.

New Orleans Dance Collective, 5/6, KID, 4:20p: The New Orleans Dance Collective (NODC) is a non-profit organization using dance as intervention for inner-city at-risk youth. NODC teaches tap, hip hop, jazz and ballet.

New Orleans Gospel Soul Children, 4/30, GOS, 6p: Led by Craig Adams, this long-standing local gospel group delivers energetic and choreographed renditions of gospel standards.

New Orleans Klezmer AllStars, 5/5, LAG, 5:30p: Innovators of a funked-up localized take on traditional Jewish music, this band’s past and present members include scions of the city’s jazz and funk scenes.

New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Rhythm Section, 4/29, PAR, 2p: Parading Mardi Gras Indians.

New Orleans Music Program led by Donald Harrison

Jr., 5/4, JAZ, 11:15a: The New Orleans music program got its start at Tipitina’s internship program. It’s an after-school jazz program for high school students. The program focuses on instrumental performance, recording, music theory, and career professionalism. They are led by saxophonist Donald Harrison, Jr.

New Orleans Nightcrawlers, 5/6, GEN, 12:20p: Not your average second line street band. The Nightcrawlers add new harmonic substance and challenging arrangements to the funky New Orleans sound. The band includes familiar faces from Bonerama and Galactic. The 2021 album Atmosphere won a Grammy Award for Best Regional Roots Music Album.

New Soul Inc., 5/7, CON, 12:30p: New Orleans’ old school funk and R&B band. They cover Earth, Wind & Fire, the Commodores, The Gap Band, Hall & Oats and others.

New Wave Brass Band, 4/28, PAR, 12p: Snare drummer Oscar Washington is at the helm of this updated traditional New Orleans brass band.

NE-YO, 5/7, CON, 3:35p: Singer songwriter, record producer and actor, Ne-Yo is Shaffer Smith from Arkansas. Ne-Yo has won three Grammy Awards. His music is R&B with soulful vocals. Expect the hits, especially “Let’s Go,” “Give Me Everything” and “Time Of Our Lives.”

Nicholas Payton featuring MonoNeon & Corey Fonville, 4/28, JAZ, 5:55p: In recent years, the #BAM proponent has shifted from trumpet to the keyboard chair, from which he often plays both instruments together. Payton is joined by bassist MonoNeon and drummer Corey Fonville.

Nineveh Baptist Church Mass Choir, 5/6, GOS, 6:10p: The roof-raising Nineveh Mass Choir is directed by Minister of Music Hezekiah Brinson Jr.

Ninth Ward Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 4/30, PAR, 1p: Mardi Gras Indian parade.

NOCCA Jazz Ensemble, 4/30, JAZ, 11:15a: This student group is based at the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, whose graduates include Harry Connick, Jr., Nicholas Payton, Trombone Shorty and the Marsalis brothers.

NOCOA Community Choir, 5/5, GOS, 11:10a: Besides providing assistance to older adults, the New Orleans Council on Aging supports a community choir.

Northside Skull & Bone Gang, 5/6, PAR, 4p: In the wee hours of Mardi Gras morning, a group of men dressed as skeletons roam the streets of the New Orleans neighborhood of Tremé as part of a centuries-old Black Carnival tradition.

Old & Nu Style Fellas Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 5/5, PAR, 4:40p: Social aid and pleasure club parades.

Omari Neville And The Fuel, 4/28, CON, 4:10p: Cyril Neville, Omari’s father, featured the Fuel at Jazz Fest for years. Now on his own, Omari’s band is a fusion of New Orleans funk, rock, reggae, punk and soul. Daryl Johnson and Eric Struthers (alumni of the Neville Brothers) and Omari Neville make up the group.

On the Levee Jazz Band, 4/28, ECO, 12:25p: On the Levee Jazz Band plays many of the songs associated with New Orleans’ own Kid Ory and his Creole Jazz Band with an intimate knowledge of Ory’s attention to dynamics, danceable tempos and swinging rhythm. Hal Smith’s On the Levee Jazz Band features trombonist Clint Baker. One Shot Brass Band, 5/4, PAR, 3p: From New Orleans this hard-working traditional brass band, One Shot Brass Band, can be found at Mardi Gras parades and other events.

OperaCréole, 4/30, KID, 12:35p: This vocal ensemble focuses on lost or rarely performed operatic and classical music, often spotlighting the contributions of African American and Creole artists from New Orleans’ past.

Original Big Seven, and Scene Boosters Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/5, PAR, 12:10p: Social aid and pleasure club parades.

Original New Orleans Lady Buckjumpers and Prince of Wales Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/7, PAR, 12:10p: The Original New Orleans Lady Buckjumpers and Men Buckjumpers have been rolling in second line parades for more than 30 years.

Original Pinettes Brass Band, 4/28, CON, 1:30p; 4/28, AM, 4:30p: Billed as “The World’s Only All Female Brass Band,” the Pinettes were formed by a group of students at St. Mary’s Academy in 1991. They won the Red Bull Street Kings brass competition in 2013. The women of the band are interviewed by Sally Young.

Otis Wimberly Sr. & The Wimberly Family Gospel Singers, 4/30, GOS, 12:05p: The Wimberly family from Marrero, Louisiana, have been singing and praising God for 37 years. They have been a regular at Jazz Fest.

Panorama Jazz Band, 4/29, LAG, 1:45p: Influenced by styles from around the globe, this hip band comprised of top local instrumentalists blends New Orleans jazz traditions with klezmer, Latin and Balkan sounds.

Papa Mali Trio, 5/4, AARP, 4:15p: Best known as frontman for 7 Walkers (a band that includes Grateful Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann and the Meters’ founding bassist, George Porter Jr.), Papa Mali is an accomplished singer-songwriter and guitarist.

Papo y Son Mandao, 5/7, J&H, 1:50p: Cuban guitarist

Alexis “Papo” Guevara and his band Son Mandao includes Israel Romo on percussion, Julian Alpizar on bass and Omar Ramirez on trumpet.

Pastor Jai Reed, 4/30, GOS, 1p: This New Orleans Baptist minister is a soulful singer in the Stevie Wonder tradition, doing gospel with a contemporary R&B influence.

Pastor Tyrone Jefferson, 5/5, GOS, 6:10p: This New Orleans native is the Senior Pastor of the Abundant Life Tabernacle Full Gospel Baptist Church and the CEO of Abundant Life Ministries. His extensive work serving the community has included efforts to improve voting rates, feed the hungry and get more young people enrolled in college.

Pat McLaughlin, 4/29, LAG, 4:15p: Singer-songwriter from Nashville, McLaughlin’s songs have been covered by Bonnie Raitt, Taj Mahal, Al Kooper, Nanci Griffith and others. Along with Tommy Malone of the subdues, McLaughlin formed the band Tiny Town in 1997 and appeared on OffBeat’s cover as a roots rock supergroup.

Paul Sanchez and The Rolling Road Show, 4/28, GEN, 2p: Cowboy Mouth alum Paul Sanchez has since been a friendly godfather to the local songwriter scene, and the co-writer of the post-Katrina musical Nine Lives. Sanchez transforms audiences with a unique blend of music and storytelling.

Paulin Brothers Brass Band, 4/29, ECO, 1:40p: Ernest “Doc” Paulin founded this band in the 1920s; his sons now perform strictly traditional brass band music, complete with the requisite black-and-white uniforms and spiffy white caps.

People Museum, 4/30, LAG, 5:30p: People Museum is vocalist, Claire Givens and trombone player Jeremy Phipps. They perform as a four-piece with drummer Aaron Boudreaux and bassist Charles Lumar II. The music is electro-pop.

Perfect Gentlemen Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 5/5, PAR, 4:40p: Social aid and pleasure club parade.

Pine Leaf Boys, 5/5, FDD, 2:50p: This band has spearheaded the latest revival of Cajun music, bridged new and traditional music and snagging four Grammy nominations. Leader Wilson Savoy is the son of Cajun music’s first couple, Marc and Ann Savoy.

Pirulo y la Tribu, 5/6, CEP, 3:20p; 5/6, J&H, 6:10p; 5/7, FS, 12:30p; 5/7, CEP, 4:45p: From Puerto Rico, Pirulo La Tribu combines salsa, Latin soul, jazz and hip-hop.

Plena Libre, 4/28, J&H, 12:25p; 4/28, CEP, 4:45p; 4/29, FS, 11:20a; 4/29, CEP, 3:10p: Plena Libre from Puerto Rico features vocalist Alex Lopez.

Pocket Aces Brass Band, 5/5, J&H, 12:20p: This Bridge City brass-hop band began as a few friends who got together for an annual Mardi Gras jam before expanding to a full-time touring outfit.

Preservation Brass, 4/30, ECO, 2:55p: Featuring bass drummer Tanio Hingle, snare drummer Kerry “Fat Man” Hunter and trumpeter Will Smith, plus a rotating roster of players, the Preservation Hall Brass aims to serve as the jazz collective’s go-to brass band arm, like the Olympia Brass Band once did in past decades.

Preservation Hall Jazz Band, 5/6, FS, 2:50p: This New Orleans music institution’s profile is higher than ever. Their guest-heavy Jazz Fest sets are always festival highlights. Puerto Rican Vejigante Parade with Casa de la Plena Tito Matos, 4/28, PAR, 3:50p; 4/29, PAR, 3:50p; 4/30, PAR, 3:40p; 5/4, PAR, 3:55p; 5/5, PAR, 3:55p; 5/6, PAR, 2:10p; 5/7, PAR, 3:50p: The vejigante is a demon figure, dress in a horned mask, with roots in the African Diaspora, that has become a staple of Puerto Rican carnival culture. Tito Matos, who passed away in 2022, was an important teacher and guardian of Puerto Rican cultural traditions. The parade will include hand drums, horns and guitars. A four-line pattern is sung by the lead singer and mirrored by the participants in a powerful call-and-response.

Rainy Eyes Band, 5/7, AARP, 1:25p: Norwegian born singer songwriter, Irena Eide, moved to California, but is now living in New Orleans. The band’s music, swampy folk Americana, is soulful with tight-knit harmonies. The band includes Louisiana musicians, Chris Stafford on electric guitar, Ian Guidroz on bass and Ethan Brasseaux on drums. RAM of Haiti, 5/4, AM, 12:30p; 5/4, CEP, 2:55p; 5/4, CON, 4:10p: RAM is a mizik rasin band from Port-auPrince, Haiti. Led by the group’s namesake and founder Richard A. Morse and his wife, Lunise, the group has recently relocated to New Orleans. Mizik rasin means “roots music” in Haitian creole. RAM’s music is a hybrid of styles mixing traditional voudou lyrics and Haitian rhythmic instrumentation including rara horns and petro drums with funky rock-influenced sounds. Interviewed by Maryse Dejean.

Raphael Bas and Harmonouche, 4/30, LAG, 12:30p: Gypsy jazz band formed by Raphaël Bas, a French guitarist who moved to New Orleans just before Katrina. They approach the music with energy, romance and humor.

Ray Boudreaux, 5/4, GEN, 11:20a: From Lafayette singer songwriter, Ray Boudreaux was one of top eight contestants on NBC’s The Voice. Boudreaux was influenced early on by Cajun culture and swamp-pop music, but today he is more of a soul singer.

Real Untouchable Brass Band, 5/7, PAR, 12:10p: This local brass crew adds congas to its otherwise street-centric sound.

Rebirth Brass Band, 4/30, CON, 4:05p: Rebirth was one of the first bands to modernize and funkify the New Orleans brass band sound. They won their first Grammy in 2012 for the album Rebirth of New Orleans and are frequent award winners at OffBeat’s Best of the Beat.

Revolution, The Sudan, and Undefeated Divas Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/6, PAR, 3:25p: Big Chief Markeith Tero rolls with one of the biggest second line parade clubs, the Revolution SA&PC is known for mind-blowing dance moves and multiple costume changes along their annual Sunday parade route.

Rey Vallenato & Beto Jamaica of Colombia, 4/28, CEP, 12:35p; 4/28, LAG, 4:20p: Alberto Jamaica Larrotta, an accordionist, is known as Beto Jamaica el Rey Vallenato.

From Bogota, Colombia, Larrotta plays traditional vallenato music, folk music from Columbia. The band includes vocals, bass and percussion instruments including timbales and congas.

Ricky Sebastian, 5/4, JAZ, 1:30p: New Orleans drummer, Ricky Sebastian, was born in Opelousas. He was an in-demand recording drummer when living in New York working in jazz, Latin, Brazilian and funk. He moved back to New Orleans in 1998 and spearheaded The World Music Ensemble and The UNO Percussion Ensemble.

Rising Dragon Lion Dance Team, 4/30, KID, 1:40p; 4/30, KID, 3:20p; 5/7, KID, 2:10p; 5/7, KID, 3:50p: Strength, endurance, motivation and respect are the calling cards of this local performance group, specializing in traditional Vietnamese lion dance.

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss, 4/28, GEN, 5:30p: Robert Plant the English singer songwriter, best known as the lead singer for Led Zeppelin, is joined by American bluegrass country singer and violinist, Alison Kraus. The pair received a Grammy award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals. They play American roots music ranging from Ray Charles to T Bone Burnett.

Robert Randolph Band, 5/6, AM, 1p; 5/6, BLU, 4:05p: Gospel band led by pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph from New Jersey. Rolling Stone Magazine included Randolph upon their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. Master of sacred steel (referring to the pedal steel guitar) his fans include Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana. The band mixes it up with funk, soul, blues and rock. Earlier Randolph is interviewed by David Kunian.

Rockin’ Dopsie Jr & the Zydeco Twisters, 5/4, FS, 1:50p: One of the few rubboard players to lead a zydeco band, Rockin’ Dopsie Jr. plays it wilder than his accordionist dad, and his sets are guaranteed party-starters.

Roddie Romero & the Hub City All-stars, 4/29, FDD, 12:30p: This eclectic Cajun, zydeco, swamp pop and rock ’n’ roll band is built around accordionist/guitarist Roddie Romero and pianist Eric Adcock. Their double album The La Louisianne Sessions was nominated for a Grammy.

Roderick Harper, 5/4, JAZ, 12:20p: A vocalist since early childhood, Harper sings with elegance and ease. The Washington D.C. native studied with the late Alvin Batiste at Southern University in Baton Rouge.

Ronnie Bell, 5/7, CON, 1:55p: Ronnie Bell is an R&B singer from Walker, Louisiana. His voice resembles Brian McKnight. He previously performed with gospel groups

George Perkins & the Voices of Harmony and with Kenneth Mitchell & the Voices of Praise.

Ronnie Lamarque, 5/4, ECO, 5:45p: New Orleans’ silverhaired singing car dealer Ronnie Lamarque is a convincing Sinatra-style crooner. He appeared on America’s Got Talent but was cut when judge Simon Cowell referred to his performance as “very karaoke.”

Ronnie Lamarque and Jack Miele, 5/4, AM, 1:30p: Producer Jack Miele joins Lamarque for an interview conducted by Eric Paulsen.

Rumba Buena, 5/5, CON, 12:30p: This popular New Orleans Latin band is a 12-piece group with four singers, four percussionists, horns and rhythm to spare.

Russell Batiste & Friends, 4/30, CON, 12:20p: The Batistes of New Orleans have had music in their blood for many generations. Drummer Russell Batiste is joined by some of New Orleans finest musicians.

Sabine McCalla & Sam Doores, 5/7, AARP, 4:15p: Leyla McCalla’s younger sister Sabine is joined with Sam Doores formerly of The Deslondes and Hurray for the Riff Raff. They are both singer songwriters and multi-instrumentalists based in New Orleans. McCalla will keep you enchanted with superb storytelling.

Sam Dickey and Read the Sands, 5/5, AARP, 4:15p: Guitarist from New Orleans, Sam Dickey is joined by Shea Pierre on keyboards, Max Moran and bass and Alfred Jordan on drums. The music is a cross between an electric jazz ensemble and rock band.

Sam Price & the True Believers, 5/5, LAG, 1:45p: Bassist Sam Price of Otra and Honey Island Swamp Band leads the True Believers in original soulful and funky music. The band also features Ethan Shorter on drums, Conga Mike on percussion, Phil Breen on keys and either Matt Galloway or John Fohl on guitar.

Samantha Fish & Jesse Dayton, 4/29, GEN, 3:50p: The

two guitarist, Samantha Fish and Jesse Dayton, are an astounding act. Fish, known for her aggressive bluesy guitar skills with established country music maverick, Dayton, are joined with a bassist (usually Austin Clements) and a drummer (usually Mike Dillon). Their vocal harmonies are perfect, and the repertoire is diverse including songs from the Clash, Magic Sam and Townes Van Zandt. Santana, 5/4, FS, 5:20p: As long as there’s a vocalist willing to work with him—in other words, forever—Carlos Santana will be making music, furthering a career that started with Woodstock and “Black Magic Woman” and reached its commercial peak not long ago with a series of duets with famous singers (like Rob Thomas on “Smooth”). His squalling Latin guitar runs are always the star of the show. He’s played with half of Journey, Buddy Guy, and Curtis Salgado among others, so we may get a roots heavy workout with occasional hits and fabulous guest stars.

Savoy Family Cajun Band, 5/5, FDD, 12:25p: Marc and Ann Savoy have done as much as anyone to celebrate and preserve Cajun music and culture. This group finds the couple with their sons Wilson (of Pine Leaf Boys) and Joel. Secret Six, 4/29, ECO, 5:50p: The Secret Six continue to be one of the most prolific bands in New Orleans today. They play traditional jazz and blues that goes deep into the well of old-time music. The name of the band comes from famed abolitionist John Brown and his “Secret Committee of Six” from 1859, and features bassist and leader John Joyce.

Seminoles and Mohawk Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 5/7, PAR, 1p: Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Semolian Warriors and Wild Apaches Mardi Gras Indians, 4/28, J&H, 11:20a: Big Chief Ray Blazio leads this tribe of Mardi Gras Indians.

Seratones, 4/28, FS, 11:20a; 4/28, AM, 4:20p: American soul rock band formed in Shreveport, Louisiana in 2013. The group’s original line-up consisted of AJ Haynes (vocals, guitar), Travis Stewart (guitar), Adam Davis (bass guitar), Tyran Coker (keyboards) and Jesse Gabriel (drums). AJ Haynes is interviewed by Alex Rawls.

Shades of Praise: New Orleans Interracial Gospel Choir, 4/28, GOS, 1:50p: This gospel choir is integrated across race, gender and denomination, and had its first scheduled performance on September 12, 2001. They’ve since been dedicated to spreading a message of hope.

Shamarr Allen, 4/30, CON, 2:40p: Jazz-funk-hip-hop trumpeter Allen resists categorization, having performed with Willie Nelson and written the local anthem “Meet Me on Frenchmen Street.” He was awarded Best Trumpeter at the 2019 Best of the Beat Awards.

Shantytown Underground, 5/4, LAG, 1:50p: Shantytown Underground is an eight-piece, horn-driven ensemble from New Orleans. The music is a cross between classic New Orleans R&B and early Jamaican ska.

Shining Star Hunters, Uptown Warriors, and Young Brave Hunters Mardi Gras Indians, 4/30, PAR, 2p: Mardi Gras Indian parade.

Sierra Green & The Soul Machine, 5/5, CON, 11:15a: Vocalist Sierra Green performs a mix of covers and originals. The Soul Machine is a 5-to-10-piece band. Their influences include Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Bruno

Mars and others.

Single Ladies, Single Men, & Nine Times Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/29, PAR, 12:15p: Social aid and pleasure club parade.

Sisters of Change & Devastation Social Aid & Pleasure Club, 4/29, PAR, 4:40p: Social aid and pleasure club parade.

Smitty Dee’s Brass Band, 5/5, PAR, 4:40p: This band was formed in 1991 by former Olympia Brass Band sousaphonist Dimitri Smith. They play regularly at Preservation Hall and on the Creole Queen riverboat.

Solid Harmony’s Tribute to Topsy Chapman feat. John Boutté, 5/6, ECO, 1:45p: The late Topsy Chapman lead this all-female group. For the tribute John Boutte will join this gospel-inspired vocal group.

Something Else! featuring Vincent Herring, James Carter, Randy Brecker, Lewis Nash, Dave Kikoski, Paul Bollenback & Essiet Essie, 4/28, JAZ, 4:15p: Something Else! is a jazz supergroup. Apparently named after saxophonist, Ornette Coleman’s debut album. The band features saxophonist, Vincent Herring and James Carter, trumpeter Randy Brecker, drummer Lewis Nash, pianist Dave Kikoski, guitartist Paul Bollenback and bassist Essiet Essie.

Sonny Landreth, 4/29, BLU, 2:55p: A thoughtful songwriter and scorching slide guitarist, Landreth can claim Eric Clapton, Jimmy Buffett, John Hiatt and John Mayall as collaborators and fans.

Sons of Jazz Brass Band, 5/4, J&H, 12:25p: This local brass band often provides the soundtrack for parades by the Ladies of Unity and Revolution Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs.

Soul Brass Band, 4/29, LAG, 5:35p: Drummer Derrick Freeman and saxophonist James Martin lead the Soul Brass Band, which was formed in 2015.

Southern University Jazzy Jags, 5/6, JAZ, 11:15a: This student group from the Southern University of Baton Rouge is part of a modern jazz program designed by the late Alvin Batiste.

Sporty’s Brass Band, 5/6, PAR, 3:25p: Sporty’s Brass Band will be parading with the Sudan, Revolution, and Men Buckjumpers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs.

Spy Boy J & Thee Storm, 5/4, J&H, 3:10p: Parading Mardi Gras Indians.

Square Dance NOLA, 5/5, KID, 3p: The string band gets kids and grownups moving to the sounds of old-time fiddle tunes and a variety of up-tempo blues while caller Dan Wally Baker shouts out invitations to swing yer partner.

St. Joseph the Worker Music Ministry, 5/5, GOS, 5:20p: The choir of this New York-based church plays a key role in their community’s daily activities.

Stephen Foster’s Foster Family Program, 5/6, KID, 11:30a: No relation to the early American composer, this family foundation is dedicated to music education in New Orleans.

Stephen Walker, 5/5, JAZ, 12:20p: Stephen Walker is a songwriter and an Irish riverdance performer. A theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music.

Steve Miller Band, 4/29, AM, 3p; 4/29, GEN, 5:30p: Most of the quirky hits everybody knows—“Take the Money & Run,” “Abracadabra,” “Jet Airliner” and the rest—only came from a two-year chunk of Steve Miller’s five-decade career, which was far more interesting overall: He did some visionary psychedelia as part of the late-’60s San Francisco scene; and in recent years has returned to his first love, the blues. Recent set lists indicate that he’s playing a little bit of everything. Earlier, Rolling Stone Magazine’s David Fricke will interview Miller.

Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys, 4/28, FDD, 1:35p: The venerable band is equally capable of playing straightup Cajun music as they are of going progressive. Some recent gigs have even included a ten-minute jam on Neil Young’s “Down By the River” in French.

Stooges Brass Band, 4/30, GEN, 11:15a: The Stooges are one of the busiest brass bands on the second line circuit, and one of the best. They’ve also performed in Pakistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan as musical ambassadors on US Embassy tours, as well as throughout Europe.

Storyville Stompers Brass Band, 4/28, J&H, 1:55p: The tradition of second line jazz is well embodied by this group, which formed in 1981 and has performed innumerable concerts, parades, riverboat cruises and jazz funerals.

Sue Foley, 5/5, BLU, 2:50p: Canadian veteran blue guitarist and singer, Sue Foley, plays a pink paisley Fender Telecaster. Her supple, emotional voice is great, but her guitar is the showcase. Foley doesn’t slash the frets, rather keeping her six-string solos cool and classy by never overplaying for the sake of it.

Sunpie & the Louisiana Sunspots, 4/29, FDD, 6p; 5/4, KID, 4:15p: Accordionist and harmonica player Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes, who grew up surrounded by blues masters like Sonny Boy Williamson in Arkansas, infuses plenty of R&B into his brand of contemporary zydeco.

Sweet Cecilia, 5/7, LAG, 1:40p: Sisters Laura Huval and Meagan Berard, along with their cousin Callie Guidry, make up this trio of multi-instrumentalist Louisiana roots rockers from Acadiana. At the 2017 Best of the Beat Awards, Sweet Cecilia won for Best Country/Folk/SingerSongwriter artist and for their album Sing Me A Story

Sweet Crude, 4/29, FS, 1:45p; 4/29, AM, 4p: New Orleans indie pop septet Sweet Crude plays an energetic brand of percussion-driven, sparkly rock, often sung in French. Alexis Marceaux and Sam Craft of Sweet Crude are interviewed by Barry Ancelet.

Swingin’ with John Saavedra, 5/5, AARP, 12p: Guitarist and vocalist John Saavedra looks back to the 1930s, ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s for material. Old-style gypsy jazz is the genre Saavedra is most known for embracing. His band may include bassist Matt Booth, trombonist Nick Garrison and drummer Willie Green III.

T’Monde, 4/30, FDD, 11:20a: A trio of Cajun musicians— Kelli Jones-Savoy on fiddle, Drew Simon on accordion and Megan Brown on guitar—mines regional traditions and each members’ own creativity.

Tab Benoit, 5/7, BLU, 4p: Tab Benoit is equally adept at swamp grooves and sizzling blues. As a founder of Voice of the Wetlands, he has also been one of the most outspoken advocates for preserving Louisiana’s imperiled coastal

environment.

Taj Mahal Quartet, 4/29, FDD, 4:35p: Since the long-ago days at the Fillmore Taj Mahal has played the blues in just about every format, including a few that he made up. Perhaps his most rocking outfit, the Phantom Blues Band was formed partly as a New Orleans homage and only reunites once in a blue moon.

Tambuyé, 4/28, CEP, 11:30a; 4/29, KID, 1:50p; 4/30, CEP, 11:30a; 5/4, CEP 11:30a; 5/5, CEP, 11:30a: From San Juan, Puerto Rico, Tambuyé is a dance company featuring hand drums, horns and guitars.

Tank and The Bangas, 4/28, FS, 3:40p: The boundlessly charismatic Tarriona “Tank” Ball leads a New Orleans crew whose infectious style doesn’t even have a name yet; admirer Trey Anastasio has called them “a psychedelic joy rap explosion.”

TBC Brass Band, 5/7, CON, 11:20a: If a brass band on Bourbon Street ever stopped you in your tracks, it was probably TBC Brass Band.

Tchefunky Playground, 5/4, KID, 1:50p: Formerly known as the Swing Setters, singer Jayna Morgan’s spirited new band covers standards, folk tunes and Disney songs with a jazz lilt.

Tedeschi Trucks Band, 4/30, FS, 5:15p: American blues, rock group based in Jacksonville, Florida. The band is led by a married couple singer and guitarist Susan Tedeschi and guitarist and songwriter Derek Trucks. The band maintains a 12-person lineup resulting in enormous sound. Expect “Statesboro Blues” and “I Pity the Fool” as they usually bring the house down.

Terence Blanchard featuring The E-Collective and Turtle Island Quartet, 5/6, AM, 2p; 5/6, JAZ, 5:45p: Terence Blanchard conceived the E-Collective to explore the intersection of jazz, R&B, funk and fusion, and describes the project as an outlet to satisfy a yearning he’s had for years to explore areas of music that he’s always loved but never ventured into. Blanchard is interviewed by music producer, rapper, multi-instrumentalist, and educator Charles Burchell.

Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience, 4/28, FDD, 6p: One of zydeco’s ambassadors and one of its most energetic performers, Terrance Simien has performed at Jazz Fest for at least the last 30 years.

Terry and the Zydeco Bad Boys, 5/7, FDD, 11:20a: Fronted by Terry Domingue who grew up Duson, Louisiana, the heart of Cajun and creole culture. He was eight years of age when he received his first accordion. This is Cajun zydeco music with nods to swamp pop and R&B. Terry sings his original compositions in French.

The Campbell Brothers, 4/29, AM, 1p; 4/29, BLU, 4:15p: This family group from northwestern New York state is renowned for the sacred-steel tradition. Like their contemporary Robert Randolph, they’ve been embraced by the jam-rock world, not least due to the blazing guitar exchanges of Chuck Campbell on pedal steel and Darick Campbell on lap steel. The group’s live album Rally Time was recorded at the Old Point Bar during Jazz Fest 2006. Earlier American Routes, Nick Spitzer will interview Chuck and Darick Campbell.

The Chosen Ones Brass Band with the Nine Time Ladies,

Valley of Silent Men and Westbank Steppers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/29, PAR, 3:10p: The rock-steady members of the nine-piece Chosen Ones bring a hip hop-infused, high-energy style to traditional New Orleans backbeats and horn sections.

The City of Love Music Ministry, 5/6, GOS, 2:55p: Singers from New Orleans’ City of Love ministry perform as part of the group’s arts focus.

The Desert Nudes, 4/29, AARP, 2:50p: The Desert Nudes are guitarist Andre Bohren, John Paul Carmody and bassist David Pomerleau. They play a mix of rock, country and cowboy songs. The band often includes a drummer as well.

The Deslondes, 5/7, LAG, 2:50p: Formerly the Tumbleweeds, these earthy songwriters describe The Deslondes as “country-soul swamp boogie.” The bands members are Dan Cutler, Sam Doores, Riley Downing, Cameron Snyder, and John James Tourville.

The Dirty Dozen Brass Band, 4/29, CON, 2:40p: The Dirty Dozen Brass Band was formed in 1977 by Benny Jones. The band has continued to evolve and won OffBeat’s Lifetime Achievement Award in Music at the Best of the Beat Awards in 2020.

The Electrifying Crown Seekers, 5/7, GOS, 11:15a: Keep an ear peeled for this Marrero, Louisiana-based group’s rendition of “Walk Around Heaven,” featuring a soloist whose falsetto voice won’t preclude him from topping out on the tune’s highest-register notes.

The Flatlanders, 5/7, FDD, 5:40p: The Flatlanders are a trio of Texas singer songwriters and guitarists. They are Joe Ely, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Butch Hancock. The country music band with Ely as a classic storyteller, Gilmore as a bit of a mystic and Hancock as an off-center wildcard results in a kind of intelligent folk music.

The Flatlanders (Jimmy Dale Gilmore, Butch Hancock & Joe Ely), 5/7, AM, 2p: Interviewed by Ben Sandmel.

The New Orleans Guitar Masters featuring John Rankin, Jimmy Robinson, and Cranston Clements, 4/30, LAG, 1:40p: The New Orleans Guitar Masters is a collaboration between some of the best New Orleans guitarists: John Rankin, Cranston Clements and Jimmy Robinson. The trio has been performing together for several years and include original compositions from each member along with interesting arrangements of cover material.

The Gospel Inspirations of Boutte, 4/28, GOS, 12:05p: These Gospel Tent regulars, formed in 1979 by David Diggs Jr. and Kevin Drake, perform music of the spirit. Not related to the local Boutté singing family, the ensemble’s name derives from their hometown of Boutte, Louisiana.

The Gospel Soul of Irma Thomas, 4/29, GOS, 3:55p: If you heard 1993’s Walk Around Heaven, you know how stirring Thomas can be as a gospel singer. She has a personal rule against singing gospel during a secular set, but her sacred side feeds into everything the Soul Queen of New Orleans sings.

The Gray Hawk Band, 5/5, LAG, 11:20a: Four-piece blues and funk band from New Orleans. The music is a unique blend of blues, funk, jazz and Native American tribal rhythms.

The Hoot-n-Holler Inn, 5/4, KID, 3p: The Hoot-n-Holler Inn is an artist-run workspace in New Orleans with a focus on providing unique art.

The Iceman Special, 4/30, FS, 11:15a: The Iceman Special is 4-piece outfit transplanted from the swamps of Louisiana. They combine the sound of dirty funk and delicate groove with elements of disco and rock and roll to create danceable jams with plenty of edge and substance. Screeching yet smooth guitars, wandering yet punchy bass lines, electronic synth samples, driving drum beats and powerful vocals form one a kind soundscapes.

The Iguanas, 4/30, FDD, 2:55p: With Tex-Mex rock as their base, the Iguanas can swing freely into jazz, country, garage and Caribbean music.

The Johnny Sansone Band, 5/4, BLU, 2:50p: A multiinstrumentalist who draws from swamp-rock, blues and zydeco, Sansone has two aces in the hole: his songwriting and his gut-shaking harmonica solos. For Jazz Fest, Sansone will assemble a large band with many local musicians, that should not be missed.

The Johnson Extension, 4/29, GOS, 2:50p: New Orleans spiritual leader and matriarch Rev. Lois Dejean leads four generations of family members in sacred song.

The Jones Sisters, 5/4, GOS, 1:45p: Grade school-aged sisters Kayla, Kiera, Dalia and Dejon Jones comprise this gospel quartet, which first performed when the youngest sister was only two.

The Junior League, 4/30, LAG, 11:25a: The Junior League is Joe Adragna a master indie-pop songwriter. On record it’s largely a one-man operation, but the Fest show will feature a full band including Lee Barbier of the Myrtles, DC Harbold of Clockwork Elvis and Bipolaroid, Liam Catchings of Barisal Guns, and Keith Simoneaux of Thoughts of Mary.

The Knockaz Brass Band, 4/29, PAR, 4:40p: Formed in 2014, the band specializes in New Orleans second line arrangements.

The Lawrence Sieberth Collective featuring Oz Noy, 4/29, JAZ, 4:10p: New Orleans-based pianist and composer Sieberth has a knack for blending classical and world music with modern jazz. When he’s not leading his own projects, he performs regularly with Germaine Bazzle, Lena Prima and Gerald French. Sieberth is joined with New York-bassed jazz guitarist Oz Noy.

The Lilli Lewis Project, 5/5, LAG, 3p: Classically trained singer-songwriter Lilli Lewis describes her music as follows: “If Sister Rosetta Tharpe and Odetta Holmes had had a baby, and that baby had had a baby, and that baby had had another baby…. well that baby would probably be me.” Her latest album, Americana, features country and folk-style songs along with spirituals and splashes of funk and rhythm and blues.

The Lumineers, 5/6, GEN, 5:20p: Americana folk band from Denver, that is often compared with Mumford & Sons.

The band influences range from Bob Dylan, Talking Heads, Bruce Springsteen, and Beethoven.

The Maroons, 5/4, AARP, 12p: Maroons are Africans who escaped captivity and formed autonomous communities throughout the Americas. The music of the Maroons is a unique blend of African, Native American, and European musical traditions.

The N’awlins D’awlins Baby Dolls, 5/6, PAR, 12:25p: For more than a century, groups of Black women in New Orleans have worn short dresses, bloomers, and bonnets as a distinctive masquerade for Mardi Gras. Parade in the Economy Hall Tent.

The New Orleans Guitar Masters featuring John Rankin, Jimmy Robinson, and Cranston Clements, 4/30, LAG, 1:40p: The New Orleans Guitar Masters is a collaboration between some of the best New Orleans guitarists: John Rankin, Cranston Clements and Jimmy Robinson. The trio has been performing together for several years and include original compositions from each member along with interesting arrangements of cover material.

The Palm Court Jazz Band, 5/7, ECO, 11:15a: The house band from the Palm Court brings their brand of traditional New Orleans jazz to the Fest. Lars Edegran leads the ensemble.

The Pfister Sisters, 4/30, ECO, 5:45p: Inspired by the close harmonies and lively personalities of New Orleans’ Boswell Sisters, the Pfister Sisters are all about the ‘30s in both sound and look. Expect to hear the Andrews Sisters’ best-known songs, particularly their 1941 hit “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy.”

The Quickening, 5/4, LAG, 5:30p: After parting ways with Flow Tribe, singer songwriter and guitarist Blake Quick assembled The Quickening. The band includes horns, pedal steel guitar, and various other woodwind and string instruments. Their music is often referred to as “feel good music.”

The Radiators, 5/7, GEN, 3:45p: The quintessential local rock band, the Rads ceremoniously quit the road ten years ago, and leader Ed Volker has stuck to his guns about staying put in New Orleans. Their annual reunion/anniversary shows at Tipitina’s have since become the stuff of legend. They even released a new album in 2016, Welcome to the Monkey House, which has no fewer than five monkeythemed songs.

The Revelers, 5/4, FDD, 1:30p: An Acadian supergroup made up of founding members of Jazz Fest perennials the Red Stick Ramblers and the Pine Leaf Boys.

The Revivalists, 4/29, FS, 3:10p: Long before they became rock stars, the Revivalists were performing like they were, swinging for the rafters when they still had early-morning Jazz Fest slots. Their efforts were rewarded with a nationwide hit, “Wish I Knew You,” in 2015.

The Roadmasters’ Tribute to Walter “Wolfman” Washington with Special Guests, 5/4, AM, 2:30p; 5/4, BLU, 4:10p: Guitarist Walter “Wolfman” Washington passed away in December 2022. His band, the Roadmasters, includes keyboardist Steve Detroy, drummer Wayne Maureau, bassist Jack Cruz, saxophonist Tom Fitzpatrick and trumpeter Antonio Gambrell. Earlier Gwen Thompkins will interview members of the Roadmasters.

The Rocks of Harmony, 5/5, GOS, 11:45a: New Orleans gospel in its purest form, this all-male group has been singing praises and spirituals for a half-century.

The Roots of Music Marching Crusaders, 5/7, PAR, 1:25p: Rebirth snare drum player Derrick Tabb’s program aims to support, teach, and protect at-risk youth through music education while preserving and promoting New Orleans’ musical heritage. Songwriter Ani DiFranco is on the board of directors.

The RRAAMS, 4/29, KID, 12:40p: The River Road African American Museum Society in Donaldsonville presents an educational program for kids.

The Rumble featuring Chief Joseph Boudreaux Jr., 5/4, CON, 12:20p: The Rumble is the result of the breakup and reformation of the Grammy-nominated band Cha Wa. The Rumble distills classic Mardi Gras Indian funk with brass band music and contemporary popular music, bringing forth a pure New Orleans product of our time.

The Showers, 4/30, GOS, 5:10p: This family gospel group includes six daughters and one son of Bobby and Oralean Showers of Hammond. They recently called on their faith and their music to sustain them when their family home burned down several years ago.

The Slick Skillet Serenaders, 5/4, ECO, 11:15a: New Orleans based 1920s and 1930s era ragtime, blues, and jazz band. The members play banjo, kazoo, suitcase drum, bass, guitar, clarinet and saxophone with a touch of vaudeville.

The Soul Rebels, 5/5, CON, 4:25p: An object in motion stays in motion. For the Soul Rebels, that’s been an unspoken mantra since the band formed in 1991. Borne from the wellspring of traditional brass and marching bands, with a goal of becoming the standard bearer for performing popular music through horns and drums, the Soul Rebels have moved in a consistently impressive trajectory for nearly three decades. They are probably the local brass band most open to hip hop and other nontraditional influences as their album Poetry in Motion demonstrates. As founding member and snare drummer Lumar Leblanc says, “Throw whatever you want at us; we’ll be able to play it.”

The Tanglers Bluegrass Band, 4/28, LAG, 11:30a: The Tanglers are a bluegrass band based out of New Orleans, Louisiana. They cover Meters songs in “Grassy Pi” a medley of “Cissy Strut” and “Look-a-Py-Py.” All six members play string instruments (banjo, dobro, acoustic guitar, mandolin and fiddle) with three members sharing vocals.

THE TMM PROJECT Featuring Amanda Roberts & Lady Chops, 5/6, KID, 2:45p: The TMM Project (True Mission Matters) is a Louisiana performing arts education collective. The collective promotes positive youth development with live music and street dance inspired by African American culture. Amanda Roberts is a hammered dulcimer player and Lady Chops is a percussionist.

The Topcats, 5/5, GEN, 11:15a: New Orleans cover band from Metairie. The members are guitarists Pat Campbell and Buzzy “Bean” Langford, keyboardist David Gamble and drummer Robert Schulte. They are multiple Best of the Beat winners.

The Zion Harmonizers, 4/29, GOS, 1p: This venerable group has been a Jazz Fest favorite since the beginning.

The gospel group’s history goes back to 1939, when the original lineup was formed in the Zion City neighborhood of New Orleans.

Thunder Hill, 5/4, FLS, 12p; 5/4, FLS, 1:10p; 5/4, FLS, 3:50p; 5/5, FLS, 12:05p; 5/5, FLS, 1:20p; 5/5, FLS, 3:50p; 5/6, FLS, 12:05p; 5/6, FLS, 1:20p; 5/6, FLS, 2:35p; 5/7, FLS, 12:10p; 5/7, FLS, 1:20p; 5/7, FLS, 2:35p: Thunder Hill is a group of drummers and vocalists dedicated to the singling legacies of the pow-wow. The championship drum group epitomizes the legendary sound of Native Oklahoma.

Tim Laughlin, 5/5, ECO, 1:55p: Clarinetist Laughlin’s compositions fit within the classic traditional jazz idiom, but his skill in bringing old-time New Orleans jazz into the 21st century gives the songs a more modern feel. He was the first New Orleans clarinetist to write and record an entire album of originals.

Tin Men, 5/6, LAG, 4:20p: The band includes Alex McMurray, Matt Perrine and Washboard Chaz.

Tom Jones, 5/7, GEN, 5:45p: This Welshman started as a sexy pop icon shaking his hips to outrageously over-thetop songs like “What’s New Pussycat” and “Delilah,” but it’s the full-chested power of his booming baritone that’s actually outlasted his kitsch; and he’s got more than a few EDM hits stuck up his belt as well thanks to a late ’90s renaissance. Throwing your panties is discouraged at this point, but it’s going to happen anyway.

Tom McDermott, 5/7, AARP, 12p: Virtuoso pianist and composer whose skill and deep knowledge of music history allow him to play everything from New Orleans jazz and blues to Caribbean and classical music.

Tommy Malone, 5/6, LAG, 3p: Singer-songwriter Tommy Malone is not only a great songwriter, but also a superb guitarist and vocalist. He has been on the cover of OffBeat with the band Tiny Town and the subdudes.

Tommy McLain + CC Adcock, 4/28, BLU, 12:25p: Singer songwriter and classic swamp pop singer, Tommy McLain’s ballad “Sweet Dreams” was released in 1966. Fifty-six

years later the 82-year-old singer is joined by Lafayette songwriter and producer C.C. Adcock. McLain’s latest album features collaborations with Elvis Costello and Nick Lowe.

Tommy Sancton’s New Orleans Legacy Band, 5/4, ECO, 3p: This clarinetist served as Time magazine’s Paris bureau chief for 22 years. As a child, he took music lessons from Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s George Lewis, an experience he documents in the book Song for My Fathers: A New Orleans Story in Black and White.

Tonia Scott and the Anointed Voices, 4/29, GOS, 5:10p: Primarily comprised of women, this local gospel choir has become a Jazz Fest regular.

Tonya Boyd-Cannon, 4/29, CON, 1:30p: This New Orleans-based soulful singer boasts a powerful contralto voice. Her delivery is sharp yet inspirational, contemporary and authentic. In 2015, she had a near-winning run on The Voice.

Treces del Sur – New Orleans Latin Music Band, 5/6, CEP, 11:30a: Latin music band from New Orleans.

Treme Brass Band, 5/7, ECO, 1:35p: Led by Benny Jones, the Treme Brass Band is one of the longest-running traditional brass bands in town. The Treme Brass Band contributed to the Carnival repertoire with “Gimme My Money Back.”

Treme Sidewalk Steppers, 5/5, PAR, 3:30p: Treme-based Social Aid and Pleasure Club.

Tribute to Ma Rainey featuring Thais Clark, Yolanda Robinson, and the Lars Edegran Band, 5/5, ECO, 4:30p: New Orleans leading jazz and blues vocalists, Thais Clark and Yolanda Robinson join Swedish-born pianist and band leader Lars Edegran for a tribute to Ma Rainey. Clark was born and raised in New Orleans and is a high-energy performer. Yolanda Robinson is the daughter of the late Topsy Chapman is known for her sultry, soulful stylings.

Tribute to Sidney Bechet featuring Donald Harrison Jr. and Aurora Nealand with Dr. Michael White, 4/30, AM, 1p; 4/30, ECO, 4:15p: Clarinetist and jazz scholar, Dr.

Michael White, frequently fuses traditional and modern styles. He is joined by saxophonist Donald Harrison, Jr. and clarinetist and saxophonist Aurora Nealand in this tribute to Sidney Bechet. Bruce Raeburn interviews Donald Harrison Jr., Aurora Nealand and Dr. Michael White.

Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, 5/7, FS, 5:35p: One of the current kings of New Orleans music, Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews can do everything from sexy old-school soul to heady jazz excursions to full-throttle dance workouts drawing both from hip hop and local traditions. Since he took over the closing Acura slot from the Neville Brothers, he’s been sure to include music from them and other local touchstones in his sets.

Trombone Shorty Academy, 4/30, KID, 4:15p: The Trombone Shorty Academy at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation educates the next generation of musically gifted students. Students are fully immersed in the history and key influencers of New Orleans music, while preparing for ensemble performances under the instruction of accomplished musicians.

Trumpet Mafia, 5/5, JAZ, 2:50p: Skilled local trumpeter Ashlin Parker, a member of the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, brings a hip hop sensibility to the modern jazzrooted approach of his forward-thinking, multi-trumpet ensemble.

Tuba Skinny, 4/29, ECO, 3p: Tuba Skinny is made up of New Orleans street musicians that specialize in traditional jazz, Depression-era blues and spirituals. They are frequent Best of the Beat Award winners.

Tulane BAM Ensemble, 4/29, JAZ, 11:15a: Students from Tulane University Newcomb Department of Music, led by pianist Jesse McBride.

Ty Morris & H.O.W., 5/4, GOS, 3:45p: Ty Morris, songwriter and minister of the Gospel, offers a style that fuses hip-hop, R&B, funk, jazz and soul with gospel.

Tyron Benoit Band, 4/28, AARP, 4:15p: OffBeat’s Brett Milano declared that Tyron Benoit’s debut album was the best swamp-rock album ever to open with a Cure cover. Benoit (the brother of Tab Benoit) was a Marine during Desert Storm and a working actor in New York but chooses to stay in music.

Tyrone Foster & the Arc Singers, 5/7, GOS, 1:55p: These Jazz Fest regulars formed in 1987 when Tyronne G. Foster started working with the St. Joan of Arc Youth and Young Adult Choir. In 1992, they opened their ranks to singers from all denominations.

Undivided Band, 5/5, GEN, 12:20p: The Undivided Band is a country, hip-hop group from Lafayette, Louisiana. They are vocalists Jay Da Wizard and Jerad Bridges, bassist Kevin Dorr, guitarist Austin Boedigheimer and Scott Burdett, and drummer Ian Willis.

UNO Jazz All Stars, 5/7, JAZ, 11:15a: Student group from the University of New Orleans’ jazz program, which was established by Ellis Marsalis in 1989.

Untouchables and Big Steppers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/30, PAR, 12p: The Untouchables represent a division of the historic Young Men Olympians.

Uptown Swingers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/29, PAR, 1:40p: Social aid and pleasure club parade in Economy Hall.

Val and Love Alive, 5/7, GOS, 1p: Few things sound more spirited than 100 school-age kids singing praises. Valentine Bemiss-Williams directs this large choir.

Valley of Silent Men and Westbank Steppers Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 4/29, PAR, 3:10p: This uptown parade club has been hitting the streets for nearly four decades. Vegas Cola Band, 4/30, CON, 11:15a: From the Tremé neighborhood, singer songwriter and bandleader, Vegas Cola channels her city’s many music genres into original songs. A relative of Dave Bartholomew (she once performed with him at Jazz Fest) Cola performs regularly on Frenchmen Street. Her band hired Jon Batiste, he was 16 at the time, to play piano. When Cola began singing in public her inspiration came from hearing the choir at St. Peter Claver Catholic Church.

VIP Ladies and Original Four Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs, 5/4, PAR, 12:45p: This uptown social aid and pleasure club usually rolls with all women and children at its annual Sunday parade.

Voices of Femme Fatale, 5/4, GOS, 5p: The Mystic Krewe of Femme Fatale was founded in 2013 for social purposes for women to establish ties of friendship of its members and the promotion of good fellowship.

Voices of Peter Claver, 5/6, GOS, 1:05p: This adult choir is based at St. Peter Claver Church on St. Philip Street in New Orleans.

Voices of Pride Edna Karr School Gospel Choir, 5/4, GOS, 11:15a: Edna Karr High School is a public school on the West Bank of New Orleans. The Voices of Pride is led by choir director Senais Edwards. The choir is noted for their Christmas concerts and is often featured at Celebration in the Oaks.

Washitaw Nation and Wild Red Flames Mardi Gras Indians, 4/29, PAR, 2p: This Mardi Gras Indian tribe is named in honor of Indingenous inhabitants of North America. Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries Mass Choir, 4/30, GOS, 1:55p: Based in Algiers and the Garden District, these singers are led by Pastor Tom Watson.

Wayne Toups, 5/5, GEN, 3:50p: Wayne Toups is a native of Crowley, Louisiana, whose long-running band Zydecajun blurs the lines between Cajun, zydeco, and larger-than-life arena rock. Li’l Band O’ Gold member C.C. Adcock put it best around the time his band played with Robert Plant: “Hell, we’ve opened for Wayne Toups and he is bigger than Led Zeppelin where we come from.”

Wendell Brunious and the New Orleans Allstars, 4/29, ECO, 12:25p: Trumpeter Brunious took over as the leader of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band in 1987 and remained a Hall regular for many years. Brunious has played regularly with Lionel Hampton, Linda Hopkins and Sammy Rimington.

Wild Mohicans and Wild Tchoupitoulas Mardi Gras Indians, 5/5, PAR, 1:10p: A family tribe founded in 1996 led by Big Chief Kentrell and Big Queen Zen.

Will Dickerson, 5/4, AARP, 1:25p: New Orleans native, singer songwriter and guitarist Will Dickerson, comes from a musical family. His father played in the band War with Harold Brown. His music is creative and enthusiastic and is often performed on Frenchmen Street.

Wu-Tang Clan + The Soul Rebels, 4/28, CON, 5:40p: The Soul Rebels, a funk-inspired brass band, will team up with one of the most influential hip-hop groups of all time, Wu-Tang Clan from Staten Island, New York. Together they will push the boundaries of what audiences may think of as hip-hop music and a brass band creating a unique sound.

Xeno Moonflower, 5/4, CON, 11:15a: Singer songwriter and guitarist, Xeno Moonflower, a native of Baltimore has made New Orleans his home. He has a rick vocal tone with a soulful reggae style reminiscent of Bob Marley.

Young Audiences of Louisiana Performing Arts

Showcase, 5/5, KID, 11:30a: This top arts education and integration program offers a review of its latest work.

Young Fellaz Brass Band, 4/29, PAR, 12:15p: One of the city’s newer brass bands, the Young Fellaz add plenty of youthful swagger to traditional brass band instrumentation. They are participating in the Jazz Funeral for Dr. John.

Young Guardians of the Flame, 5/7, KID, 12:35p: Big Queen Cherice Harrison Nelson, cofounder of the Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame, tailors this educational look at Black Indian culture to a kids’ audience.

Young Magnolias and Young Eagles Mardi Gras Indians, 5/6, PAR, 1:40p: Eric Yetti Boudreaux’s flexible rhythm section frequently backs Gerard “Lil Bo” Dollis and his Young Magnolias during pre-Mardi Gras Indian practices Uptown.

Young Men Olympian Jr. Benevolent Association, 4/30, PAR, 12p: Considered the oldest active benevolent association in New Orleans, the Young Men Olympians Benevolent Association is not a social aid and pleasure club but strictly a charitable organization.

Young Pinstripe Brass Band, 5/6, J&H, 4:55p: Formed in 2009 and led by fourth-generation musician Herbert McCarver IV, the group puts a funk and hip-hop spin on the brass band sound.

Yvette Landry & the Jukes, 5/5, GEN, 2:40p: Singer/ guitarist Yvette Landry is part of the Cajun supergroup Bonsoir Catin, and her own sets are solid, swinging honky tonk with Richard Comeaux playing pedal steel guitar.

Zack Landry & Phaze, 5/4, GOS, 5:55p: Vacherie, Louisiana native, singer, pianist and organist Zachariah D. Landry created Phaze in 2008. The gospel group combines soul and jazz.

Zigaboo Modeliste & The Funk Revue, 5/7, GEN, 12:45p: The Funk Revue with Ivan Neville, Tony Hall, Ian Neville, George Porter Jr. and Zigaboo Modeliste the closest thing to a full-fledged Meters set.

Zulu Male Ensemble, 4/30, GOS, 11:15a: Local New Orleans gospel group performs gospel music through an R&B and soul filter. O

NICK SPITZER of American Routes talks back

BY STEVE HOCHMAN

Nick Spitzer is rarely at a loss for words. His conversational ease and deep knowledge of music across a wide spectrum have been at the core of American Routes, the New Orleans-based and widely syndicated public radio show he’s produced and hosted since 1999, on which he’s talked with musical artists both obscure and famous from blues, country, folk and much more, eliciting stories and insights far beyond the common canon.

In this conversation with OffBeat, he readily referred to himself as “loquacious” (after giving a colorfully detailed account of his personal history in radio and with this show). But that wasn’t the case following a call he got at his home he shares with his wife and young son in February from Louisiana’s U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy. The

politician was letting Spitzer know that he had been named one of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Heritage Fellows. Per the NEA, the “lifetime honorific celebrates artists and culture bearers,” with Spitzer specifically getting the Bess Lomax Hawes National Heritage Fellowship “in recognition of an individual who has made a significant contribution to the preservation and awareness of cultural heritage.”

“I didn’t talk for three hours,” Spitzer says of the time after the call ended. “My wife kept saying, ‘Nick, are you okay with this?’”

Of course, during the call, he was his usual self, turning things around a bit and puncturing any sense of formality after the Senator read his clearly scripted congratulations.

“He said, ‘Well, what do you have to say, Dr. Spitzer?’” the honoree says, speaking from his office and studio on the Tulane campus, home to the show since 2008, where he also serves as professor of anthropology. “I said, ‘Well, Senator Cassidy, I want to thank you for being the more moderate of our two senators that called me.’ I thought it was funny. And he laughed and I said, ‘You have a good sense of humor.’ He said, ‘I have to in my business.’ I said, ‘You know, mine too.’”

It’s served him well through decades in and around radio, starting at college at the University of Pennsylvania and continuing in commercial stations in Philly and Austin, where he did his grad work in anthropology, focusing on Louisiana culture. (His PhD thesis was titled “Zydeco and Mardi Gras: Creole Identity and Performance Genres in Rural Louisiana”). Working for the state out of Baton Rouge, and then the Smithsonian out of Washington and a couple of years at a Santa Fe think tank, he returned to radio, settling in New Orleans where he established American Routes.

While he features music and musicians from

Saturday April 29 at 1 p.m. Nick Spitzer interviews the Campbell Brothers

a vast spectrum of North American cultures and traditions, his show at the core celebrates the city that has been his home now since 1997. Each edition at top has him declaring: “This is American Routes from New Orleans.”

How many times have you said that phrase? Well, I’ve done a little over 650 shows, right? I think we started saying “from New Orleans” right around 2000 and then Katrina really bonded us much more to the cityscape and all the recovery efforts. We say it at the top of each hour. So, it’s thousands of times with repeats. We never don’t say it anymore. It’s important. It means more to say “from New Orleans” than it would to say from anywhere else.

Where you are is very much part of the show’s character. It’s been that way from the start. I moved back to Louisiana to start Routes in 1997. I was affiliated with the University of New Orleans, which was the only school that would accept something sort of entrepreneurial meets cultural. They made it doable and set us up in the French Quarter. Our first set of studios were at 1118 Royal Street. It had been a water bottling plant, right next to Gallier House. So, we had some prominence in the French Quarter and then we were near the House of Blues. I mean, someone like Norah Jones could show up in sneakers and a tank top and say, ‘Oh, I had a lovely walk through the French Quarter.’ I interviewed so many people in that little room over the years, from [Arhoolie Records founder] Chris Strachwitz to [Elvis Presley’s guitarist] James Burton, Tremé Brass—everybody that could come to the French Quarter that was in town, either from town or elsewhere. And we always had a Mardi Gras party there on Royal Street. There will always be street parades going by. We did interviews with singing garbage men that did call and response down the street. We’ve always done little features on working people that are not known, but who are brilliant in their own realms.

You did come close to leaving New Orleans and moving the show elsewhere once, right? I finally got burned out at UNO and I was ready to leave. I had all these other offers out of state. But in the end Tulane made me a deal and I’ve been here since 2008. Harry Shearer, well,

he said this to me and others. I’d gone to Chapel Hill [after the 2005 flood], which is a lovely community, great public radio. But it always felt to me when I was there, when I’d hear the political this or that—I said the politics were a granola fishbowl. And Harry said, “New Orleans broke is better than anywhere else fixed.”

Who has grabbed you in New Orleans lately? I’ve become a big fan of Detroit Brooks. I’d seen him. He was in Michael White’s band and then he was with Donald Harrison Jr. We had him on live from the New Orleans Jazz Museum. I was impressed that he could play contemporary jazz on guitar and trad on the banjo. He showed up in three bands and I said, “What can’t you do?” He brought in these total aces, the real regular working guys. It was such a great set. They played a little schmaltzy, “Wonderful World” and stuff like that. They played some Danny Barker.

It feels as if your anthropology career is a big part of your radio career, the stories being as important as the music, ways to connect people and traditions. Radio, with folklore, oral tradition, the mic just disappears. You’re having a conversation with somebody. For me, personally, I could tap into radio’s long history where people don’t have to go to the same bingo parlor to hear one another’s music in the South, I mean, White people could her the blues and Black people could hear country on the Opry. Ray Charles, Rev. [Al] Green and Rufus Thomas, all separately told me two things: How much they loved Elvis, which was not the common thinking of the time, and how much

Nick Spitzer at WMMR FM, 1972

BACK TALK

they loved the Opry, because the Opry had the stories.

I talked to Santana a lot about his father wanting him to be a mariachi violinist. I had met his father at a folk festival in Berkeley. So, we talked a lot about Mexican music roots and then his transformation. A lot of people who are sent to us are sent to talk about their latest record. And I always say, “I’ll get to that.” We try to treat people as a whole cultural, social person and not focus on the latest, greatest hits in their repertoire. I want to ask Santana about his relationship to “Oye Como Va” and what Tito Puente did and earlier versions.

You mix a lot of music together. When I look at Routes, I want to reach out to people. My feeling is, if you like country music, you’ll probably like Western swing. Right? If you like Western swing, you’ll probably like New Orleans traditional jazz. Because Bob Wills did. You go through life, and you get someone like Willie Nelson in an interview from 20 years ago. His father’s a traditional fiddler, but they both like Django. And so did Bob Wills. [Willie] is out in the cotton patch listening to the blues, people singing the field hollers. And his first band was chunking out chords for a Czech band. It shows him as both a native intellectual globalist but also a localist. And I think that’s the position we should all be in. Love local. That’s great. Get rid of things that are hurtful from the past. And connect globally with what we can contribute in a humanistic way.

I’m proud that Routes has in any one show more jazz, more old-time country music, than anything on public radio. And by massaging the segues, having the right balance of people, you can do a lot to be inclusive. I’ll always have Hawaiian music and klezmer. Both can be related—klezmer obviously—to New Orleans through Tin Pan Alley and jazz as well as Eastern

Europe. And Hawaiian obviously [is related] to country with the steel guitar. Spanish-language music. We can in a limited way play rap and sync it up to jubilee, which has a similar sort of demonstrative aspect.

You seem to have a real romance with radio that goes back to your childhood. I’d hear Dion and “Why Do Fools Fall in Love.” I heard Chuck Berry. I heard “Great Balls of Fire.” “I found my thrill on Blueberry Hill.” And I’m thinking, “What thrill? What hill?” We were living outside of New York and then at age seven we moved to rural Connecticut. And radio became even more important because we were removed from the intensity of urban and suburban life.

I’d be listening to baseball games—say, the Yankees are playing in Los Angeles. You hear the crack of the bat. You’re alone at home in your room at night. Everyone else is asleep. I’m thinking it’s magic! And then I’m hearing French hockey announcers out of Quebec or Montreal. It just boggled my mind.

You were speechless after you got the call about the award, but what does it mean to you? It was a shock to me. I just figured I was too old, etcetera. The award is in the name of Bess Lomax Hawes, Alan Lomax’s sister, who started the Heritage awards in 1982 when she was the head of the Folk and Traditional Arts program. She would help me. She had encouraged me to apply for the job in Louisiana. We got to be good friends. Each year out of the nine awardees there will normally be somebody who’s not the culture-bearer, not the old fiddler or Navajo weaver. It will be one considered a facilitator. Chris Strachwitz got it once. And Mike Seeger. I hosted the awards show for 17 years. So, I felt very close to the awardees. It’s really gratifying. I’ve heard from people I haven’t heard from for 20 years. So many people from the families that I originally worked with, rural Creole families. I’ve been overwhelmed. O

I’m proud that Routes has in any one show more jazz, more old-time country music, than anything on public radio. And by massaging the segues, having the right balance of people, you can do a lot to be inclusive.