OffBeat Magazine - February 2020 Mardi Gras

The Grammys’ Carnival Royalty

NEW ORLEANS MUSIC, FOOD, CULTURE—FEBRUARY 2020

Free In Metro New Orleans US $5.99 CAN $6.99 £UK 3.50

Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph Alex McMurray Lâcher Prise 5th Ward Weebie Dr. John’s Legacy

CONTENTS TA B L E

p. 18

p. 22

p. 20

16 Dr. John’s Treasure Trove

6 Letters 7 Mojo Mouth 8 Fresh

Mac’s lifelong friend Stanley Chaisson opens his vault.

My Music with Glen Hall; Charlie Wooton joins Blue Monday Mission; Five Questions with Kermit Ruffins; Krewe du Vieux, Opera Director Robert Lyall steps down; Sweet Tweets and much more.

18 Playing For His Life

Darius Lyndsley is on a mission to turn his art into something more.

20 A Walking Spirit

Victor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, celebrates 55 years of beauty and culture.

Obituaries

11 Jerome “5th Ward Weebie” Cosey 12 Robert Parker 14 All on a Mardi Gras Day

Michael Doucet with Sarah Quintana pursues a new direction with Lâcher Prise.

22 The Supreme Green Fairy

July 2015

Tank and the Bangas’ Wild Ride

By Frank Etheridge

Tank and the Bangas reign over Krewe Bohème.

28 OffBeat Eats

BLAST FROM THE PAST

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O F

29 Restaurant Review

Michael Dominici reviews Felipe’s Mexican Taqueria.

30 Reviews

Alex McMurray, The Revelers, Delfeayo Marsalis & the Uptown Jazz Orchestra, Dopolarians, Jeff Chaz, Waylon Thibodeaux, GG Shinn, Beau Bayou & the Sabine Connection, Jackson Stokes and more.

38 Listings 45 Backtalk with Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph.

Long before the Tiny Desk and the Grammy nomination Tarriona “Tank” Ball graced our cover. “I’m always where I’m supposed to be—and that’s ministering to the people.

I grew up in a family of ministers and do this because somebody did this for me. I encourage people to chase after something. With the tools inside you, you can build exactly what you want.”

(To read more this issue can be purchased at http://www.offbeat.com/shop/back-issues/2015/offbeat-magazine-july-2015/)

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letters Louisiana Music, Food & Culture

“[Steve Earle] told stories of his time in New Orleans, endearing the audience, as he confirmed that he is truly a New Orleanian.”—Tim Triplett, Slidell, Louisiana

FEBRUARY 2020 Volume 33, Number 2 Publisher and Editor-in-Chief

Jan V. Ramsey, janramsey@offbeat.com Managing Editor

Jerry Jumonville

Jerry [Jumonville] and I met and gigged in the late ’50s. I went to New Orleans around 2001 or so; Jerry, Eddie Hynes, and I got together like we’d never been apart. We have talked on the phone quite a bit since we reconnected. I’ll never talk to him again. What a great friend, musician and congenial man. He will be greatly missed by me. I loved you like my own brother, Jerry.

—Boo Hargis (born in Algiers), Grand Junction, Colorado

that he is truly a New Orleanian.

The finale was the whole band playing Woody Guthrie’s American anthem, “This Land is Your Land” joined by harp player Johnny Sansone.

—Tim Triplett, Slidell, Louisiana The Banjo

Joseph L. Irrera, josephirrera@offbeat.com Web Editor

Amanda “Bonita” Mester, amanda@offbeat.com Consulting Editor

John Swenson Layout and design

Eric Gernhauser Listings Editor

Katie Walenter, listings@offbeat.com Contributors

This letter is in response to Seva Venet’s article Stacey Leigh Bridewell, Michael Dominici, “The Banjo: An unusual voice in the story of New Robert Fontenot, Bill Forman, Cree McCree, Amanda “Bonita” Mester, Brett Milano, Orleans music” published in our January 2020 Paul Sanchez, John Swenson, Dan Willging, edition.—ED. John Wirt, Geraldine Wyckoff What a great way to start the New Year Cover PHOTO Anders Holiday Spectacular with this succinct and informative article on Gus Bennett We have enjoyed many shows but it’s the the role of the 4- and 6-string banjo. Shout Videographer/Web Specialist local shows that are the best. out to Rachel Lyons from the New Orleans Noé Cugny, Noécugny@offbeat.com A perfect example was last night at Jazz & Heritage Foundation for tagging me Advertising Sales/ Tipitina’s: “Anders Osborne’s Annual Holiday on it. By the way, I play a 4-string tenor, a Promotion and Event coordinator Camille A. Ramsey, camille@offbeat.com Spectacular.” The show was kicked off by Alvin 6-string 1928 Belltone banjo (that Danny Advertising Design Youngblood Hart with a trip deep into blues Barker, at the end of an afternoon visit and PressWorks, 504-944-4300 America. He finished his set with a Charley jam at his and Blu Lou’s home, was nice Interns Patton composition from 1929. enough to autograph for me), and lastly a Bryce Jenkins, Gabriella Killett, Anders and his band set up and took the 5-string banjo in the Clawhammer style. I’ll Charles Maples, Rachel Michel, stage and melted the audience with five rockers certainly be sharing the new information that Sabrina Stone that were birthed from that same delta blues.

I’ve learned here with my students in the Distribution Horn player Benny Bloom— who blew various blues, jazz and anti-racism programs I Patti Carrigan, Doug Jackson his jazz trumpet with such volume, clarity conduct around the world. and timing that, when he was leaving the —T.J. Wheeler, Hampton Falls, NH stage, Anders asks him to stay— so he did.

OffBeat (ISSN# 1090-0810) is published monthly plus Then, Anders introduced local rock and roll Corrections the Jazz Fest Bible (13 issues annually) cello player Helen Gillet. I don’t know that In the January 2020 edition, Positive in New Orleans by OffBeat, Inc., I have seen anything as sexy as this woman Vibrations HeartBeat Award (Culture 421 Frenchmen St., Suite 200, New Orleans, LA 70116 taking over Anders’ song “Back on Dumaine.” Bearer) Clarence “Delco” Dalcour, the much (504) 944-4300 • fax (504) 944-4306 e-mail: offbeat@offbeat.com, Another local, Leyla McCalla, was invited onto respected Ray “Big Chief Hatchet” Blazio was web site: www.offbeat.com the stage and played her banjo while the misidentified as Ray Fazio. Many apologies for whole band joined her on beautiful creole the error.—Geraldine Wyckoff folk songs.

Also in the January 2020 edition, The And then we got the great American Nominations contained several spelling poet, Steve Earle. Earle came on and said, errors. Lelya McCalla should be Leyla McCalla, /offbeatmagazine “This is the best fucking stage I have ever Chapel Hill should be Chapel Hart and played.” Then he played his song “This Daquiri Queens should be Daiquiri Queens.

Copyright © 2020, OffBeat, Inc. No part of this publication may City,” penned post-Katrina while he was in The online ballot however did reflect the be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. OffBeat is a trademark of OffBeat, Inc. First class subscriptions to residence filming the HBO series Treme. correct spellings. Lifetime Achievement Award registered OffBeat in the U.S. are available for $65 per year ($70 Canada, $140 foreign airmail).

Back issues are available for $10, except for the Jazz He told stories of his time in New Orleans, for Music Business Shirani Rea was misspelled Fest Bible for $15 (for foreign delivery add $5) Submission of photos endearing the audience, as he confirmed and articles on Louisiana artists are welcomed, but unfortunately as Shirani Rae. We regret the errors.—ED. material cannot be returned.

OffBeat welcomes letters from its readers—both comments and criticisms. To be considered for publication, all letters must be signed and contain the current address and phone number of the writer. Letters to the editor are subject to editing for length or content deemed objectionable to OffBeat readers. Please send letters to Editor, OffBeat Publications, 421 Frenchmen St., Suite 200, New Orleans, LA 70116.

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mojomouth

A Note From Publisher J an Ramsey

R

An Opportunity…and a Warning

ecently, the New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation was absorbed by the city’s convention and visitors’ bureau, New Orleans & Co. Last year, NOTMC received about $15.7 million in funding that included $8 million from local hotels and $2 million from Harrah’s Casino. That amount will now go to New Orleans & Co. The remaining $6 million was derived from hotel tax, and originally it was supposed to help support and upgrade the city’s infrastructure. But a new plan was introduced last Friday to fund the city’s Office of Cultural Economy and to create grants for programs related to New Orleans culture.

What does that mean? Another $5.7 million slush fund to help fund grants to “deserving” organizations that are favorites of politicians?

Because, as we all know, in New Orleans, it’s not what you know, but who you know. This is not what we need, not by a long shot.

There is, at the moment, no plan to use the funding. The current Office of Cultural Economy hasn’t done much of anything that I can determine. Why would we fund an office with close to $6 million that doesn’t have a plan or even a clear strategic goal or programs to achieve the goals? If you don’t think that’s the case, check out their website. The last programs that were undertaken were in 2016, under the previous administration. Josh Cox, director of strategic initiatives for Mayor LaToya Cantrell, wasn’t clear about how the money would be spent. According to a report in the New Orleans

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Advocate/Times-Picayune “Part of the reason we left it as broad as we did [in the proposal presented Friday] is because we don’t want to be foreclosing opportunities that we don’t know are on the horizon.” Cox also suggested that the city might seek to use revenue generated by the French Market Corp. (FMC) to provide money for “dance companies or museums.” Although I agree that the FMC does generate a lot of revenue (it could generate much more if it were privatized, in my opinion), funneling it all into a grant pool would be a severe waste of an opportunity to do things right.

In addition to creating Cultural Economy Grants (which would be well-policed), we have an unprecedented opportunity to use this money to create a well-funded office to handle all concerns related to the “cultural economy.” While local non-profits may need funding, a better use for this windfall would be to hire someone to manage, improve and handle anything to do with cultural issues. I’m not saying that some granting wouldn’t be possible, but for goodness’ sake, let’s not go down the same path of political slush funds. The city should seek and hire someone experienced in cultural management, a smart cookie who can interact with multiple city agencies, and take some long-needed action in the city to actually manage, preserve, market and improve New Orleans culture and to show the world that we know what the hell we’re doing when it comes to the culture, our most important renewable economic resource. O

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My Music

James Andrews, Troy and Glen David Andrews are first cousins with my mom so I grew up around music. Glen David gave me my first horn when I was six; my dad begged him to give me a horn. He kept asking and finally Glen gave me a cornet. James, Glen Andrews from Rebirth and Derek Tabb would take me on gigs, make me sit in pretty much... and this is when I was hardly playing. Dad bought books, got me lessons, anything to open my mind and show me it was possible to get better at something.

One of my first teachers was Mrs. Perkins at John Dibert School. I was accepted to the talented music program so Hurley Blanchard would come to the

school to give lessons. I did that until Katrina hit.

I moved to Memphis for a school year, sixth grade and that’s when I started taking music seriously. We moved back home a year later and I started the Baby Boyz Brass Band with some of my other cousins in the Andrews family.

During Baby Boyz I was going to NOCCA and met a lot of people that play in my band now—Greg Molinario, Austin Clements and Tyler Clements (who are Cranston Clements’ sons). We started to play in class, get gigs around town and I started Lil’ Glen and Backatown.

In high school I realized I’d rather do music with a guitar player, bass player and a drummer compared

to actual brass band music. Not to say that I’m not influenced by it, but I realized I wanted to do a different thing.

Shortly after that I got the call from Rebirth. It was kind of hard to pass up and I been doing that the past five years. It’s been a great journey with Rebirth; I learned a lot from them, being on the road with them, playing gigs with them, paying attention to their business decisions, and their approach to the music business in general.

There’s definitely a lot I’ve learned.

I wrote one song for Rebirth so far. We haven’t recorded it yet but we been playing it quite a bit

live. With my band I write all the music so we play, like, 90 percent original music.

We’ve been casually recording, so possibly a demo should be coming out soon. We just are having some fun figuring out vibes and music, ideas and stuff.

As far as the future, the music business is very tough, but I’m determined to do as much as I can. I would really love to just do more gigs and some day tour and make records with my band. The band members enjoy playing with each other, and we all just need to find the time and see what it takes to go to the next level. In the meantime, I’m seeing the world with Rebirth.

—Paul Sanchez

Photo courtesy of the ARTIST

Glen Hall

Lo v e o f P e o pl e

Blue Monday Mission, operating in Lafayette for three years, helps aging, retired and elderly musicians. A division of the nonprofit Love of People, the organization plans to expand to New Orleans. Love of People executive director John Williams recently selected bassist and bandleader Charlie Wooton to be Blue Monday Mission’s New Orleans liaison.

In Lafayette, Blue Monday Mission stages its Blue Monday Concert Series the second Monday of every month at Rock ’n’ Bowl. The organization’s third Bubbles and Blues Gala is February 1 at the Lafayette Science Museum and Rock ’n’ Bowl. The gala’s performers include the internationallyknown Acadiana musicians Marc Broussard, Michael Doucet, Sonny Landreth and Roddie Romero.

On January 4 at the Maple

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Leaf Bar, Blue Monday Mission introduced itself to New Orleans through an all-star event featuring Landreth, Rockin’ Dopsie Jr., Anthony Dopsie, George Porter Jr., Arsene DeLay, bassist Lee Allen Zeno (Buckwheat Zydeco), drummer Steve Adams (Ernie K-Doe, Jessie Hill, Irma Thomas, Allen Toussaint, the Boogie Kings) and Wooton’s Zydefunk as house band.

Before the Maple Leaf show, Wooton said, “Williams came to me with something that is authentic and all good. We’re taking care of elderly musicians who worked their whole lives, but they didn’t have health insurance or a 401(k).”

Many older musicians who performed as sidemen are in poor health and in financial straits, Wooton said. “We have so many people in desperation.

They played bass or drums, for

whomever, every night. So, we’re here to pay back all the love they gave us. None of those front men would have sounded good without a great rhythm section.”

Williams calls 86-year-old Carol Fran, the Lafayette singer-pianist who worked in blues, swamp pop, rhythm-and-blues and jazz, the first lady of Blue Monday. “She didn’t have anything,” he said.

“We provided groceries and personal care and transportation.

A lot of older musicians are living without basic needs.”

The original house band for the Blue Monday Mission Concert Series included veteran Acadiana musicians Zeno, Major Handy and the late Lil’ Buck

Sinegal. “Because everybody wanted to play with Lil’ Buck, Lee and Maj, that brought all of the musicians together,” Williams said.

Williams, a nurse by trade, has always wanted to expand Blue Monday Mission beyond Lafayette. “Because the need is not just Lafayette,” he said. “It’s in Baton Rouge, New Orleans, these areas that have such deep music history. These older musicians are our foundation. If we’re going to continue to grow our music industry and make it better, we’ve got to fill in those cracks.”

The Bubbles and Blues Gala is 6 p.m. February 1 at the Lafayette Science Museum and Rock ’n’ Bowl.

—John Wirt O F F B E AT. C O M

Photo courtesy of the ARTIST

Charlie Wooton joins Blue Monday Mission

B R IEF

N O T ES

Photo courtesy of the New Orleans Opera

Opera director will step down

The General Director of the New Orleans opera, Robert Lyall, who has led the opera for the past 22 years, will step down at the end of the 2019-20 season. “The time is right to pass the leadership to a new General Director.

Robert Lyall Accordingly, I have requested that the Opera Association invite a new General Director to lead the company.

My greater interest is the artistic program of the organization and I look forward to continuing my relationship with the Company as its Artistic Director,” said Lyall.

Upcoming performances include

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the premiere performance of the English version of Tchaikovsky’s “Joan of Arc” (February 7 and 9); a New Orleans premiere of contemporary Swiss composer Daniel Schnyder’s 2015 opera “Charlie Parker’s Yardbird” (April 3, 4, and 5); and concluding the season, Mozart’s Masonic opera “The Magic Flute” (May 1 and 3).

Krewe du Vieux

Established in 1987, the Krewe du Vieux evolved from the Krewe of Clones, once a satirical Contemporary Arts Center Mardi Gras parade. The Krewe du Vieux prides itself on giving the so-called “common people” one day a year to satirize and parody local politics, social mores and New Orleans’ wacky traditions in general. Often lewd, Learn about the always hilarious, Krewe du Vieux History of Mardi Gras personifies the true spirit of Indians Mardi Gras.

The Backstreet Cultural Krewe du Vieux is on February Museum houses the largest 8 at 6:30 p.m. beginning at the collection of Mardi Gras corner of Chartres and Marigny Indian costumes in the city.

Streets. The parade will proceed The collection also includes still to Franklin Avenue and then to photos, video footage of Mardi Royal Street, making a left on Gras Indians, jazz funerals and Frenchmen Street to Decatur second lines. Located at 1116 through the French Quarter to Henriette Delille Street in New Orleans, Mr. Sylvester Frances asks Dumaine and Chartres Street.

Making a left turn on Barracks for a donation of $10.

Street to Royal Street up until its last turn down Toulouse Street.

Tết Fest

Tết is a tradition that holds a lot of importance for Vietnamese people. Tết Nguyên Đán “Feast of the First Morning of the First Day” is a festival that celebrates the arrival of the Lunar New Year on the Vietnamese calendar.

The 2020 date is January 25 and will be celebrating the Year of the Rat, which is the first of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the Chinese zodiac.

The festival will be held at Queen Mary of Vietnam Church, located at 14001 Dwyer Blvd in New Orleans on Friday, February 7 through Sunday, February 9.

The fest features traditional Vietnamese food, traditional dances, music and lots of activities.

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Sound Check

Some people have expressed concern that because you’ve opened Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint you might be giving up the Mother-In-Law. Are you keeping both clubs and if so, why the second club?

Yes, that’s for sure. I just love freaking barrooms. When I was a kid, after my mom retired from radio and TV, she started working at all the bars in the 9th Ward. The same bar I have now, she helped run it—the Morris Lounge.

My cousins own almost that whole block. Dirty Rice [Kermit’s right-hand man, Anthony Richardson] saw that the club [at 5119 St. Claude Ave.] was empty and he came and told me. I said “That’s my cousin’s place, let me call him up.” We got a lease from him. It came full circle because I went to Emerson Elementary in the 9th Ward and I went to

Lawless and I was in all of those clubs when I was 18 years old.

So are two clubs enough or are you going to start a Kermit empire?

Oh, two is enough. Every time I wake up I say, “What the hell I got myself into?” Once I’m wide awoke, I think, “I’ll be okay, it’s going to be fun.” Without these clubs, I think I’d be bored to death.

The first band to play at Kermit’s Joint other than your Barbecue Swingers was the Ambush reggae band each Sunday night. How did that come about?

Sundays are so big over here [at the Mother-In-Law] with the TBC Brass Band to the point where I have four security guards, six barmaids with barricades going down the sidewalk with people standing in line waiting to get in. So I figured

I’d do the reggae down there so people who don’t want to hear a brass band, they’ll have something different to do. You know, it’s all trial and error right now.

At both clubs the music starts early in the evening.

Why is that?

I love early. It’s working over here at the Mother-In-Law so I’m doing the same there—one long set. On Tuesdays I have a young jazz trumpeter, Jelani Akil Bauman, starting at 6 p.m. He does a lot of

original stuff.

What’s your greatest pleasure in owning these clubs?

The goal is to hire a bunch of musicians and have live music as much as possible. It just brings a lot of love into neighborhoods that are almost dying for clubs that used to be like that. All I’m doing is what I used to see. I just want to make sure that I bring that spiritual feeling to these bars and the neighborhoods.

—Geraldine Wyckoff

S W EE T T W EE T S Mayor LaToya Cantrell @mayorcantrell It broke my heart to learn that Jerome Cosey — our 5th Ward Weebie — has passed. Let me find out you didn’t know who he was ...

He was an iconic personality, a New Orleans legend, and a beloved friend.

Jonah M. Gilmore, M.A. @JonahMGilmore Football season is over… it’s time for Mardi Gras John Papa Gros @JohnPapaGros My new single, Mardi Gras, will be released tomorrow! Oh Ay! Oh Nah Nay! Erica Falls @erica_falls I am so honored to be nominated once again by @offbeatmagazine for the Best Of The Beat Awards !! Thank you for being a part of my journey @offbeatmagazine and everyone who has been with me along the way

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Alex McMurray @alexmcmurrayyy Years from now when they make movies of the trump era everyone will have a can of la croix in their hand Quiana Lynell @quianalynell Let me go head and sugar detox before there are king cakes everywhere..... #tistheseason Haruka Kikuchi @ harombone Sunday afternoon in my city! yeah! someone (maybe tourist) next to me said “This is mini Mardi Gras!” but I don’t think so, I feel lil’ different history from second line and Mardi Gras but I need to know more.. any idea about it?

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Photo courtesy of Jazz Ascona

Five Questions with Kermit Ruffins on His New 9th Ward Juke Joint

inmemoriam

Jerome “5th Ward Weebie” Cosey

Photo BY NOÉ CUGNY

(1977-2020) On January 9, 2020, New Orleans lost a regional hip-hop legend when producer and rapper 5th Ward Weebie died.

Reigning supreme as the city’s “Bounce King,” the 42-year-old born Jerome Cosey was a monument of New Orleans’ distinctive culture. The voice behind anthemic hits like “Fuck Katrina” and “Let Me Find Out”—the latter inspiring his mural on Decatur Street in the Marigny—Weebie’s national profile grew exponentially when rap superstar Drake included him on 2018’s bounce-infused hit “Nice For What.” At the time, he visited OffBeat for an interview in which he discussed the historical significance of bounce music and the value in national acts employing New Orleans talent.

Also in 2018, Weebie loaned his voice in support of voter outreach, remixing “Let Me Find Out” for a music video in which he encouraged Louisianans to get more involved politically (“Let me find out you’re not registered to vote”).

Last year was also a milestone year for his career, both in and out of music. Weebie co-founded the Seafood Trap Festival, which debuted in May. He also appeared at the National Fried Chicken Festival in September, participating in OffBeat’s “Who Dat Playlist” lineup saluting the New Orleans Saints, where he performed his anti-NFL referee record, “Get Out the Way.” Weebie’s career dates much further back; he was a drummer for his John F. Kennedy High School’s marching band, and strutted more performance talent as a member of the Street OF F B E AT.C OM

Fighters dance crew.

“I marched with John F. Kennedy on tenor drum,” Weebie said in an interview for the NOLA Hip-Hop and Bounce Archive. “I took it from there and grew love, even more, for music. I decided to take it further when I got older, 11th, 12th grade, I started taking it really serious. I wanted to rap. I created the dance group called The Street Fighters and we were number one in the city.”

From there, Weebie immersed

himself in various talent shows and block parties, developing his own rapping style. With his 1999 solo LP debut, Show the World, he cemented himself as one of the city’s unadulterated rap musicians and followed it up with the equally original piece of work, Getto Platinum, via No Limit Records.

Post-Katrina New Orleans spurred in Weebie an urge to vocalize the grieving but triumphant air hanging in the city. “Fuck Katrina” became such a cultural

keystone that it ended up in HBO’s Treme. Though recorded during an arduous era for New Orleans, the song showcased Weebie’s signature idiosyncratic humor. In a 2014 interview with Alison Fensterstock, Weebie said “Don’t be serious and overthink, just have fun. Let it be the funny truth. And that’s what I’m known to do, if you go back in history with my music. The ‘F--- Katrina,’ it’s the funny truth. I turned a drastic situation, something that was horrific to the world—and I was a part of that situation, so I was able to turn something that was so dramatic and so drastic into something you can laugh a little bit about—and that’s the truth. Same element, same energy.”

5th Ward Weebie was the recipient of a 2016 OffBeat Best of the Beat Music Award for Best Hip-Hop/Rap Artist.

Jerome “5th Ward Weebie” Cosey reportedly died postsurgery, after complications from a ruptured artery coupled with kidney and lung failure. In a statement, Mayor LaToya Cantrell said “It broke my heart to learn that Jerome Cosey—our 5th Ward Weebie—has passed. Let me find out you didn’t know who he was. He was an iconic personality, a New Orleans legend, and a beloved friend. He was the Bounce King, who showed us how to move, how to love, and how to bring passion and humanity to everything we do.

New Orleans has lost a cornerstone of our culture. Our City will not be the same without his voice and his spirit. May he rest in God’s perfect peace.”

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inmemoriam

Robert Parker (1930-2020) Bandleader, sideman, artist and composer Robert Parker died at his Roseland, Louisiana home on January 19 from natural causes. He was 89. Best known for the infectious, international hit “Barefootin’,” he was elected to the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame in 2007. In 2012, he received the OffBeat Best of the Beat Lifetime Achievement Award in Music along with, Frankie Ford, Jean Knight, the Dixie Cups, Frankie Ford, Ernie Vincent, Al Johnson and Clarence Henry.

Born at Charity Hospital on October 14, 1930, he grew up in Central City along with several future musicians including Huey Smith and Sugar Boy Crawford.

“I wanted to play saxophone because Louis Jordan inspired me,” recalled Parker in 1999.

“Professor Longhair was playing at the Caledonia Inn. I’d go down there on Sunday evenings.

Fess asked me if I wanted a job because he needed a saxophone player. When he got a contract to record [1949], we did the first version of ‘Mardi Gras In New Orleans.’ ” Parker also played on the Professor Longhair classics “Baldhead” and “Tipitina,” staying with Fess up until 1953. He was hired to lead the band at the legendary Tijuana Club. “I was there five years. My job was to warm up the house and back the featured artists. Talent agents came to the Tijuana. That’s where they found Guitar Slim, Huey Smith and Bobby Marchan.”

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By 1955, Parker was working down at Cosimo Matassa’s Studio on several sessions. Parker was also hired by Huey Smith and he played on the road and on several of Huey’s early hits.

“We were playing a dance at Tuskegee University.

The girls all took off their shoes before they danced.

[Later] we played a date in Miami with a comedian. His opening line was ‘Everybody get on your feet, you make me nervous when you’re in your seat.’ That was my opening line and I worked on the rest. I finished ‘Barefootin’’ and took it to Wardell Quezerque [NOLA Records]. I recorded it but they offered the song to other artists,” Parker once said.

“Barefootin’” remained on the shelf for a year, but in 1966 the record “busted open” on New Orleans radio and quickly spread. The record zoomed up the national charts. His first date out-of-town was as headliner at the famed Apollo Theater in New York City.

In 1999, fortune again smiled on him when one of his NOLA compositions, “Where The Action Is,” was used in the promotion of the opening of Harrah’s Casino.

By then, Parker actually was enjoying the country side of life, as he and his wife of 40 years had moved to the Northshore and were living in a spacious doublewide in Roseland.

For a longer version of this obituary go to OffBeat.com.

—Jeff Hannusch O F F B E AT. C O M

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t happened on Mardi Gras Day 2018. That’s when Michael Doucet, singer and fiddler in the Grammy-winning Cajun band BeauSoleil, met New Orleans singer-guitarist Sarah Quintana.

Living in the French Quarter at the time, Doucet was roaming through the Carnival madness with a large group including his guitarist brother, David. “People just got together and walked,” he remembered. “I didn’t know who they were because everybody was masked. It was a crazy, magic day. Things happened.”

When the Doucet brothers’ group stopped outside a bar, Quintana recognized them. She’d already been hoping to work with Michael Doucet and, of course, knew New Orleans resident David Doucet because of his finger-style guitar prowess and Monday night gigs at the Columns Hotel. Despite Michael Doucet’s mask, Quintana said, “I recognized his fluffy white hair.”

Initially reluctant to talk shop, Doucet eventually spoke about music with Quintana.

She promised to send an example of her original music to him. He liked what he heard.

“It was really good,” Doucet said. “So, I said, ‘Okay, let’s get together.’

I lived in New Orleans in the Quarter then, so I was right there.”

Later at Quintana’s house, “the first tune we played clicked,” Doucet said. “What I was looking for, what she was looking for. We played our first gig weeks later.”

As it happened, BeauSoleil’s recording contract with the Nashvillebased Compass Records required a solo album from Doucet.

The label asked him to record the solo project in Music City with Nashville session musicians. That was a bridge too far. “I said, ‘Man, as far as I’m concerned, the best musicians live in southwest Louisiana.’ ” In May 2018, Doucet and Quintana entered the studio with the band that came to be called Lâcher Prise, translation “Let Go.” They recorded the self-named album, Lâcher Prise, at Dockside Studios, near Doucet’s home in Lafayette. “It’s my neighborhood studio, right down the road,” he said. The band premiered its sound on OffBeat.com, which can be seen in the digital version of this story.

Sessions for Lâcher Prise, to be released February 14, “were magic,” Doucet said. The multi-generational band recorded the album in just two-and-a-half days. The album and band feature Quintana, guitarist Chad Viator, bassist Chris French and drummer Jim Kolacek. On February 15, Michael Doucet avec Lâcher Prise will play a Carnival season-timed album-release show at Chickie Wah Wah. The Lâcher Prise album includes Doucet’s original, not necessarily Cajun songs; a bluesy take on Louisiana songwriting great Bobby Charles’ “He’s Got All the Whiskey;” a raucous one-take version of zydeco pioneer Boozoo Chavis’ “Lulu Lulu Don’t You Go to Bingo”; and Doucet’s instrumental collaboration with the Turtle Island String Quartet, “Cajun Gypsy.”

“It’s hard to make new songs feel like they’ve been on the road forever,” Doucet said. “But with this group, that’s easy because they’re

All on a Mardi Gras Day

Michael Doucet with Sarah Quintana pursues a new direction with Lâcher Prise.

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so good. And they’re younger than me, which gives it a different perspective. We all respect each other. I’m just glad they like my music.

That surprises me the most—that they want to work on it.”

Actually, Quintana is thrilled about working with Doucet. “Michael has been the most wonderful friend, teacher and bandmate,” she said.

“And my playing has changed completely since I met him. Working with Michael and these guys has been the biggest gift.”

Doucet’s and Quintana’s Mardi Gras Day-sparked collaboration is mutually rewarding. “Sarah’s been a great sport, promoting this music, my music, with this group,” he said. “It’s fun to stretch out, to not only sing in French but in English, too.”

Following 45 years with BeauSoleil, Lâcher Prise manifests what Doucet thinks he should be doing at this point in his long career. Yeah, I’m a Cajun and I play Cajun music, but that’s not all I do,” he said.

“This new thing is a great framework for me to show where I’m at and where I’m going. It’s creative, it’s expansive, it’s fulfilling–and I can let go.”

Quintana finds expanded possibilities in Lâcher Prise, too. “When we’re in a jam,” she said, “Michael just looks at me, lifts an eyebrow and says, ‘You want to take a ride?’ I get to solo on every song. But for so long, I just wanted to do what was best for whatever band I was in.

That sometimes meant just singing or playing rhythm. Michael knows that I want to solo, too, and have fun. Michael is a bit of a feminist because he supports my ideas. He gives me that position of power and lets me step up on the guitar as a leader. It’s super-exciting.”

While Doucet pursues new directions with Lâcher Prise, he continues to work with BeauSoleil, the world’s best-known Cajun band. “It’s fun because there’s only one group like us,” he said. “I’m not saying it’s as good as the Miles Davis Quartet, but we know each other so well that whatever we do sounds like us.” O Michael Doucet avec Lâcher Prise will perform February 15 at Chickie Wah Wah in New Orleans.

O F F B E AT. C O M

Photo by L. FREESE

by John Wirt

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O . JO H DR

N

Dr. John’s Treasure Trove r. John passed away last June, but his music

by John just keeps coming. Two significant releases have been issued posthumously and these may only be the tip of the iceberg, since there are so many live recordings that remain in various vaults. We are unlikely to hear all of it, though an archived release project a la The Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa, Bob Dylan and Allman Brothers is not out of the question.

Mac’s lifelong friend and former manager Stanley Chaisson is responsible for two posthumous releases on Orange Music. The first, Live Stanley Chaisson with Dr. John in Tokyo, Japan is a red hot funk set from 1992 with an all-star band including Freddie Staehle on drums, David Barard on bass, Smiley Ricks on percussion, Alvin “Red” Tyler on tenor saxophone and Hugh McCracken on guitar.

The second release, Big Band Voodoo, documents a Dr. John studio session with Germany’s WDR Big Band. The setting is WDR’s studio in Cologne, Germany. Dr. John is in top form with a crack big band and a great sound. The WDR Big Band is versatile and brings its full expertise to a mixed program of Dr. John material and American standards. Rebennack’s voice rides John Clayton’s sophisticated arrangements on ballads such as “Blue Skies,” “New York City Blues” and “There Must Be a Better World Somewhere.”

Chaisson knew Mac from his high school days when Rebennack played in local bands at school dances and Stanley would pick up his friend in his blue 1954 Chevy and ferry him around to and from gigs.

Mac would later refer to him in his autobiography, Under a Hoodoo Moon, as “my old partner Stanley Chaisson,” a tantalizingly brief reference but one that underscores the fact that Chaisson knew Mac long before he became Dr. John and observed his progress in New Orleans as he grew from being a high school rock ’n’ roller into one of the more canny session players and producers working out of Cosimo Matassa’s J&M Studio in New Orleans.

“I met Mac in New Orleans at Catholic school dances and then at Cosimo’s studio,” Chaisson recalls. “It was St. Dominic on Friday, St. Bernard on Saturday and St. Anthony on Sunday. I liked to hang out with the bands before the dances. Mac would be hanging out outside the drugstore and occasionally he would go in and come out with some cough medicine. I would be the lookout, so to speak. Later I

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Swenson was involved with the local music distributor All South.

I had my own label back then, Chase Records. I would go around to these dances and saw Mac’s bands frequently. He was easy to get to know. Mac was playing guitar then. He knew I was in the business; we knew each other through the schools.”

Chaisson’s friendship with Mac continued after Rebennack left school and started hanging out at Matassa’s studio, learning the ropes, subbing for other session players and eventually leading his own sessions.

“I lived in the Iberville projects so it was just a short walk to the studio from there,” said Chaisson. “Two doors down was the record shop. I got a job there dusting off the albums and sweeping. Cosimo’s was two doors down so I’d hang out there. I’d see Dave Bartholomew, I’d see Fats there, Little Richard, different people that would come around, “Red” Tyler, Mac. “Mac and I were friends.

He was doing a lot of work for Huey Meaux at Cosimo’s.

I would go around there at Cosimo’s and be a runner, go get cokes or sandwiches or whatever. I would talk with Mac on breaks, y’know and we just hit it off. We became good friends. I used to tell him that he didn’t have to use the additives that he needed on certain occasions but that didn’t do any good, so we just stayed in our lanes. He would ask me things about what I thought would be commercial: ‘Listen to this, Stanley, I’m doing this, I’m writing this.’ I’d go to sessions he did with Barbara Lynn, a lot of ‘Red’ Tyler stuff like Lloyd Price. Then he had his own group. He did a record called ‘Chinese Bandits’ which was a reference to LSU’s defense. It was a popular record around town.

I always wanted to go fishing with him but he never wanted to go fishing. So I was watching what he was doing, listening to a lot of his product, getting the opportunity to be in private with him when he was writing. I was learning a lot. He helped me get some small label deals. He helped me with a song that The Jakes did called ‘There’s Got to Be a Girl,’ which was the first release on my label, Chase. It was kind of a cha-cha. It was number one in New Orleans, Mobile, Pensacola...”

Chaisson’s most promising act on Chase Records was the Aubrey Twins, brothers who Chaisson heard at a local talent show. Chaisson began managing them and recorded a series of singles beginning in 1963, several of which charted locally. Some of the tracks were written by Rebennack, including “Hip-ity Hop” b/w “Take Me Home O F F B E AT. C O M

Photo Photo courtesy of Stanley Chaisson

D

Mac’s lifelong friend Stanley Chaisson opens his vault.

With You,” which was released on Huey Meaux’s Jamie imprint.

“My first artists were two Black children, the Aubrey Twins, which I got on the Johnny Carson show, and we did a Motown tour. The twins opened for Stevie Wonder. Mac and I and the twins and ‘Red’ Tyler, Professor Longhair, we would go eat places. I had the Aubrey Twins and I had Deacon John, who is absolutely phenomenal. I did that record with him, ‘Many Rivers to Cross.’ Wardell Quezergue was a dear friend. [So was] Johnny Adams, who I wish I had signed and I didn’t. Joe Assunto got him. We all used to hang out at the one- stop.

So Professor Longhair would be there, Mac would be there, Earl King, Tommy Ridgely, Esquerita, some of the Clowns, and we’d all eat and discuss records and then we’d all go off and do our things.”

Mac went to prison for two years in ’63 and when he was released he went out to California to work with Harold Battiste. It didn’t take Chaisson long to reconnect with Rebennack. He arranged for Mac to come back to New Orleans to meet the Aubrey Twins.

“Mac flew into New Orleans, checked them out,” said Chaisson. “I told him bring his guitar and we went over 50 songs. He flew in in the morning and he left at night. We went and ate crawfish in between.

He played 50 songs and I had to choose 15 for the album.”

Chaisson got the Aubrey Twins a deal with Epic Records and they went into the studio in L.A. in 1967 with Mac writing and playing on the sessions while Harold Battiste handled the arrangements. This was the same team that produced the original Dr. John sessions, so these Aubrey Twins recordings were some of Rebennack’s last work before adopting his persona as Dr. John.

Mac penned the first single, “Poor Boy,” and the B-side, “Give It Up.” He co-wrote the second single, “What Is Love?” / “Love Without End, Amen” with Jessie Hill.

The Epic sides were good—you can hear them on the Night Train release The Best of Chase Records, and it’s entirely possible that if the Aubrey Twins broke out nationally with this material, the Dr. John character may never have materialized and Rebennack would have continued his career as a go-to session man and producer. But his entanglements with drugs and the endless hustle led to chaos on these sessions and an entirely different road to travel.

“I was never really into the Gris-Gris phase,” said Chaisson without irony. “That world was just a little bit too heavy for me. Epic Records signed the Aubrey Twins. Harold Battiste did the arrangements and 95 percent of it was Mac and Jessie Hill’s songs. I felt loyalty to Mac because of our early relationship and the fact that he had good songs. So we did the album in California at Columbia Studios. Charles Green and Brian Stone were the producers and Harold Battiste was the arranger. Mac played guitar and piano and organ. He hadn’t quite reformed yet. He would slip. After he was doing all the Sonny and Cher stuff I would walk into the studio there, Gold Star, and Doc was the engineer and in the middle of a session Mac was falling asleep.

Finally I pulled him aside and said ‘Man, this is ridiculous.’ ” That was pretty much the end of Chaisson’s connection to Mac while the Dr. John project took flight, but they would meet up again OF F B E AT.C OM

when Mac returned to his New Orleans roots for the R&B tribute album Gumbo and its highly successful New Orleans funk followups In the Right Place and Desitively Bonnaroo. As regional director of promotion for the distributor, Chaisson was part of the Atlantic promotion team that boosted singles like “Right Place, Wrong Time” and “Such a Night” into the charts.

Chaisson would reconnect once again with Rebennack in the 1980s, when he agreed to become Mac’s manager on the condition that he clean up for good and move to New York. With encouragement from Rebennack’s mother Dorothy, Chaisson helped Mac reinvent himself once again.

“I can remember going sometimes to five meetings a day with Mac,” he said. “I went with Mac when he got cleaned up. I just could not work with him knowing he was injuring himself and I always thought that he was creative enough without that and it’s been proven since, with all these established musicians who wanted to play with him. I have some letters from Dorothy. Dorothy was very, very pleased that Mac was starting to wear suits, which I convinced him to do, and she saw an improvement not only in his whole demeanor, but his playing and singing, and his way of treating people. She was very complimentary about our goal to keep this a straight-up, clean working environment.”

Chaisson’s run managing Rebennack included deals with Warner Brothers, which yielded the Grammy-winning Going Back to New Orleans album, and GRP. Chaisson also managed a grueling regimen of world tours.

He documented a number of the shows and the WDR performance on digital tape. Chaisson eventually stepped down from his management role but kept in touch with Mac until the end of his life.

“We would talk on the phone from time to time or get together to eat,” said Chaisson. “I mentioned [the tapes] on occasion. We were discussing what was going down and we did a lot of reminiscing.”

When Chaisson knew Mac’s time was limited he mentioned these two projects again. “He was very sick,” said Chaisson. “I have other tapes but these two are the best. I did want to expose Live in Tokyo because that was one of the best bands that he had. His son Max told me the night before he passed that that was the best band that he had.”

But the real prize in Chaisson’s vault was the WDR session.

“Everyone should be able to hear the way he sings, instead of just being a Professor Longhair-type pianist from New Orleans,” Chaisson said. “This was the event. We rehearsed the night before. But they didn’t do concerts with him. It was a one-time deal. Mac was thinking about doing this. We were in his brownstone one night, and the WDR proposed since he would be over in Germany with his band, would we consider something with the WDR orchestra. He knew from 1920s music up to today’s music, listened to it all the time. The WDR Big Band record shows that.

“I miss Mac dearly. I hope enough people get a chance to hear this record. That’s the pinnacle of him right there. I don’t think he was captured in the same manner of playing and phrasing. This record brings him out. This is Mac.” O F E B R U A RY 2 0 2 0

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Da

s riu

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Playing For His Life

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“I got known when I got posted on World Star and got a lot of followers.

Then Common posted me and tagged Questlove with ‘That must be your son.’

Questlove is one of the best drummers in the world, Sanchez and he was like, ‘We gotta find him.’ From that post I got contacted for the red beans commercial. That was fun, we was in a house uptown. They filmed me for about four hours. They even shot extra footage of me just playing around.”

Darius has been smiling at memories of good times but at the mention of his mother his smile fades.

“It’s a deeper story, why I move, how I move, how I keep to myself. I try to keep myself distant from falling in the wrong trap.

My mom…she did drugs. I used to hold a burden from feeling like I contributed because I was bringing all the money home, taking care of my family—living in hotels for two years straight, having to provide. It was hard.”

His enthusiasm returned but when I ask how his mom is doing, sadness falls across his face.

“She’s not really doing too good right now. I don’t really stay in contact with her. I try but she never has a solid phone number, she moves around a lot. I love her to death—that’s my rock—I think about her every day.”

As he speaks, he pulls a photo of his mom from his wallet to show me, while sad eyes look at it as he tucks it back into his wallet.

When I ask if he has an agent, the smile returns as he announces, “I’m my own agent, my own businessman, my own manager. I’m going to Delgado for two years for music business. I have a passion; if I didn’t go this route I probably wouldn’t be here. I’m not having the best life right now—this is not the good life I’m living right now but I make it look good. I want people to know it’s going to be alright. I’m a soldier. I got tattoos of my sister’s name, my two nephews and a spider web tattoo on my elbow with nine corners ’cause that’s the age when I started, ’cause I felt like I was trapped but I found a way out.” O

Darius Lyndsley is on a mission to turn his art into something more.

O F F B E AT. C O M

Photo BY NOÉ CUGNY

D

arius Lyndsley, “Da Bucket Banga,” beats his buckets on a curb outside of Belle’s Diner in the French Market—lifting the bucket slightly with his foot to provide different

by Paul musical tones. He flips his sticks high in the air, catching them without missing a beat. Someone drops a five, missing the bucket, and the bill floats to the ground. But before the wind can blow it away, Darius has deftly scooped it into the bucket with one hand, keeping the beat with his other.

Darius is not just playing music; he is playing for his life.

“I’m from the 9th ward, lived on the Westbank a little bit with my grandma, but I been [living in the] 9th ward mostly.

“When I was eight, my momma came home with some drumsticks ’cause she worked at a live music bar. That night I was drumming in the house and she told me ‘don’t drum in the house.’ The next morning I went outside and was drumming on everything. I got underneath the house and found these buckets with a little bit of paint in them. I started beating on them, messed up my new shoes for school and everything with the paint.

“The next day they dried out and I just kept going.

“I used to walk to the French Quarter—my momma didn’t know ’cause she thought I was playing football or something. I was only, like, nine years old and I been wanting to hustle, you know, make money.

The motivation was Honey Buns, trying to have something to eat with my little brother when we went to school.

“I was always looking for work, even at seven. I would see somebody with groceries outside their house and ask, ‘can I help you bring them inside?’ I picked up trash, washed dishes for neighbors, anything I could make extra hustle off.

“Then I found the buckets. I’m the originator with this style of playing. I never joined the band in school. I did everything I had to do to get there but basically it didn’t match me. I was doing something different. I still performed at school, half-time, pep rallies, all kinds of events.

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S

it o pir

f Fi-

Yi-Yi

A Walking Spirit Victor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, celebrates 55 years of beauty and culture.

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O F F B E AT. C O M

PHOTOGRAPH BY Noé CUGNY

V

ictor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, remains

by Geraldine Wyckoff well as perhaps his final time hitting the streets. “I one of the most recognizable big would never say that I’m going to stop masking,” chiefs in the Mardi Gras Indian Nation. His style is unique in Harris absolutely declares before adding that knee problems and everything he pursues—the designing, the songs, the exuberant way possible surgery could prevent his notably energized wanderings on he engages a crowd. Foremost are his magnificent beaded suits and the holiday. “I’ll be involved with it and I’ll definitely be involved in masks that honor African culture and his love of nature. making more suits. I will be doing it until I can’t do it. I would love to “Truly I’m a walking spirit,” says Harris. “When people see the do it forever, honestly.”

Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi they feel good. They rise. I am who I am in and out In 1965, Harris began masking flag boy with the Yellow Pocahontas of the suit.” under Big Chief Allison “Tootie” Montana. “My first year it was like When Harris steps out as Big Chief of the Mandingo Warriors on Indian fever—all you could think of was sew, sew, sew, Indian, Mardi Carnival Day, it will mark his amazing 55 years of masking Indian as Gras, Indian, Indian,” Harris excitedly remembered. That’s why, even though he and the Yellow Pocahontas parted ways some 18 years later, he still considers himself a member of Tootie’s tribe and believes that Montana would be proud that he has surpassed the renowned Chief of Chief ’s 52 years of masking Indian.

“I’m a member of Tootie’s tribe—I am a born Yellow Pocahontas,” declares Harris. “He’s my chief until death—my only chief. It’s like he is passing the torch to me. Tootie put in all those years. Who ever thought somebody else would do that? Tootie made a brand new suit every year. There’s honor in that. That’s what it’s all about.”

Certain heartbreak still remains in Harris’ voice when he speaks of being “banished” from the Yellow Pocahontas in 1984. He won’t speak of the reason as he remains loyal to the gang—“I just love these people”—though one could speculate that his pain led him to greater things.

“Everything seemed hopeless to me—I had no tribe,” Harris once recalled.” I was banned from the Yellow Pocahontas which was my community, my livelihood and everything else. And I loved masking Mardi Gras Indian. The only thing that I could do was to pray.

“It was at night, I was all alone. I turned off every light in the house, the clock that was ticking, I stopped that from happening. I made sure the TV and the refrigerator were unplugged because I didn’t want to hear a humming sound. I just wanted to be alone with the spirit in the dark.

“I woke up that next morning and I felt very good and I just started stretching and flexing my arms and started to say ‘Yi-Yi.’ Suddenly I stopped and then I said ‘Fi-Yi-Yi’ and the third time I screamed it ‘Fi-Yi-Yi.’ That was the first time the word was ever mentioned. That’s when the spirit hit me. That was my given spiritual cultural name and it represented Africa.

“That’s when the transformation took place. I wasn’t an Indian anymore. Everything changed—my sewing changed. I didn’t sew no more like the Yellow Pocahontas. That was my blessing, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi. It was the beginning of who I am right now. There was more to that first black suit in terms of what it meant not just to me but to the culture.”

Butterflies fluttering in a garden of flowers adorn Fi-Yi-Yi’s gorgeous suit that he will don this year. “What’s more beautiful than a butterfly?” he asks. “They are nature, beauty, compassion and love.”

Harris is aided in creating his suits by Jack “Mr. Jack” Robinson who took over as master sewer at the passing of Harris’ longtime friend, Collins “Coach” Lewis. “He’s the master of all of the things that Coach did,” says Harris of Mr. Jack, who has been sewing for Fi-Yi-Yi for over 30 years. Surprisingly, when Mr. Jack first started beading, he had never picked up a needle and thread in his life and still has no desire to mask Indian.

When Harris begins to make a new suit he says he has “no idea what the hell I’ll do. I have to start first. I start with a circle and from that everything develops. I don’t draw out of a book. I create the work as it comes to my mind and eyes and I add on to what I do.

I give Mr. Jack the freedom to do whatever he pleases. As long as we’re using the same material and colors, you can’t go wrong. Mr. Jack has the green light to sew what he wants to sew and make his own designs. I have that much trust in him. He’s that good.”

Since his emergence as Fi-Yi-Yi, Harris has utilized cowrie shells to adorn his suits to express his respect for the African culture and his love of the beauty of nature. He explains that cowrie shells are used in African nations as decorations and jewelry and have often been treated as currency. “They were like cash money,” he declares.

Fi-Yi-Yi and the Mandingo Warriors will hit the streets this year with somewhere between 15 and 20 members masking. His son, “Little” Victor, who will take over as the chief of the Mandingo Warriors next year, will be by his side. He describes his other son, Curtis, as a messenger and runner for the tribe. Curtis also purchased a building near the Musicians Village that will house Fi-Yi-Yi’s future Black Seeds of Culture Museum.

With tambourines ringing and drums beating, the tribe will emerge from Joan Rhodes’ house on Barracks Street, just around the corner from the Backstreet Cultural Museum. “That’s my headquarters— that’s definitely my camp,” Harris declares of the Backstreet. “I always believed in Sylvester [Sylvester Francis, the museum’s curator] because he believed in what he wanted to do. He calls me his chief— we are one.”

As Fi-Yi-Yi takes over the streets on Carnival Day, those who are faint of heart might want to stand clear of the always dramatic chief who has lots of fun ferociously running up to unsuspecting folks to give them a thrill. “I try to make people part of what I do,” Harris explains.

“You’ve got to have activity. You’ve got to keep a certain amount of fear of some kind in it. I go into people’s faces, look them in the eye and look ’em up and down like I’m sizing them up so they go home with a story to tell. I have fun with the children because they can’t see what I’m thinking. I’ll be laughing behind the mask but they don’t know that. You have to put a little bit of everything in it.”

When Fi-Yi-Yi and the Mandingo Warriors are nearing and the chant “Fire in the hole!” rings out, it stands as a warning that the tribe is on its way. “It means get the hell out the way—clear the area, something is going to explode,” Harris explains while laughing. “It’s our song—it lets them know who’s coming. We have our own songs, our own beat of the African drums. We get fired up.”

Victor Harris, the Spirit of Fi-Yi-Yi, is an artist, a visionary who offers people joyful healing and possesses the special power of bringing folks together. “That’s what it’s all about. That’s my mission.” O OF F B E AT.C OM

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The Supreme 22

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Green Fairy Tank and the Bangas reign over Krewe Bohème.

by John Wirt l Photographs by GUS BENNETT

Tarriona “Tank” Ball made a list of the great things

Tank and the Bangas experienced in 2019. It’s a long list: a Grammy Award nomination for best new artist; performing at Carnegie Hall, the Apollo Theater, the Library of Congress, the Glastonbury Festival in the United Kingdom and AFROPUNK Fest in Paris; the group’s national TV debut on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon; filming a performance for Austin City Limits; dropping Green Balloon, the band’s major label debut; meeting Michelle Obama; becoming friends with Jill Scott; and Ball’s solo appearances in Vogue and Essence magazines.

“That’s a hell of a year,” she said.

Tank and the Bangas accomplished all that even though the band never sets goals or timelines. Instead, manager Tavia Osbey said, “we speak what we want into manifestation and keep the work going until it happens.”

This year, 2020, looks like another beautiful year for the New Orleans band that blends poetry, whimsy, funk, rap, R&B and jazz into intoxicating music and performance. In early January, Tank and the Bangas made its Jam Cruise debut. In late January, the band traveled to Los Angeles for the Grammy Awards. Also in January, the group kicked off Season 2 of OffBeat’s acclaimed original video series, “OnBeat Sessions,” which can be viewed in the digital version of this cover story.

On February 7, Ball will reign over Krewe Bohème’s Mardi Gras parade as the Supreme Green Fairy. She’ll ride in a 12-foot-high bottle that represents absinthe, the green elixir that historically inspired writers and artists. Krewe Bohème’s walking parade features

handmade throws and an emphasis on artistry and the Bohemian spirit, said Bri Whetstone, the krewe’s communications director.

“When we were considering who our Supreme Green Fairy would be this year, Tank was the obvious choice,” Whetstone said. “She’s so talented, she’s so avant-garde. Her style perfectly encapsulates what we do.”

“I’ve been working the green,” the vivacious Ball said during a coffee shop interview with Bangas drummer Joshua Johnson and alto saxophonist and flutist Albert Allenback (bassist Norman Spence is the fourth Banga). For instance, Verve Forecast Records released Green Balloon, the band’s second album, in May. Green isn’t Ball’s favorite color, “but it just stood for a lot of things, so it’s perfect that I can be the Green Fairy.”

On February 28, following Mardi Gras and three Tank and the Bangas shows in Japan, the band will launch a North American tour with fellow New Orleans band the Revivalists. The tour’s dozen dates include Radio City Music Hall. A ten-date European trek will follow in March and April.

Recent years saw many lights turn green for Tank and the Bangas. In April 2019, a few weeks before the release of Green Balloon, Tank and the Bangas appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. Ball and Allenback were anxious about their national TV debut. And now Allenback only remembers doing the show in his dreams. Johnson, on the other hand, rolled with it. “I was fine,” he said. “Right before we performed, the dude backstage said something that made me even more ready. ‘All they’re here for now is you. It’s y’all’s stage.’ And it seemed almost like a normal show, even though it was only three minutes, that one song.

But we treated it like a whole show. We caught people’s attention at the beginning. I watched them get enthralled.”

On January 2, 2020, Tank and the Bangas band returned to NBC Studios in Rockefeller Center for an appearance on the network’s morning show, Today. Having appeared often on New Orleans morning shows, Today was a piece of cake.

“I thank God for WDSU and News with a Twist,” Ball said.

“They prepared us so much.

And after all those mornings getting up at five to go chat with Sally-Ann Roberts (at WWL), the Today show felt natural.” Allenback lost his fear of national TV, too. “While we were doing it, I was like, ‘We’re grooving.’ ” Tiny Desk, big step

“When we were considering who our Supreme Green Fairy would be this year, Tank was the obvious choice,” Whetstone said. “She’s so talented, she’s so avant-garde. Her style perfectly encapsulates what we do.”

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Winning National Public Radio’s Tiny Desk contest in 2017 boosted Tank and the Bangas’ national profile enormously. Ten judges unanimously picked the New Orleans band from more than O F F B E AT. C O M

6,000 music video submissions. The judges included singer-guitarist Trey Anastasio from Phish. “I immediately loved this,” Anastasio told NPR’s Morning Edition. “Tank is a force of nature, just full of joy—and her band is killing in the background.” More praise came from All Songs Considered host Bob Boilen. “It all felt so organic and on-thespot, just like the best Tiny Desk concerts,” he wrote in the official announcement.

Tank and the Bangas filmed the winning, iPhone-shot music video for “Quick” in two takes in a classroom at Joseph S. Clark High School.

“We didn’t have much time to do it because the guys had to go practice with Big Freedia,” Ball said. And the bell rang, calling students back to class in the school where Ball once taught. Later, even before the Tiny Desk win, the “Quick” video went viral, bringing the band more fans and gigs. It has since been viewed more than 12-million times.

Ball and the Bangas learned of their Tiny Desk victory during a conference call with NPR. “I was taking a walk in my neighborhood amongst the Asian ladies,” Ball remembered. “They have their own little community and they walk a lot.” During the call, Johnson, who then knew little about how powerful public radio is to music, whispered questions, asking “What’s NPR?” Allenback knew Tiny Desk was significant, but he didn’t realize how vast the program’s reach is. “Overnight,” he remembered, “our Facebook likes went from 12,000 to 30,000. And it just kept going up.” “That joint, Tiny Desk, is universal,” Johnson said. “People in Europe, who cannot say anything else to us, will come up and say ‘Tank and the Bangas—tiny desk, little desk, little table.’ We’ll be like, ‘Oh, we know where you know us from.”

After Tiny Desk, Ball said, “the gigs, oh, my God, the venues, how they changed—the fans, how they changed. It was crazy. And when we did the Tiny Desk tour, Bob Boilen was so excited. We saw the difference between being in a little bitty club and being in a huge venue. Some days we are still in a little bitty club, but you’re grateful for all the parties that you get to attend.”

In 2018, Ball moved from Tiny Desk contestant to judge. “I believe that we changed the Tiny Desk dynamics,” she said. “When I judged it the next year, there were so many more poets trying out. Poets I knew! And it was more diverse. I know that people saw us and were influenced by us. We actually picked up the remote and changed the channel! That’s amazing.”

Record companies come courting

The Tiny Desk triumph put Tank and the Bangas on record companies’ radar. “Tiny Desk,” Ball said, “is probably responsible for all of those people wanting to be a part of our lives.” The major label suitors included Danny Bennett, then president and CEO of the Verve Label Group (and the son of singer Tony Bennett). During Bennett’s three years of leading Verve and its sister labels, he signed acts beyond Verve’s traditional jazz and classical music, including Lyle Lovett and T Bone Burnett.

Bennett and Verve, Ball said, “were persistent as heck. They were at almost every show, with flowers. We went to dinner at great places all the time. At one point, we were like, ‘Naw. We’re not signing with those people. That’s not the direction we’re going to go.’ But Danny Bennett took us out for a late-night dinner at a little place in New York and had a heart-to-heart conversation with us. He truly convinced us, saying, ‘We’re with you. We believe in what you’re doing.’ ” Verve’s contemporary roster, which includes New Orleans pianist and Late Show with Stephen Colbert bandleader Jon Batiste—and the company’s great legacy—impressed Tank and the Bangas. Diana Krall

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and Andrea Bocelli are the label’s biggest selling contemporary artists.

Its vast catalog of classic jazz includes Nina Simone, Stan Getz, Ella Fitzgerald and John Coltrane. And after Sweet Crude opened for Tank and the Bangas at Brooklyn Bowl, Verve signed that New Orleans band, too.

Making national waves

Following the May 2019 release of Green Balloon, Danny Bennett’s faith in Tank and the Bangas proved deserved. National publications poured forth praise. “There’s no record quite like Green Balloon, and no band quite like Tank and the Bangas,” NPR Music noted. “Bathing theatrical hip-hop, soul, funk and spoken-word poetry in the lush musicality of its New Orleans home,” The New Yorker wrote, “Green Balloon floats on the effervescent energy that captivated the Internet

two years ago.” Time magazine cited Ball’s “elastic, surprising voice that oozes energy, turning simple lyrics into full stories just with a twist of the syllables.”

On November 20, 2019, Tank and the Bangas woke up to find they’d received a Grammy nomination for best new artist. The Recording Academy nominates artists for the award “if their eligibility year release/s achieved a breakthrough into the public consciousness and notably impacted the musical landscape.” Founded in 2012 though Tank and the Bangas was, Ball realizes that because Verve Forecast released the band’s major label album debut in 2019, the group is still new to many. “It’s like being new to the music industry,” she said. “And all of this does feel like a big new, even though we feel prepared for it.”

Responding to the Grammy nomination, Sacks & Co., Tank and the Bangas’ New York City-based publicist, released a collective statement: “This moment is for every open mic, garage band and underground movement that ever took place. We’re reminded by this nomination that anything is possible.

Tank and the Bangas are possible.”

The stellar acts in the running for the best new artist Grammy this year include Lizzo, Lil Nas X, Billie Eilish, Black Pumas, Rosalía, Yola and Maggie Rogers. “A lot of people had an amazing year,” Ball said of the competition. “We’ve never had that MTV, BET situation that those other artists have had. We have no songs that have been high on Billboard. We don’t have the same weapons that those other nominees have, but we’re still in for the fight. And we truly believe we’re just as worthy. Fo’ sho’.”

Legendary venues

“We’ve never had that MTV, BET situation that those other artists have had. We have no songs that have been high on Billboard. We don’t have the same weapons that those other nominees have, but we’re still in for the fight. And we truly believe we’re just as worthy. Fo’ sho’.”

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Other 2019 breakthroughs for Tank and the Bangas include the group’s appearances in America’s great concert venues. At Carnegie Hall, Ball felt the venue’s legendary vibe intensely. “The room was so beautiful, huge and intimate,” she said. “I felt so confident and poised.” “And you sounded confident,” Allenback agreed.

In Carnegie Hall, a performance space renowned for its superb acoustics, “sometimes you’ve got to play drums with your fingertips,” Bangas drummer and music director Johnson added. “But if you get the right drumming, you can make drums sing in that room.”

At the Apollo Theater, another palace of American music and culture, Ball felt history around her. Following tradition, she touched the venue’s famous Tree of Hope, a stump that’s said to bring Apollo performers luck. “We thought that nobody was going to come,” Ball said of the Apollo show. “They told us, O F F B E AT. C O M

‘Oh, the ticket sales are moving slow.’ And I wondered if the audience was going to be reserved, bourgeois.” To the contrary, the theater filled up and, Allenback said, “when we started, they jumped out of their seats.”

Michelle Obama attended the band’s performance at the Library of Congress. “She’s a fan,” Ball said. “The Obamas had the White House rocking.”

At Diaspora Songs, the Angélique Kidjo-curated concert at Carnegie Hall, Tank and the Bangas shared the bill with New Orleans artists Terence Blanchard, Jon Batiste and Quiana Lynell. “I love it when we travel places and meet up with New Orleans people,” Ball said. “It is a built-in chemistry and conversation. We can talk about anything and it’s easy.” During her band’s travels, she encounters New Orleans talent all the time, Ball said, “no matter what part of the country or the world we’re in.”

Poetic roots

Ball evolved from poet to singer-songwriter after her success at slam poetry contests. She was a member of Team SNO (Slam New Orleans) when the group won National Poetry Slam Championships in 2011, 2012 and 2013. After that, she knew it was time to reach higher. “We had won the biggest competition we could win,” she said.

“And I wanted to combine music and poetry in a serious way that could be impactful and not limited to three-minutes and ten-seconds.

What I was doing before with slam poetry, that’s how much time you had on stage.”

Ball and her manager personally delivered tickets to her first musical show, which sold out. In March 2011, Osbey, having been Ball’s part-time manager for five months, quit the two jobs she had to be a full-time manager. Ball had already given her music career a vote of confidence by leaving her job at IHOP. “Tarriona’s real, she’s raw, she’s inspiring,” Osbey said. “She is one of my biggest inspirations to move forward in management. She showed me how to believe in myself.

She does that for others as well.”

Future Tank and the Bangas drummer and music director Johnson attended Ball’s second music show. He made his way backstage afterward to critique her performance, “as musicians do in New Orleans,” Johnson explained. Despite the critique, “I saw a whole lot of beautiful potential.”

“Josh was only supposed to come and write some sheet music for me,” Ball remembered. “So, all of my music could be ready, so that I could go up to anyplace and give it to the musicians to play. But then Josh never left.”

Early on, Ball and Johnson both identified as outsider artists. “I was around the outcasts,” he said. “The ones who weren’t always getting calls for work. We weren’t the cool kids.” “Everybody was an underdog, for sure,” Ball said. “But I didn’t mind that I wasn’t cool. I didn’t really like the cool kids that much. But I liked my friends. I liked who I was. I liked what I was doing. As long as you like yourself, it’s all good.” “We are out of left field,” said Allenback, a Banga since 2014.

“But the funny part to us now,” Johnson mused, “is that our left field has started to become centerfield for everybody else.”

On top of the group’s talent and inventiveness, Osbey believes Tank and the Bangas are spiritually connected. “We all believed in Tank very early on,” she said. “We pray with and for each other. And none of us is afraid to do the work. Tank also believes in everyone here. And no one person is above the group. That’s special.” O Tarriona “Tank” Ball will reign as Krewe Bohème’s Supreme Green Fairy beginning at 7 p.m. February 7. The parade begins in the Marigny, continues through the French Quarter and ends near the Joy Theater, site of Krewe Bohème’s Absinthe Ball.

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offeats AMERICAN Port of Call: 838 Esplanade Ave., 523-0120

MUSIC ON THE MENU Banks Street Bar & Grill: 4401 Banks St., 486-0258 BARBECUE Buffa’s: 1001 Esplanade Ave., 949-0038 The Joint: 701 Mazant St., 949-3232 Carnaval Lounge: 2227 St. Claude Ave., COFFEE HOUSES 265-8865 Café du Monde: 800 Decatur St., 525-4544, Chickie Wah Wah: 2828 Canal St., 304-4714 56 Dreyfous Dr., 635-8033 Gattuso’s: 435 Huey P Long Ave., Gretna, 368-1114 CREOLE/CAJUN House of Blues: 225 Decatur St., 412-8068 Cochon: 930 Tchoupitoulas St., 588-2123 Howlin’ Wolf’s Wolf Den: 907 S. Peters St., Cornet: 700 Bourbon St., 523-1485 529-5844 Galatoire’s: 209 Bourbon St., 525-2021 Le Bon Temps Roule: 4801 Magazine St., Gumbo Shop: 630 St. Peter St., 525-1486 895-8117 New Orleans Creole Cookery: 508 Little Gem Saloon: 445 S. Rampart St., Toulouse St., 524-9632 267-4863 FINE DINING Maison: 508 Frenchmen St., 289-5648 Commander’s Palace: 1403 Washington Mid City Lanes Rock ‘N’ Bowl: 4133 S. Ave., 899-8221 Carrollton Ave., 482-3133 Josephine Estelle: Ace Hotel, 600 NOLA Cantina: 437 Esplanade Ave., Carondelet St., 930-3070 266-2848 Justine: 225 Chartres St., 218-8833 Palm Court: 1204 Decatur St., 525-0200 Mr. B’s Bistro: 201 Royal St. 523-2078 Rivershack Tavern: 3449 River Rd., 834-4938 Southport Hall: 200 Monticello Ave., FRENCH Café Degas: 3127 Esplanade Ave., 945-5635 835-2903 La Crepe Nanou: 1410 Robert St., 899Snug Harbor: 626 Frenchmen St., 949-0696 2670 Three Muses: 536 Frenchmen St., 298-8746 GERMAN Bratz Y’all: 617-B Piety St., 301-3222

NEIGHBORHOOD JOINTS Cake Café: 2440 Chartres St., 943-0010 Dat Dog: 601 Frenchmen St., 309-3362; GROCERY STORES 5030 Freret St., 899-6883; 3336 Breaux Mart: 3233 Magazine St., 262-6017; Magazine St., 324-2226 2904 Severn Ave. Metarie, 885-5565; Junction: 3021 St. Claude Ave., 272-0205 9647 Jefferson Hwy. River Ridge, 737Lucy’s Retired Surfers Bar & Restaurant: 8146; 315 E Judge Perez, Chalmette, 701 Tchoupitoulas St., 523-8995 Mardi Gras Zone: 2706 Royal St., 947-8787 Parkway Bakery and Tavern: 538 Hagan Ave., INDIAN 482-3047 Nirvana: 4308 Magazine St., 894-9797 Piece of Meat: 3301 Bienville St., 372-2289 Sammy’s Food Services: 3000 Elysian Fields JAPANESE/THAI/CHINESE Ave., 948-7361 Bao & Noodle: 2700 Chartres St., 272-0004 Mikimoto: 3301 S Carrollton Ave., 488-1881 Tracey’s: 2604 Magazine St., 897-5413 Ye Olde College Inn: 3000 S. Carrollton Sukho Thai: 4519 Magazine St., 373-6471; Ave., 866-3683 2200 Royal St., 948-9309 Wasabi: 900 Frenchmen St., 943-9433 PIZZA LOUISIANA / SOUTHERN Midway Pizza: 4725 Freret St., 322-2815 Balise Tavern: 640 Carondelet St., 459-4449 Pizza Delicious: 617 Piety St., 676-8482 La Petite Grocery: 4238 Magazine St., Slice Pizzeria: 1513 St. Charles Ave., 525891-3377 7437 Praline Connection: 542 Frenchmen St., Theo’s Pizza: 4218 Magazine St., 894-8554; 943-3934 4024 Canal St., 302-1133; 1212 S Clearview, 733-3803 MEDITERRANEAN Mona’s Café: 504 Frenchmen St., 949-4115

MEXICAN/CARIBBEAN/ SPANISH Barú Bistro & Tapas: 3700 Magazine St., 895-2225 El Gato Negro: 81 French Market Place, 525-9846; 300 Harrison Ave., 488-0107; 800 S Peters St., 309-8804 Juan’s Flying Burrito: 2018 Magazine St., 569-0000

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SEAFOOD Briquette: 701 S Peters St., 302-7496 Deanie’s Seafood: 841 Iberville St., 5811316; 1713 Lake Ave. Metairie, 834-1225 VIETNAMESE Namese: 4077 Tulane Ave., 483-8899 WEE HOURS Buffa’s Restaurant & Lounge: 1001 Esplanade Ave., 949-0038

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diningout three options: an excellent flan, a great brownie, and the irresistible churros dusted with cinnamon sugar, which are ridiculously good.

Beverage options are a big deal at Felipe’s, beginning with a variety of aguas frescas, Jarritos sodas, Abita root beer, and Mexican Coke. But, the real fun happens at the adjacent Tiki Tolteka, their full service bar. Classics such as the Trader Vic’s specialty mai tai, Hurricane, Singapore sling, and frozen margaritas are made from scratch and presented with flair, including the over-the-top Scorpion Bowl. Tiki Tolteka makes many of its own specialty liquors, syrups, tinctures, and even has special flavored ice available. Besides honing in on rum and tequila drinks, they also carry mezcal, pisco, and cachaca. navigate the dizzying array of Signature specialty drinks such enhancements. The basic options as the Jungle Bird made with begin with grilled chicken in a mild citrus marinade. The chicken Campari, rum, pineapple, and lime, and Doctor Funk with rum, tinga breast is served shredded Herbsaint, and fresh-squeezed and simmered in a spicy tomato, onion, and chipotle pepper sauce. citrus serve to elevate the festive atmosphere. I’ve always left Next up is the classic al pastor Felipe’s sated and satisfied with made with slow-cooked pork, pineapple and a cinnamon/guajillo the food, service, libations, and the pleasant vibe. Over the years, marinade. The hand-chopped carnitas pork is simply outstanding, I’ve dined there dozens of times slow-cooked, and incredibly savory. and it has become one of my favorite dining destinations.

Then, there’s the classic chorizo Felipe’s has expanded to Mexican pork sausage flavored locations in Mid-City, and with smoky pepper. CharUptown on Claiborne Avenue, grilled steak, a medley of grilled all smart choices during carnival vegetables, fried local shrimp, season, when dining becomes and grilled fish round out the options. Black beans, pinto beans, tricky. Locations have also expanded to Florida, Maryland, and refried versions of both and Massachusetts. O are also served as toppings or 301 N. Peters Street (504) sides with rice. Along with those 267-4406, Mon-Sun: 11 a.m. until options, fresh corn, a mixture of 12 a.m.; 6215 S. Miro Street (504) chopped onions with lime and 309–2776, Sun-Tues: 11 a.m. until cilantro, guacamole, sour cream, 10 p.m. Wed-Sat: 11 a.m. until 11 queso, and pico de gallo are p.m.; 411-1 N. Carrollton Avenue also available. Items are available (504) 408-2626, Sun–Thur: 11 individually or in various combia.m. until 11 p.m. Fri and Sat: 11 nations. a.m. until 12 a.m.

Desserts at Felipe’s consist of

Felipe’s Mexican Taqueria

photo courtesy of TRUE FOOD KITCHEN

Review by Michael Dominici Everyone has a handful of go-to restaurants they count on for consistently delicious dining experiences. Felipe’s makes the cut for most every food lover I know. Why? Because Felipe’s delivers a lot of bang for the buck: it’s always satisfying. They pay attention to the details which include serving locally made Mawi tortillas; they make everything from scratch in small batches throughout the day; and they also serve Mexican Coke made with cane sugar in bottles.

Ordering at Felipe’s is the most challenging part, simply because there are just so many enticing options. Appetizers include freshly prepared tortilla chips served with a choice of salsa fresca with chopped tomatoes, onions, jalapeño peppers, garlic, lime and cilantro; delicious guacamole; or zesty queso topping. The pork tamale is made with corn masa and mildly seasoned pork topped with crema and pico de gallo. I like to kick it OF F B E AT.C OM

up a notch with a variety of hot sauces and condiments from their impressive selection of over 20 options, including everything from limes, to pickled peppers, marinated onions, herbs, and sauces. The tortilla soup at Felipe’s is a hearty, satisfying presentation of coarsely chopped vegetables, shredded chicken, in a deeply flavorful broth garnished with rice, crispy tortilla strips, avocado, and grated Cotija cheese from the mountains of the Michoacán region of Mexico. Crispy tostadas are another option topped with refried black or pinto beans, various meat preparations, steak, shrimp, or fish. My favorite is the flautas—rolled tortillas stuffed with either chicken or pork, crispy fried, then topped with Mexican crema, shredded lettuce, pico de gallo and shredded Cotija.

The entree selection at Felipe’s is an interactive experience. The basics are obvious whether you order a burrito or one of the taco variations, but from then on you should engage with the congenial staff that will help you

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reviews CDs reviewed are available now at Louisiana Music Factory 421 Frenchmen Street in the Marigny 504-586-1094 or LouisianaMusicFactory.com

We Got Lucky

Alex McMurray Lucky One (Independent)

A new Alex McMurray album is a call for celebration. Not a huge, Mardi Gras-like celebration, because songwriters’ albums no longer define the zeitgeist as they once did. But definitely a more private, birthday partylike celebration, because great songwriting is a way to selfknowledge and ultimately satisfaction for those who have the patience to listen carefully. Once upon a time John Sebastian could upend the world as we knew it with a seven-inch 45 rpm disc that asked the question, “Do You Believe in Magic?” With a strum of his autoharp and the incantation “The magic’s in the music and the music’s in me,” Sebastian articulated a world view that could— that did—move mountains.

McMurray can do this today with songs that are just as good but whose reach is smaller because you have to believe in the magic before you hear them.

That doesn’t matter to those who find in McMurray’s work a portal to Neverland, where the mountains may be closer to the

elevation on Monkey Hill, but the songs can still inspire individuals to appreciate the rich fantasy world of their inner lives. McMurray makes myth out of the commonplace, the modern equivalent of spinning straw into gold, and his stories tell us so much about what it means to live in New Orleans.

He can make a bleak landscape sparkle with silver linings. If there is a songwriter who could write a song about the Saints suffering multiple heartbreaking losses without losing their joy in taking the field, McMurray is the man for the job. There is no base scenario wherein McMurray cannot find some kind of ecstasy, as he does here on the fabulous “Everybody Goes To Hank’s,” an ode to an all-night market that is frequented by the merry dregs of New Orleans life, an endangered species on the fast-disappearing landscape of a gentrifying St. Claude Avenue. He is, of course, no stranger to this phenomenon, having hosted one of the best portals to Neverland ever located in New Orleans, just over the tracks from Hank’s at the Truck Farm, where he hosted Chaz Fest for a few years following Katrina.You want pirates? Indians?

Shaggy dogs and singing frogs?

Chaz Fest had ’em, and though you would be hard-pressed to see that in today’s landscape, you can still imagine it when you hear McMurray sing songs like “Rag Days” or “I’ll Be Damned.”

McMurray’s songs are not two dimensional. He spins elaborate tales with a playwright’s talent for

small touches, like the story of “Winona” who works at Family Dollar, or the complex fables “Something You Know” and “Blue Room.” It’s been rewarding to follow the trajectory of his songwriting as he goes through life and absorbs the changes around him. Becoming a father a few years back has definitely given him new perspective, which emerges here on “Dear Old Daddy,” a humorous song addressed to his son that allows McMurray to reflect on his own life: “And when I think about my younger days / running wild with my childish ways / I’m glad you never met the younger me / I wasn’t always nice as I could be.”

At the end of the day McMurray is sustained by the enduring bonds of love and friendship. Some of his best songs touch on this theme and the title track here is a worthy addition to the canon. Fittingly he is joined by close musical friends on the album—regular band members Carlo Nuccio on drums; Joe Cabral on bass, tenor saxophone and vocals; and Glenn Hartman on keyboards— as well as Washboard Chaz from McMurray’s other band, the Tin Men; the magnificent voices of Susan Cowsill and Alexis Marceaux; and several special guests including Will Sexton on guitar, Charlie Halloran on trombone, Ivan Neville on organ and clavinet and Mike Dillon on percussion.

This wonderful crew brings us all inside the special magic of McMurray’s vision. For those of

us who believe, we can truly count ourselves the lucky ones.

—John Swenson

The Revelers At the End of the River – Au bout de la riviére (Independent) Save yourself some confusion.

Don’t think of the Revelers as staunch proponents of any particular genre but rather a synthesis of South Louisiana styles that is uniquely its own. On its third full-length album and easily its best yet, the sextet states that point well with 11 originals that embrace a variety of styles.

Blake Miller wrote the lion’s share with five tunes, with most notably the infectious title track that has all the trappings of being a regional hit.

Two fall in the swamp-pop realm, the soft and sensitive “Les blues à Blake” and “La bague diamante,” one of the prettiest poppers ever written. Just when you think the latter has ended, it unexpectedly launches a dreamy outro that flashes you back to that special moment once again.

Still, Miller isn’t without his rollicking humor. On the high

When submitting CDs for consideration, please send two copies to OffBeat Reviews, 421 Frenchmen Street, Suite 200, New Orleans, LA 70116

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octane “Southside Stomp,” he advises never dance with the pretty blonde, which changes to brunette later.

Guitarist/fiddler Daniel Coolik plays a bigger role this time with four originals including the boppy, zydeco-flavored “Please Please, Like We Did Last Summer” and the gale force, horn-powered “Who Who,Yea You.” For “Bonsoir, petite monde,” Coolik adapted lyrics from a Lomax archives song to craft a new melody that’s simultaneously graceful and subtly haunting.

What else makes things exciting

is how action-packed the Revelers play. Parts dart in and out, leaving lots of micro-detail to absorb.

Even Justus’ country weeper “You’re Not to Blame” finds Miller shading in a Tex-Mex accordion flavor. Killer stuff, to say the least.

—Dan Willging

Dopolarians Garden Party (Mahakala)

Kidd Jordan is still a force of nature at age 84 even as he is limited physically by health problems. His tenor saxophone playing remains a standard against

A New Orleans Party Delfeayo Marsalis & Uptown Jazz Orchestra Jazz Party (Troubadour Jass Records)

Vocalist Tonya Boyd-Cannon kicks off the title cut of Jazz Party with a spirit that embraces the album’s name. It’s a swinging number and one of seven originals by Delfeayo Marsalis, the band’s leader and trombonist who steps up for a fine solo before Boyd-Cannon jumps in again for some scatting.

The festivities really heat up when the Orchestra revives a classic Dirty Dozen [Brass Band] song, “Blackbird Special.” Baritonist Roger Lewis, an original Dozen member and an always inventively progressive musician, plays the familiar opening that initially drives the street beat. Keeping the second-line flavor of the tune, which deserves this fine resurrection, a whistle blows to encourage the forward motion. The ensemble takes it to the streets again on the Soul Rebels’ timeless classic, “Let Your Mind Be Free.” It’s easy to tell these guys know this tune well as they really hit hard with their ensemble work. Importantly, because of the significance of the wise messages in the lyrics, the band does sing. The solos by saxophonist Roderick Paulin, trombonist T.J. Norris and trumpeter Scott Frock are blazin’ and pushed by the incredible drumming of Joe Dyson.

The orchestra gets funky on another Marsalis original, “Dr. Hargroove,” a danceable number with Raymond Weber taking over on drums. Saxophonist Khari Allen Lee and trumpeter Andrew Baham display their modern jazz chops on this groove of a tune.

Marsalis takes advantage of the diversity of the musical backgrounds of these New Orleans musicians and generously spreads solos around throughout the band.

Jazz Party lives up to its name, though it’s not a celebration happening just anywhere. It’s a New Orleans party.

—Geraldine Wyckoff

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which excellence is measured.

One of the most accomplished experimental jazz theorists, he continues to blaze trails in New Orleans improvisational music with recent appearances at SideBar, joining younger local improvisers like Aurora Nealand and Helen Gillet. Garden Party is a great showcase for Jordan’s soulful playing, which can touch on Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane and Archie Shepp but is always unmistakably Kidd. Coleman’s compositional spirit comes through on the magnificent “Guilty Happy,” an epic that works off a harmelodic theme and builds to a ripping tenor solo from Jordan, then into a ballad section through an ingenious extended breakdown engineered by pianist Christopher Parker, drummer Alvin Fielder (the ostensible leader of this jazz supergroup) and bassist William Parker. During the ballad section

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Kelley Hurt adds wordless vocals and composer Chad Fowler on alto saxophone teams back up with Jordan for a final run at the exhilarating theme.

The group made this recording at Marigny Studios. It features several great partnerships/friendships, the kind of connections that often result in powerfully emotional music. Jordan has a longstanding musical dialogue with Fielder, who sadly passed away after making this, his final recording. Fielder has an uncanny sense of time here, but he doesn’t just “keep” beats, he distributes them in bursts that add drama and commentary to the flow, a la Max Roach. Parker, the great improvisational bassist who orchestrates New York’s Vision Festival, has often tapped Jordan for inclusion in that monumental tribute to improvisation and the idea of the musician/philosopher.

He matches Fielder’s compartmen-

talized approach to the groove, never just walking the beat but coaxing, toying and boiling it by turns.

Hurt, Christopher Parker and Fowler played together in Hurt’s hometown of Memphis,Tennessee, and they bring their own vibe to the set in a hopeful combination of younger and elder souls.The trio also accounts for all of the wonderful compositions on the session except the collective improvisation “C Melody,” which is

credited to all the group members.

The three writers move in a range of directions, from Fowler’s regal ballad “Dopolaria” to Hurt’s magical “Garden Party” and Chris Parker’s freebop finale, “Impromptu,” which he composed during the session, hence the name. Improvised jazz is one area of music that is flourishing right now, creatively if not commercially, and New Orleans is one of the places where it lives—because art is best worth pursuing for its own sake.

—John Swenson

Jeff Chaz No Paint

(JCP Records)

The seventh track on this album is called “Blues Buffet,” which sounds like either the kind of cruise you might hear Jeff Chaz on or the multitude of blues styles on display within these 10 tracks. It’s actually a neat little lyrical device, however,

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with which this singer-guitarist lays out everything wrong with his current romance: “Are you warmin’ up a little/ I don’t spend enough time with you” seasoned with a little “You don’t take me

out as much as you used to?”

No Paint turns out to be descriptive of not only Chaz’ guitar but also his guitar style, his unvarnished vocal approach, and his stripped-down lyrics, which have the casual simplicity of a stranger bending your ear and his elbow at your favorite dive bar. We learn that “Life is Like Coffee” (“...it never tastes as good as it smells”) and that his woman only gives him “Little Sips” of her love (“…when you gonna mix me a drink?”)

The man knows his way around a metaphor, which is why he can stick with the standard Texas shuffles and slow Chicago torch

Voices of the Past Shane Lief and John McCusker Jockomo: The Native Roots of Mardi Gras Indians

(University Press of Mississippi)

BOOKMARK

Whether you look forward to Super Sunday all year or you have no idea who the Mardi Gras Indians are, Jockomo: The Native Roots of Mardi Gras Indians will be a valuable resource for anyone seeking to further understand one of New Orleans’ most vibrant and complex cultural practices. Through thorough research and vibrant photography, authors Shane Lief and John McCusker delve into the complex blend of cultural influences that created Mardi Gras Indians, focusing specifically on their Native American roots.

When it comes to early colonial New Orleans history, words are almost all we have to examine. So naturally, language takes center stage in this book.The authors explore the origins and meanings of words like “jockomo,” “bamboula,” and “Balbancha,” going back to their native geneses.They also trace the cultural exchanges over three centuries that have created the modern identity of the Mardi Gras Indians—fleshing out some accounts, clarifying and dispelling others.They’ve bolstered their narrative with John McCusker’s breathtaking photographs from his two decades with the Times-Picayune as well as with archival images, hearty notes, and two appendices—one with biographies of notable figures and the other on Mardi Gras Indian music.

Ultimately the book urges us to learn from the Mardi Gras Indians to listen to the voices of the past, because in this way we might better understand who we were, who we are, and who we might become.

—Stacey Leigh Bridewell

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blues and still keep things fresh.

There are a couple of bookending curveballs, namely the furious closing raveup “Deet Deet Deet” and an opening cover of Tyrone Davis’ “Turn Back the Hands of Time” that replaces seemingly every part of the original’s lush arrangement with that raw guitar: the famous riff, the strings, even the brass section. Or maybe it’s just the force of his dedication creating that effect; reducing the blues to its basic components is just Jeff ’s thing. Excuse me, thang.

—Robert Fontenot

Jackson Stokes Jackson Stokes (Create Records)

Everything about this album is retro: The sound, the packaging (which purposely evokes a

mid-’60s Columbia-label design), the length (nine songs, 39 minutes)—and from the sound of things, the soul of the singer.

From Saint Louis, Missouri, Jackson Stokes is the first artist signed to Devon Allman’s Create label, and his album even opens with a lyrical Allman Brothers reference: “I’m going to Georgia, I’m gonna eat a peach for peace.” As an

Waylon’s Blues Waylon Thibodeaux Here We Go Again (Rabadash Records)

Fiddler Waylon Thibodeaux calls his third Rabadash Records release his “blues CD,” something that label honcho and session pianist John Autin jokingly refers to as “blues with a Cajun accent.” It’s not the edgy smack-down that Thibodeaux’s pal and studio band harp howler Johnny Sansone would do, but that’s not meant to be an unfair comparison either. Nonetheless, there’s enough bluesy material throughout these ten tracks. Of Thibodeaux’s five originals, “Don’t You Make Me Put My Fiddle Down” is classic, slow-grinding blues with a good portion being the fiddler’s experimental pedal effects that mimic chirping seagulls and various cosmic forces of nature. “Our Life’s Another Old Blues Song” mixes swamp pop’s bluesy side with a romping backbeat and Sansone’s buzzsaw-cutting harmonica playing. For “I’m Stuck With The Blues Again,” Thibodeaux invented a catchy bass riff and then asked bass legend Benny Turner to guest on this insatiable groovebound track.

Of the covers, any song from the late, great David Egan is always a good bet, and Thibodeaux does “Fail Fail Fail” serious justice. The rendition of J.J. Cale’s rollicking “River Boat Song” fits the proceedings perfectly while the throttling version of “Way Down South” dusts the Edgar Winter original in nothing flat. It can be argued whether the latter is really blues from a purist standpoint but rather than split hairs, the main takeaway is Thibodeaux’s swamp country boogie is always a ton of fun.

—Dan Willging

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O F F B E AT. C O M

artist Stokes finds the sweet spot between vintage soul and Southern rock, writing songs that would have gone down a storm in the ’70s and sound refreshing now.

As producer, Allman goes for throwback sounds like a Rhodes piano on the opening track, acoustic leads here and there, and a few bits of Allman-esque slide guitar. This gives Stokes a comfortable space to emote in; his vocals are gruff and soulful without being forced. Writing all but one song, Stokes comes up with a few good hooks and fresh spins on romantic topics; his youth only shows on the closing ballad, “Take Me Home,” which pulls a few overused rhymes (sleep/deep, home/roam). And he does a good but unnecessary cover of Talking Heads’ “Life During Wartime” (which doesn’t update anything, including the references to the long-defunct Mudd Club and CBGB). The two best tracks are the ones that pull some surprises: “Time is Now” shakes up the retro-soul formula by throwing in some Cars-style synthesizer; its new-wave strut accents the optimism of the lyrics. The edgiest of his relationship songs, “You and Your Partner” begins as a Bill Withers-style confessional and releases tension with a big guitar solo. It suggests that the trickier his life gets, the more interesting his songs are going to be.

songs about meeting his wife “My Queen,” getting a helping hand in zydeco “Friends” and inheriting the musical mantle from his father in “Born to Do This.” His accordion playing is spot-on, and he’s backed by a tight rhythm section consisting of his wife Diane (bass) and Garrot Jack (drums).Though this all makes for engaging zydeco dance music, things really catch fire with the werewolf-ish “Rougarou” and “Salt and A Lime” where Bayou jokingly confesses he’s past his partying prime. Finally, he straps on the three-row to close out with the steamy “Beau Bayou on the Rise.”

Since he’s a big man with a deep, bassy voice, his vocals might take a little getting used to. But the fact that he sings like the everyday working man makes him all the more appealing in his own right.

—Dan Willging

—Brett Milano

Beau Bayou & The Sabine Connection True to My Roots (Independent)

It’s not often that a zydeco band is fronted by a high school football coach, but such is the case with Beau Bayou, whose every-day Clark Kent name is Brandon Arabi. He’s a fourth-generation accordionist and a second-generation music professional that has opened for Keith Frank’s Creole Renaissance Festival in the past. His debut disc is mainly autobiographical with

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Max & the Martians “Please Hold On” / “Love on Vacation” (Mashed Potato Records)

Max Bien-Kahn and his evermutating band of backup Martians have been swimming around in the shallow end of indie alt. country whatevercana for the past F E B R U A RY 2 0 2 0

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few years, relying on lots of echo and reverb, an offbeat sensibility, and a generally upbeat mood stemming from what seems to be a real genuine open-heartedness.

This latest single is a real step forward, though, at least for his muse: “Please Hold On” is pure aching jangle-pop, Big Star filtered through that peculiar post-psych melancholia of the very late ‘60s.

It’s gloriously, beautifully sad in a way not usually found outside Brian Wilson’s sandbox or Gram Parsons’ desert hell. The flip, “Love on Vacation,” is more like what we’re used to from Max, but even here there’s a deceptive air about his jauntiness, the kind of studied sunshine that hid deeper pain on Velvet Underground’s Loaded album. Someone or something broke this guy’s heart in the past few years. I’d lay money on it.

—Robert Fontenot

with charisma. On “Unchained Melody,” he starts out in a lower octave and amazingly finishes it an octave higher. On up-tempo tunes “Knock on Wood” and “Harlem Shuffle,” Shinn works it so hard, he’s over-the-top dazzling. Bits & Pieces is there every step along the way, supplying grandiose build-ups (“All These Things”) and practically doing somersaults on the rollicking “Mr. Pitiful.” Everything goes off without a hitch and after some songs, Shinn exclaims ‘Hey, hey, hey,’ a signature expression when things are going well.

Yet, there’s more to the backstory. This was never intended to be a commercial recording, but someone (precisely who is unclear at this point) recorded the concert on a cassette tape. Later, it was transferred to CDR and eventually got into the hands of Shinn’s widow Sandra, who had it remastered. As Bits & Pieces’ Siggy Martin will admit, the sound quality isn’t perfect but reasonably good given the circumstances.

More importantly, it’s a reminder of how dynamic and unstoppable Shinn was in his prime.

—Dan Willging

GG Shinn Live in Concert (Independent)

In 1992, the 10-piece, hornpowered, blue-eyed soul aggregation Bits & Pieces invited GG Shinn to be its marquee vocalist at the Lutcher Bonfire Festival, an annual community Yuletide celebration. Neither side had ever met, but Bits & Pieces knew Shinn’s repertoire inside and out and rightfully predicted the legendary vocalist (1939-2018) would pulverize it.

That Shinn did, singing with gale-force strength and nailing cloud-scrapping high notes in nothing flat, all the while brimming

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Think Less, Hear More The Contenders I (Independent)

Here’s a high-art concept for you: live scoring a film in real time with a modern jazz outfit, then removing said film and letting the soundtrack create its own mind movie. It’s not always easy to tell which of these 30 or so movie(s) were screened at the

Ace Hotel’s Three Keys room when these tracks were laid down over the space of a month—but of course none of that matters, because although Think Less, Hear More has played along with silent versions of Donnie Darko, Fight Club, Ghostbusters and several other well-known cinematic milestones, this album is meant to be judged as a standalone piece of music.

If that’s possible. Would your average avant-jazz listener visualize these performances in their own right if they didn’t know the aesthetic behind them? Hard to say, but it’s a fascinating exercise.

The three numbered pieces that frame the album, all named “Come Out to Play,” conjure up a sort of postmodern subway ride, sleek and cold and efficient, one where the anger of the urban landscape (played by Smokey Brown’s increasingly discordant guitar) eventually rises up and overtakes the train, forcing it to a slow stop.

Cyrus Nabipoor’s trumpet carries on an annoyingly brash yet charismatic one-sided conversation that takes place during a gang strut in “There Are Wolves Within,” which slowly opens up to reveal a whole West Side Story-size panorama.

“Knock Out Ned” displays the fancy footwork of a boxing training montage, thanks largely to the deft stickwork of drummer and project mastermind Kyle Poehling. Can an astute listener figure out a scene like “Human Batteries” based on the title alone? Probably. Should one Google the song titles? Only if you don’t mind spoilers—not for the movies screened at the Ace, but for the one this augmented quintet is able to create between your ears.

then watch the seeds germinate.

Such is the case with these 10 songs written or co-written by Baton Rouge songwriter/pianist Lucas Spinosa, who matched his carefully crafted creations with such luminaries as Cajun rocker Wayne Toups, bluesman Kenny Neal and swamp poppers Don Rich, Ryan Foret and Jason Parfait.

Obviously, it’s always a gamble whether an artist will truly feel the song but overall it works reasonably well with some interpretations being exceptional.

“Southern Side of Life,” sung

by Neal, couldn’t fit any better, especially with the reference to his father Raful, a noted architect of Baton Rouge’s blues and R&B sound. Parker James nails the tenderness of “While You’re Still Mine” while Rich recalls vintage swamp pop replete with dancing horns on “Want It To Be.” And speaking of horns, they don’t get any snazzier than the big band dazzle of “Beale Street Blues” sung by saxman Parfait, who turns out to be a knockout vocalist. Gregg Martinez emotes so eloquently on “The Two of Us,” it could easily be a wedding day staple with its groomtoasting imagery.

Regardless if you’ve had that —Robert Fontenot second piece of wedding cake or not, rockers “Living in a Fantasy” Various Artists and “Red Tail Lights on a Blues Friends & Legends of Louisiana Highway,” by Foret and Chris (L & M Star Productions) LeBlanc (respectively), will likely Not a bad strategy to get your get your blood circulating again. songs heard; enlist a few household Expect a healthy shelf live for name vocalists; surround them this one. with a crack studio band and —Dan Willging O F F B E AT. C O M

express These listings are abbreviated. For complete daily listings, go to offbeat.com.

These listings were verified at the time of publication, but are of course subject to change. To get your event listed, go to offbeat.com/add-newlistings or send an email to listings@offbeat.com.

AF African AM Americana BL Blues BU Bluegrass BO Bounce BB Brass Band BQ Burlesque KJ Cajun CL Classical CR Classic Rock CO Comedy CW Country CB Cover Band DN Dance DX Dixieland DB Dubstep EL Electro FO Folk

FK Funk GS Gospel GY Gypsy HH Hip-Hop HS House IN Indian Classical ID Indie Rock IL Industrial IR Irish JB Jam Band MJ Jazz Contemporary TJ Jazz Traditional JV Jazz Variety KR Karaoke KZ Klezmer LT Latin MG Mardi Gras Indian ME Metal

THURSDAY JANUARY 30 30/90:Tony Lee Thomas (FO) 5p, Soul Project (F) 9p, DJ Trill Skill (VR) 10p Buffa’s:Andre Bohren (CL) 5p,Tom McDermott and Aurora Nealand (JV) 8p Café Negril: Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 6p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Swamp Blossoms (KJ) 6p,Thee Agitator, Bug Lord (RK) 9p d.b.a.: Slugger (VR) 10p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Gumbeaux (CO) 8:30p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7p Kerry Irish Pub:Van Hudson (FO) 8:30p New Orleans Jazz Market: OffBeat’s Best of the Beat Awards feat. Charlie Wooton Project feat.Arsene DeLay, Preservation Hall Tribute to Charlie Gabriel, Soul Rebels, J. and the Causeways (VR) 5:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Duke Heitger with Crescent City Joymakers (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Scott Kirby (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Sal Geloso Band (JV) 2p, Miss Sophie Lee (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Starlight: Clementine Quintet (JV) 5p, Meschiya Lake (SS) 8p, Old Riley’s Juke Joint (BL) 10p Three Muses:Tom McDermott (PI) 5p,Arsene DeLay (JV) 8p Tipitina’s: In Business (FK) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Hot 8 Brass Band (FK) 8p Vaughan’s Lounge: Corey Henry and the Treme Funktet (FK) 10:30p FRIDAY JANUARY 31 30/90: Rebel Roadside (BL) 2p, Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 5p, Smoke N Bones (FK) 8p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 10p, the Grid (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Kettle Black (FK) 8:30p; (Lobby): DJ G (VR) 10:30p Buffa’s: Michael Doussan (VR) 6p, Lynn Drury (VR) 9p Café Negril: Shawn Williams (VR) 2p, Dana

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RB Modern R&B PO Pop PK Punk RE Reggae RC Rockabilly RK Rock RR Roots Rock SS Singer/Songwriter SK Ska PI Solo Piano SO Soul SW Spoken Word SP Swamp Pop SI Swing VR Variety ZY Zydeco

Abbott Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Davis Rogan (VR) 6p, Resonant Rouges, Backyard Balkan Brass, Salvatore Geloso (ID) 9p Civic Theatre:Trey Anastasio (VR) 9p d.b.a.: Russell Welch’s Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Aurora Nealand and the Royal Roses (JV) 7p, Dash Rip Rock (RK) 10p House of Blues (the Parish): Inferno Burlesque (BQ) 8p Jazz Playhouse: Shannon Powell Jazz Quartet (JV) 7:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Ladies Night with DJ Teddy (VR) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p Kerry Irish Pub:Tim Robertson (FO) 5p,Will Dickerson and friends (FO) 9p New Orleans Creole Cookery: the Cookery Three (JV) 6p New Orleans Jazz Museum (Old U.S. Mint): the Iguanas (RR) 7p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Kevin Louis and Craig Klein with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Preservation Hall: Preservation All-Stars with Rickie Monie (TJ) 1p, Preservation Legacy Band feat.Wendell Brunious (TJ) 5p, Preservation All-Stars feat. Charlie Gabriel (TJ) 8p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p,Washboard Chaz Blues Trio (JV) 6p, Dr. Brice Miller’s BukuNOLA (JV) 10p Three Muses: Doro Wat Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Perpetual Groove, Funk You (FK) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Bad Sandies (RC) 9p SATURDAY FEBRUARY 1 30/90: Cactus Thief (GS) 11a, Retrofit (BL) 2p, Ted Hefko and the Thousandaires (SS) 5p, Big Mike and the R&B Kings (BL) 8p, DJ Torch (VR) 10p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Three Keys):AfroXotica with Andrea Peoples Three Keys (AF) 9p

Find complete listings at offbeat.com—when you’re out, use offbeat.com/mobile for full listings on any cell phone.

Buffa’s: Saturday Jazz Brunch (JV) 11a, Dayna Kurtz (VR) 6p, Darcy Malone (VR) 9p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 2p, Jamey St. Pierre Band (VR) 6p, James Martin (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Shark Attack (RC) 6p,Tashe and the Psychedlic Roses, the Painted Hands, the Chevrettes (ID) 9p Civic Theatre:Trey Anastasio Band (FK) 9p d.b.a.:Tuba Skinny (JV) 7p, Little Freddie King (BL) 11p Fillmore: Drag Diva Brunch (VR) 10:30a Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Hallelujah Hatrack Grateful Dead Tribute (FK) 11p Jazz Playhouse: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (SO) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Seafood Night 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Keva Holiday (VR) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: Hugh Morrison (FO) 5p, Beth Patterson (FO) 9p Palm Court Jazz Cafe:Will Smith and Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Deacon John and the Ivories (RB) 9p Smoothie King Center:Tool, Guest Author, Punisher (RK) 8p Snug Harbor: Herlin Riley Quartet (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Antoine Diel and Arsene DeLay (JV) 2p, Panorama Jazz Band (JV) 6p, the Catahoulas (JV) 10p Starlight: Cumberland County (FO) 5p,Anais St. John (JV) 8p, Helen Rose and Ali McGuirk (SS) 11p Three Muses: Eric Merchant (JV) 5p, Davis Rogan (VR) 6p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Lagniappe with DJ RQ Away, Mark Caesar,Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph (VR) 11p SUNDAY FEBRUARY 2 30/90: Margie Perez (SO) 11a,Truman Holland and the Back Porch Review (SS) 2p, Carolyn Broussard (FO) 5p,T’Canaille (KJ) 9p Buffa’s: Some Like It Hot! (TJ) 10:30a, Pfister Sisters with Debbie Davis (JV) 4p, Steve Pistorius Jazz Quartet (JV) 7p Café Negril: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (SO) 2p, Ecirb Muller’s Twisted Dixie (JV) 6p, Vegas Cola Band (JV) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Football Party (VR) 6p, Gina Leslie Sundays (RR) 9p d.b.a.: Palmetto Bugs Stompers (SI) 6p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Hot 8 Brass Band (BB) 10p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint:Ambush Reggae Band (RE) 4p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 4:20p,TBC Brass Band (BB) 8p Maison: NOLA Jitterbugs, NOLA Rug Cutters (JV) 10a,Tuba Skinny, Opulence Hour Burlesque, Higher Heights (VR) 7p Snug Harbor: Kris Tokarski and Evan Christopher (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Aurora Neland and the Reed Minders (JV) 2p, Robin Barnes and the FiyaBirds (JV) 7p, Pat Casey and the New Sound (JV) 10p

Three Muses: Raphael et Pascale (JV) 5p, the Clementines (JV) 8p MONDAY FEBRUARY 3 30/90: Dapper Dandies (JV) 5p, New Orleans Super Jam presented by Gene Harding (VR) 9p Buffa’s:Arsene DeLay and Charlie Wooton (VR) 5p,Antoine Diel (VR) 8p Café Negril: Noggin (VR) 6p, Soul Project NOLA (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Daniel Beaudoin (BL) 6p, Comic Strip (CO) 9p d.b.a.: John Boutte (JV) 7p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: James Williams (VR) 6p, Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7:30p, Irvin Mayfield (JV) 8:30p Kerry Irish Pub:Will Dickerson (FO) 8:30p One Eyed Jacks: Cosmicana presents Teddy and the Rough Riders, Blind Texas Marlin (VR) 8p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: NOLA Swing Dance Connection with DJ Twiggs (SI) 7p Snug Harbor: Charmaine Neville Band (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Royal Street Winding Boys (JV) 2p, Dominick Grillo and the Frenchmen St.All-Stars (JV) 6p, Hot Club of New Orleans (JV) 10p Starlight:Assunto Dukes (JV) 5p, Orphaned In Storyville (JV) 8p, Jazz Vipers (JV) 10p Three Muses: Monty Banks (VR) 5p, Meschiya Lake (JV) 8p TUESDAY FEBRUARY 4 30/90: Set Up Kings (RB) 5p, Kennedy and the M.O.T.H. (RK) 9p Ace Hotel (Lobby):Tech Tuesdays: Hack Night and NoFUN Meetup (VR) 7p Buffa’s: Evan Christopher and Tom McDermott (JV) 7p Café Negril: Marla Dixon Band (VR) 7p, Dimondick Gorilla and the Swingin’ Vines (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Sam Dickey and Michelle Welchons (LT) 6p, Mighty Brother and friends (ID) 9p d.b.a.: Dinosaurchestra (JV) 7p,Treme Brass Band (BB) 10p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Beast (CO) 8:30p Jazz Playhouse: James Rivers Movement (JV) 8p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Lani B. Supreme (JV) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Z2 (PI) 5p; 5p Stuart Coles’ Straight Ahead Jam Session (VR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Beth Patterson (FO) 8:30p Snug Harbor: Stanton Moore Trio (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 6p, Smoking Time Jazz Club (JV) 10p Three Muses: Sam Cammarata (JV) 5p, Salvatore Geloso (JV) 7p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Jimmy’s Tuesday Treme Threauxdown feat. Jim Stephens, Jerry JBLAKK Henderson, Eddie Christmas, Ian Smith, Adina, and Daniel Meinecke (VR) 9p WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 5 30/90: Bywater Skanks (FK) 5p, Colin Davis and O F F B E AT. C O M

express Night People (SO) 9p Buffa’s: Open Mic Night with Nattie Sanchez (SS) 7p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 6p, the Catahoulas (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Mike Pearce and Thomas Walker (VR) 6p, Carnaval Lounge Jazz Jam (JV) 9p d.b.a.:Tin Men (RK) 7p,Walter “Wolfman” Washington and the Roadmasters (BL) 10p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Freedom in the Groove (FK) 6p Howlin’ Wolf (the Porch): Judah Friedlander (CO) 8p Jazz Playhouse: Big Sam’s Crescent City Connection (FK) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Kermit Ruffins (TJ) 7p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge:Angie’s Karaoke (KR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Chip Wilson (FO) 8:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Lars Edegran and Greg Stafford with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Santos: Swamp Moves with the Russell Welch Trio (SI) 10:30p SideBar NOLA: Jamison Williams (VR) 7p, Mike Dillon, James Singleton, Justin Peake (MJ) 9p Snug Harbor: Uptown Jazz Orchestra (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Chris Christy (JV) 2p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 6p,Antoine Diel and the New Orleans Power Misfits (JV) 10p Starlight: Davis Rogan (VR) 5p,Tuba Skinny (JV) 8p, Hot Jazz Jam (JV) 10p Three Muses: Leslie Martin (VR) 5p, Hot Club of New Orleans (JV) 8p THURSDAY FEBRUARY 6 30/90: Josh Benitez Band (RB) 5p, Hotline (PO) 9p, DJ Fresh (VR) 10p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Harlequeen presents Honor Thy Mother (VR) 9p Buffa’s: Rebecca Leigh and Harry Mayronne (JV) 5p,Tom McDermott and Aurora Nealand (JV) 8p Café Negril: Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 6p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Dirty Rain Revelers (FO) 6p, Rat Brain Robot (RK) 9p d.b.a.: Slugger (VR) 10p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Gumbeaux (CO) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Patrick Cooper (FO) 8:30p New Orleans Jazz Market: Save Our Sponge Concert feat. Sweet Crude (VR) 8p Ogden Museum of Southern Art: Ogden After Hours feat. New Orleans Swinging Gypsies (SI) 6p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Duke Heitger and Tim Laughlin with Crescent City Joymakers (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Ricky Sebastian Quintet (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Sal Geloso Band (JV) 2p, Miss Sophie Lee (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Three Muses:Tom McDermott (PI) 5p,Arsene DeLay (VR) 8p Tipitina’s: Homegrown Night feat. Squirrel Queen, the Canarys, Zita (VR) 8:30p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Hot 8 Brass Band OF F B E AT.C OM

(FK) 8p Vaughan’s: Corey Henry and the Treme Funktet (FK) 10:30p FRIDAY FEBRUARY 7 30/90: Jonathan Bauer Project (MJ) 2p, Organami (JV) 5p, Smoke N Bones (FK) 8p Ace Hotel (Lobby): Cue’d Up feat. G-Cue, B2B (VR) 9p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 10p, Gene’s Music Machine (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Dilla Day NOLA VII (RB) 8:30p Buffa’s: Davis Rogan (JV) 6p, Michael Burkart’s Les Syncopators De Bayou Jazz Trio (JV) 9p Café Negril: Shawn Williams (VR) 2p, Dana Abbott Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Margie Perez (LT) 6p, the Pinx, Event Horizon, Champagne Girl (RK) 9p d.b.a.: Russell Welch’s Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Swinging Gypsies (JV) 7p, Keith Frank and the Soileau Zydeco Band (ZY) 11p Dos Jefes: Panorama Jazz Band (JV) 10p Fillmore: Hayley Kiyoko (VR) 7p French Market: Johnette Downing (SS) 11a House of Blues (Foundation Room): Justin Donoval and Ryan Scott Long (SO) 7p,Tony Skratchere (HH) 10p House of Blues (the Parish): Elle Varner (RB) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Larry June (HH) 8p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Ladies Night with DJ Teddy (VR) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p Kerry Irish Pub:Vali Talbot (FO) 5p, Beth Patterson (FO) 9p Mahalia Jackson Theater: New Orleans Opera Association presents Tchaikovsky’s Joan of Arc (CL) 7:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Kevin Louis and Topsy Chapman with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Smoothie King Center: Celine Dion (PO) 7:30p Snug Harbor: Davell Crawford and Company (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, New Orleans Cottonmouth Kings (JV) 6p, Doro Wat Jazz Band (JV) 10p Three Muses: Royal Roses (JV) 5:30p, Esther Rose (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Flow Tribe, John the Martyr (VR) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Friends Who Play (JV) 9p Vaughan’s: Daiquiri Queens, Happy Talk Band, Julie Odell,Tengallontinfoilhat (VR) 6:30p Zony Mash Beer Project: John Mooney (VR) 8:30p SATURDAY FEBRUARY 8 30/90: Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 11a, Doc Lovett’s Louisiana Remedy (BL) 2p, Jon Roniger and the Good For Nothin’ Band (VR) 5p, Mofongo (LT) 8p, DJ Torch (VR) 10p, Hotline (PO) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby): DJ Soul Sister (FK) 11:30p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Big Easy Brawlers (BB) 9p Buffa’s: Saturday Jazz Brunch (JV) 11a, Freddie Blue and the Friendship Circle (VR) 6p, Marina Orchestra (VR) 9p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 2p, Jamey St. Pierre Band (VR) 6p, the Catahoulas (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Krewe De Vieux Happy Hour (VR) 6p, Krewe De Bauche (KZ) 9p F E B R U A RY 2 0 2 0

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express d.b.a.:Tuba Skinny (JV) 7p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Jake Landry and the Right Lane Bandits (FO) 8p House of Blues: Robert Earl Keen (CW) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): NOLA Loves Dilla with Frank Nitt, the GRiD, Bag Season Reasons (HH) 9p Howlin’ Wolf: Love Gun KISS Tribute (CR) 8p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Seafood Night 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Keva Holiday (VR) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: Patrick Cooper (FO) 5p, Hurricane Refugees (FO) 9p Smoothie King Center:Tyler Perry’s Medea Farewell Play Tour (CO) 4p & 8p Snug Harbor: Johnny Sansone’s Blues Party (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 2p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 6p, James Martin Band (JV) 10p Three Muses: Eric Merchant (JV) 5p, Debbie Davis (VR) 6p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Human Fund NOLA Presents: Wilkapalooza XXIII with Music by Guthrie Trapp and friends feat. Charles “Wigg” Walker, Jimmy Wallace, Steve Mackey and Pete Abbott (VR) 7p SUNDAY FEBRUARY 9 30/90:Allie Porter (FK) 11a, Set Up Kings (RB) 2p,Ted Hefko and the Thousandaires (FK) 5p, T’Canaille (BL) 9p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): NOLA Chorus Girls Fundraiser with Bon Bon Vivant (SI) 12p Buffa’s: Some Like It Hot! (TJ) 10:30a, Larry Scala feat. Meryl Zimmerman (JV) 4p, Steve Pistorius Jazz Quartet (JV) 7p Café Negril: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (SO) 2p, CobraSoul (JV) 6p,Vegas Cola Band (JV) 10p Carnaval Lounge: 30x90 Blueswomen (BL) 6p, Gina Leslie Sundays (RR) 9p d.b.a.: Palmetto Bugs Stompers (SI) 6p, Future Cowboys (VR) 10p Fillmore: Drag Diva Brunch (VR) 10:30a Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Hot 8 Brass Band (BB) 10p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint:Ambush Reggae Band (RE) 4p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 4:20p,TBC Brass Band (BB) 8p Kerry Irish Pub:Will Dickerson (FO) 8p Mahalia Jackson Theater: New Orleans Opera Association presents Tchaikovsky’s Joan of Arc (CL) 2:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Mark Braud and Sunday Night Swingsters (TJ) 7p Smoothie King Center:Tyler Perry’s Medea Farewell Play Tour (CO) 3p & 7p Snug Harbor:Anna Quinn (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: the Garden of Joy (JV) 2p, Robin Barnes and the FiyaBirds (JV) 7p, Pat Casey and the New Sound (JV) 10p Three Muses: Raphael et Pascale (JV) 5p, the Clementines (JV) 8p MONDAY FEBRUARY 10 30/90: Margie Perez (SO) 5p, New Orleans Super Jam presented by Gene Harding (VR) 9p Ace Hotel (Three Keys):Too Trill Trivia with Eric and Terri (VR) 6p Buffa’s:Arsene DeLay and Charlie Wooton (VR) 5p,Antoine Diel (VR) 8p Café Negril: Noggin (VR) 6p, Soul Project NOLA

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(VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: the Whyos (IR) 6p, Comic Strip (CO) 9p d.b.a.: John Boutte (JV) 7p House of Blues: Falling in Reverse (RK) 6p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Reed Turchi (SS) 9p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: James Williams (VR) 6p, Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7:30p, Irvin Mayfield (JV) 8:30p Kerry Irish Pub:Van Hudson (FO) 8p Maison: Chicken and Waffles,Aurora Nealand and the Royal Roses, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 4p Snug Harbor: Charmaine Neville Band (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Royal Street Winding Boys (JV) 2p, Dominick Grillo and the Frenchmen St.All-Stars (JV) 6p, Michael Watson and the Alchemy (JV) 10p Three Muses: Bart Ramsey (VR) 5p,Washboard Rodeo (JV) 8p TUESDAY FEBRUARY 11 30/90: Mem Shannon and the Membership Band (BL) 5p, Ed Wills and Blues4Sale (BL) 9p Ace Hotel (Lobby):Tech Tuesdays: Hack Night (VR) 7p Buffa’s: Evan Christopher and Tom McDermott (JV) 7p Café Negril: Marla Dixon Band (VR) 7p, Dimondick Gorilla and the Swingin’ Vines (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Josh Paxton (PI) 6p, Transiberian Nightmare Drag (VR) 9p d.b.a.: Dinosaurchestra (JV) 7p,Treme Brass Band (BB) 10p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Christien Bold (SO) 6p House of Blues: Blac Youngsta (HH) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Beast (CO) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Lani B. Supreme (JV) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Z2 (PI) 5p; 5p Stuart Coles’ Straight Ahead Jam Session (VR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Hugh Morrison (FO) 8:30p Snug Harbor: Phil DeGruy and James Singleton (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 6p, Smoking Time Jazz Club (JV) 10p Three Muses: Keith Burnstein (SS) 5p WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 12 30/90:Andy J. Forest (BL) 5p, Big Mike and the R&B Kings (RB) 9p Ace Hotel (Three Keys):Think Less Hear More (VR) 8:30p Buffa’s: Open Mic Night with Nattie Sanchez (SS) 7p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 6p, the Catahoulas (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Live Jazz Group (JV) 6p, Basher, Brungo Jowl (PO) 9p d.b.a.:Tin Men (RK) 7p,Walter “Wolfman” Washington and the Roadmasters (BL) 10p Dmac’s: Spider Murphy (BL) 8p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Shawan Rice (SS) 6p House of Blues: Luke James (RB) 7p

Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Michael Angelo Batio (ME) 7:30p Jazz Playhouse: Big Sam’s Crescent City Connection (FK) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Kermit Ruffins (TJ) 7p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge:Angie’s Karaoke (KR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub:Vincent Marini (FO) 8:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Lars Edegran and Joe Goldberg with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Uptown Jazz Orchestra (JV) 8 & 10p Southport Hall: the 69 Eyes,Wednesday 13, the Nocturnal Affair (VR) 6:30p Spotted Cat: Chris Christy (JV) 2p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 6p,Antoine Diel and the New Orleans Power Misfits (JV) 10p Three Muses: Leslie Martin (JV) 5p, Hot Club of New Orleans (JV) 8p THURSDAY FEBRUARY 13 30/90: Simple Sound Retreat (PO) 5p, the Dial Up Tones (VR) 7p, Soul Project (FK) 9p, DJ Trill Skill (VR) 10p Buffa’s: Spike and Dianimal (JV) 5p,Tom McDermott and Aurora Nealand (JV) 8p Café Negril: Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 6p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Ivor Simpson Kennedy (BL) 6p, Quinn Sternberg Band, Matt Booth’s Palindromes (MJ) 9p d.b.a.: Jon Cleary (VR) 7p, Little Freddie King (BL) 10p Gasa Gasa:Telefon Tel Aviv (EL) 9p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Gumbeaux (CO) 8:30p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Chip Wilson (FO) 8:30p Music Box Village: Sirens of Salvage Mardi Gras Ball feat. Big Freedia (BO) 7p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Leroy Jones and Katja Toivola with Crescent City Joymakers (TJ) 7p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie (ZY) 8p Snug Harbor: Roderick Harper Quintet (BL) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Sal Geloso Band (JV) 2p, Miss Sophie Lee (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Three Muses:Tom McDermott (PI) 5p, Mia Borders (FK) 8p Tipitina’s: Here Come the Mummies, Joe Hertler and the Rainbow Seekers (VR) 9p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Hot 8 Brass Band (FK) 8p Vaughan’s: Corey Henry and the Treme Funktet (FK) 10:30p FRIDAY FEBRUARY 14 30/90: Samantha Pearl (SO) 2p, Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 5p, Simple Sound Retreat (PO) 8p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 10p, Big Easy Brawlers (BB) 11p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): 1Social presents Valentine’s Day Aaron Abernathy and Kayla Jasmine (RB) 7:30p, 1Social presents the Living Room Experience (JV) 9p Buffa’s: Berthena with Joe Welnick (JV) 6p,Tyler Millet Trio (JV) 9p Café Negril: Shawn Williams (VR) 2p, Dana Abbott Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p

Carnaval Lounge: Lynn Drury (SS) 6p, Shake the Baby Til the Love Comes Out, Catbamboo, Bug Lord, Roach Milk (ID) 9p d.b.a.: Russell Welch’s Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 7p, 101 Runners (MG) 10p Fillmore: Dermot Kennedy (VR) 7p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Jake Landry and the Right Lane Bandits (FO) 7p House of Blues:Wallows (ID) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den):Valentines Day Comedy Show feat. Mark Caesar,Who Dat Red, Barry Charles (CO) 8p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Ladies Night with DJ Teddy (VR) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p Kerry Irish Pub: Patrick Cooper (FO) 5p,Will Dickerson and friends (FO) 9p Mahalia Jackson Theater: Kanaval Ball feat.Arcade Fire, Preservation Hall Jazz Band and others (VR) 8p Maison: Rhythm Stompers, Swinging Gypsies, Shotgun Jazz Band, Gene’s Music Machine, Buena Vista Social Latin Night (VR) 4p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Kevin Louis and Topsy Chapman with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Saturn Bar:Alex McMurray and his Band CDRelease Party (RK) 8p SideBar NOLA: Claire Rousay and Aurora Nealand (JV) 7p, Dayna Kurtz Valentine’s Day Massacre (JV) 9p Snug Harbor: Germaine Bazzle and Larry Sieberth Trio (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p,Washboard Chaz Blues Trio (JV) 6p, Dr. Brice Miller’s BukuNOLA (JV) 10p Three Muses: Matt Johnson (JV) 5:30p, Doro Wat Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: John “Papa” Gros Carnival Kickoff (VR) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: MainLine (BB) 9p SATURDAY FEBRUARY 15 30/90: Jonathan Bauer Project (MJ) 11a,Ted Hefko and the Thousandaires (SS) 2p, Noah Young Band (JV) 5p, Luscious Duchess (SO) 8p, DJ Torch (VR) 10p, Deltaphonic (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): La Noche Caliente with Muevelo and Mambo Orleans (LT) 9p Buffa’s: Saturday Jazz Brunch (JV) 11a, Eric Merchant (JV) 6p,Walter “Wolfman” Washington and Steve DeTroy (BL) 9p Café Negril: Jelly Roll Stompers (VR) 2p, Jamey St. Pierre Band (VR) 6p,Another Day in Paradise (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Flambeaux Freddie and friends (VR) 6p, Ever More Nest (FO) 9p d.b.a.:Tuba Skinny (JV) 7p, Big Sam’s Funky Nation (FK) 11p House of Blues (the Parish): Flor de Toloache (LT) 7p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Seafood Night 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Keva Holiday (VR) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: Crescent and Clover Celtic Band (FO) 5p, the One Tailed Three (FO) 9p Palm Court Jazz Cafe:Will Smith and Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Smoothie King Center:Alan Jackson (CW) 7:30p Snug Harbor: Phillip Manuel Quintet (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Russell Welch’s Band (JV) 2p, Rhythm Stompers (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Sugar Mill: Pygmalion Fest feat.T-Pain, Chromeo, O F F B E AT. C O M

express Flow Tribe (HH) 9p Three Muses: Eric Merchant (JV) 5p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Rob Garza (VR) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Jaimie Lynn Vessels (BL) 9p SUNDAY FEBRUARY 16 30/90: Catherine De Mers (FK) 11a,Truman Holland and the Back Porch Review (SS) 2p, Carolyn Broussard (FO) 5p, Chris Klein and the Boulevards (BL) 9p Buffa’s: Some Like It Hot! (TJ) 10:30a, Molly Reeves and Nahum Zdybel (JV) 4p, Steve Pistorius Jazz Quartet (JV) 7p Café Negril: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (SO) 2p, CobraSoul (JV) 6p,Vegas Cola Band (JV) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Pfister Sisters (JV) 6p, Gina Leslie Sundays (RR) 9p d.b.a.:Aurora Nealand Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Palmetto Bugs Stompers (SI) 6p Fillmore: Drag Diva Brunch (VR) 10:30a House of Blues (the Parish): Xavier Omar (RB) 7p House of Blues:YFN Lucci (HH) 9p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Hot 8 Brass Band (BB) 10p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint:Ambush Reggae Band (RE) 4p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 4:20p,TBC Brass Band (BB) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: Paul Tobin (FO) 5:30p, Patrick Cooper (FO) 9p Smoothie King Center:Amour et Mardi Gras feat.

Keith Sweat, Kem, Monica, Donell Jones, SWV (RB) 7p Snug Harbor: Paul Sanchez and friends (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Giselle Anguizola and the New Orleans Swinging Gypsies (JV) 2p, Robin Barnes and the FiyaBirds (JV) 7p, Pat Casey and the New Sound (JV) 10p Starlight: Zahum Zdybel (JV) 5p, Gabrielle Cavassa and the Starlight Session (JV) 8p Three Muses: Raphael et Pascale (JV) 5p, the Clementines (JV) 8p

M.O.T.H. (RK) 9p Ace Hotel (Lobby):Tech Tuesdays: Hack Night (VR) 7p Buffa’s: Evan Christopher and Tom McDermott (JV) 7p Café Negril: Marla Dixon Band (VR) 7p, Dimondick Gorilla and the Swingin’ Vines (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: St. Roch Syncopators (JV) 6p, Mighty Brother and friends (ID) 9p d.b.a.: Dinosaurchestra (JV) 7p,Treme Brass Band (BB) 10p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Beast (CO) 8:30p Jazz Playhouse: James Rivers Movement (JV) 8p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Lani B. Supreme (JV) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Z2 (PI) 5p; 5p Stuart Coles’ Straight Ahead Jam Session (VR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Hugh Morrison (FO) 8:30p SideBar NOLA: Jason Marsalis’ Solo Dum Jungle (MJ) 7p, Helen Gillet Presents (MJ) 9p Snug Harbor: Stanton Moore Trio (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 6p, Smoking Time Jazz Club (JV) 10p Starlight: Secondhand Street Band (JV) 5p, Scott Stobbe (JV) 8p, India Ramey and the Crybabies (FO) 10p Three Muses: Sam Cammarata (VR) 5p, Kris Tokarski (JV) 8p WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 19 30/90: Bywater Skanks (BL) 5p, Colin Davis and Night People (SO) 9p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): SONO presents Shape of Jazz to Come (JV) 9p Buffa’s: Open Mic Night with Nattie Sanchez (SS) 7p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 6p, the Catahoulas (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: KatieCat and Cain Bossa Nova Love (LT) 6p, Misti Gaither’s Spotlight Project (VR) 9p Carousel Bar (Hotel Monteleone): James Martin Band (JV) 8:30p d.b.a.:Tin Men (RK) 7p,Walter “Wolfman” Washington and the Roadmasters (BL) 10p House of Blues (the Parish): Wishbone Ash (RK) 7p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Kermit Ruffins (TJ) 7p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge:Angie’s Karaoke (KR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub:Will Dickerson (FO) 8:30p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Lars Edegran and Shannon Powell with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Uptown Jazz Orchestra (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Chris Christy (JV) 2p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 6p,Antoine Diel and the New Orleans Power Misfits (JV) 10p Starlight: Davis Rogan (VR) 5p,Tuba Skinny (JV) 8p, Hot Jazz Jam (JV) 10p Three Muses: Leslie Martin (VR) 5p, Schatzy (JV) 8p

MONDAY FEBRUARY 17 30/90: Dapper Dandies (JV) 5p, New Orleans Super Jam presented by Gene Harding (VR) 9p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Movement Mondays with Resistance Radio and Chinua (VR) 5p Buffa’s:Arsene DeLay and Charlie Wooton (VR) 5p,Antoine Diel (VR) 8p Café Negril: Colin Davis and Night People (VR) 6p, Soul Project NOLA (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 6p, Comic Strip (CO) 9p d.b.a.: John Boutte (JV) 7p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: James Williams (VR) 6p, Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7:30p, Irvin Mayfield (JV) 8:30p Kerry Irish Pub:Vincent Marini (FO) 8:30p Snug Harbor: Charmaine Neville Band (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Royal Street Winding Boys (JV) 2p, Dominick Grillo and the Frenchmen St.All-Stars (JV) 6p, Hot Club of New Orleans (JV) 10p Starlight: Unkle Kunkle (FO) 5p, Orphaned In THURSDAY FEBRUARY 20 Storyville (JV) 8p, Jazz Vipers (JV) 10p 30/90: Josh Benitez Band (FK) 5p, Soul Project Three Muses: Monty Banks (JV) 5p (FK) 9p, DJ Fresh (VR) 10p TUESDAY FEBRUARY 18 Ace Hotel (Three Keys): the Finest in Funk with AJ Hall (VR) 7p 30/90: Set Up Kings (RB) 5p, Kennedy and the OF F B E AT.C OM

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express Buffa’s: Larry Scala and Steve DeTroy (JV) 5p, Tom McDermott and Aurora Nealand (JV) 8p Café Negril: Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 6p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge:Aden Paul (RK) 6p, Shawn Williams and Dana Abbott (RK) 9p Fillmore: 311 (VR) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Gumbeaux (CO) 8:30p Jazz Playhouse: Brass-A-Holics (BB) 8:30p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7p Kerry Irish Pub:Vincent Marini (FO) 8:30p Le Bon Temps Roule: Soul Rebels (BB) 11p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Duke Heitger and Tim Laughlin with Crescent City Joymakers (TJ) 7p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Rusty Metoyer and Zydeco Krush (ZY) 8p Snug Harbor: Clarence Johnson III Quartet (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Sal Geloso Band (JV) 2p, Miss Sophie Lee (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Tipitina’s:Water Seed’s Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball feat. Miss Mojo, LeTrainiump (VR) 10p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Hot 8 Brass Band (FK) 8p Vaughan’s: Corey Henry and the Treme Funktet (FK) 10:30p FRIDAY FEBRUARY 21 30/90: Jonathan Bauer Project (JV) 2p, Jon Roniger and the Good For Nothin’ Band (JV) 5p, Strange Roux (RK) 8p, DJ Torch (VR) 10p, Deltaphonic (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby): DJ G (RB) 9p Buffa’s: Secondhand Jazz Band (JV) 6p, Cole Williams (FK) 9p Café Negril: Shawn Williams (VR) 2p, Dana Abbott Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Lilli Lewis Project (BL) 6p, People Museum, Murdertits Band, Naughty Palace (ID) 9p d.b.a.: Russell Welch’s Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Smoking Time Jazz Club (JV) 7p, Bon Bon Vivant, Marina Orchestra (VR) 11p Fillmore: 311 (VR) 8p Hi-Ho Lounge: Colin Davis and Night People (FK) 8p, Funky Sole NOLA (FK) 11p House of Blues: EarthGang (HH) 8p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Ladies Night with DJ Teddy (VR) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p Kerry Irish Pub: Chip Wilson (FO) 5p, Paul Ferguson (FO) 9p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Kevin Louis and Topsy Chapman with Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Delfeayo Marsalis Sextet (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, New Orleans Cottonmouth Kings (JV) 6p, Shake ‘Em Up Jazz Band (JV) 10p Three Muses: Royal Roses (JV) 5:30p, Doro Wat Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Mardi Gras Mambo feat.

Dumpstaphunk, Omari Neville and the Fuel, Big Chief Juan Pardo (VR) 11p Treme Art and Music Lounge:Tra$h Magnolia (SO) 9p Vaughan’s: Malevitus (PK) 10p SATURDAY FEBRUARY 22 30/90: Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 11a,Tony Lee

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Thomas (FO) 2p, Carolyn Broussard (RB) 5p, Mofongo (LT) 8p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 10p, Big Mike and the R&B Kings (RB) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby): DJ RQ Away presents Happy Feelins (VR) 11:30p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): the Satellites (VR) 9p Buffa’s: Saturday Jazz Brunch (JV) 11a, Keith Burnstein (SS) 6p, Marina Orchestra (VR) 9p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 2p, Jamey St. Pierre Band (VR) 6p,Vegas Cola (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge:Alex Bosworth (ID) 6p, Debauche (KZ) 9p d.b.a.: King James and the Special Men (RB) 11p Fillmore: Silverspun Pickups (VR) 8p House of Blues: Biz Markie Gras (HH) 11p Howlin’ Wolf: Mardi Gras Throwdown Rebirth Brass Band (BB) 10p Jazz Playhouse: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 8:30p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Seafood Night 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Keva Holiday (VR) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: Hugh Morrison (FO) 5p, Mark Hessler and friends (FO) 9p One Eyed Jacks: Freedia Gras: Big Freedia (BO) 9p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Cowboy Mouth (RK) 10p Snug Harbor: Chris Thomas King Trio (MJ) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Jazz Band Ballers (JV) 2p, Panorama Jazz Band (JV) 6p, Dominick Grillo and the Frenchmen St.All-Stars (JV) 10p Three Muses: Eric Merchant (JV) 5p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Galactic (FK) 11p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Caribbean Nights with DJ T-Roy (RE) 9p Vaughan’s: Silver Synthetic, Lawn (RK) 10p SUNDAY FEBRUARY 23 30/90: Louise Cappi (JV) 11a, Set Up Kings (RB) 2p,Ted Hefko and the Thousandaires (FK) 5p, T’Canaille (KJ) 8p, DJ Fresh (VR) 9p, Smoke N Bones (FK) 11p Buffa’s: Some Like It Hot! (TJ) 11a, Debbie Davis and Josh Paxton (JV) 4p, Steve Pistorius Jazz Quartet (JV) 7p, Factor 12 Netherland Jazz Band (JV) 10p Café Negril: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (SO) 2p, CobraSoul (JV) 6p,Vegas Cola Band (JV) 10p Carnaval Lounge: John Ewart and Monty Banks (JV) 6p, Gina Leslie Sundays (RR) 9p d.b.a.: Palmetto Bug Stompers (JV) 6p, Funk and Chant feat. Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and John “Papa” Gros (MG) 10p Fillmore: Drag Diva Brunch (VR) 10:30a Jazz Playhouse: Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (JV) 8p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint:Ambush Reggae Band (RE) 4p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 4:20p,TBC Brass Band (BB) 8p Kerry Irish Pub: PaintBacchus with Dave James and Tim Robertson (FO) 9p Le Bon Temps Roule: Soul Rebels (BB) 11p One Eyed Jacks: Freedia Gras: Big Freedia, Sweet Crude (BO) 9p Snug Harbor: Betty Shirley and Will Thompson Trio (JV) 8 & 10p

Spotted Cat: John Lisi and Delta Funk (JV) 2p, Robin Barnes and the FiyaBirds (JV) 7p, Pat Casey and the New Sound (JV) 10p Three Muses: Raphael et Pascale (JV) 5p, the Clementines (JV) 8p Tipitina’s:Anders Osborne’s Bacchus Party feat. Stanton Moore, George Porter Jr., the Hornstars, Jarekus Singleton (VR) 11p MONDAY FEBRUARY 24 30/90: Burris (VR) 2p, Margie Perez (SO) 5p, New Orleans Super Jam presented by Gene Harding (VR) 9p, DJ Trill Skill (VR) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby): Simple Play Networking Happy Hour (VR) 5p Buffa’s: Charlie Wooton and the Red Bean Special (VR) 1p,Arsene DeLay and Charlie Wooton (VR) 5p,Antoine Diel (VR) 8p Café Negril: Jelly Roll Stompers (VR) 2p, Noggin (VR) 6p, Soul Project NOLA (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Baby Grand (ID) 9p d.b.a.: Zydefunk (FK) 11p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): LYFTD, Collidoscope, Omcada (EL) 10p Howlin’ Wolf: Jank Setup, Hazel, Dar MaCar, DJX (VR) 10p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: James Williams (VR) 6p, Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7:30p, Irvin Mayfield (JV) 8:30p Kerry Irish Pub:Will Dickerson (FO) 5p, Rites of Passage (FO) 9p One Eyed Jacks: Quintron (VR) 8p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Palm Court Jazz Band (TJ) 7p Snug Harbor: Charmaine Neville Band (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Monty Banks (JV) 12p, Royal Street Winding Boys (JV) 2p, Dominick Grillo and the Frenchmen St.All-Stars (JV) 6p, Michael Watson and the Alchemy (JV) 10p Three Muses: Bart Ramsey (JV) 5p, Gal Holiday and the Honky Tonk Revue (CW) 8p Tipitina’s: Galactic feat.Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, Bo Dollis Jr. and the Wild Magnolias (MG) 11p TUESDAY FEBRUARY 25 30/90: Julie Elody (EL) 12p, DJ Fresh (VR) 12p, Bywater Skanks (FK) 2p, DJ Trill Skill (VR) 4p, Ed Wills and Blues4Sale (BL) 5p, Hotline (PO) 8p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 8p,Vance Orange (SO) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby):Tech Tuesdays: Hack Night (VR) 7p Buffa’s: Davis Rogan (VR) 2p, Sherman Bernard and the Old Man River Band (VR) 5p, Dick Deluxe Mardi Gras Special (VR) 8p Café Negril: live music (VR) 10a, Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 2p, Higher Heights (VR) 6p, Dimondick Gorilla and the Swingin’ Vines (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge:Anareta,Torture Garden, Mars (ME) 9p d.b.a.: New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars (KZ) 3p, Treme Brass Band (BB) 9p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Z2 (PI) 5p; 5p Stuart Coles’ Straight Ahead Jam Session (VR) 7p Spotted Cat: Jazz Band Ballers (JV) 10a,Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p, Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns (JV) 6p, Smoking Time Jazz Club (JV) 10p Three Muses: Mardi Gras Live Music (VR) 1p WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 26 30/90:Andy J. Forest (BL) 5p, Big Mike and the R&B Kings (RB) 9p Buffa’s: Open Mic Night with Nattie Sanchez

(SS) 7p Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 6p, the Catahoulas (VR) 10p d.b.a.:Tin Men (RK) 7p,Walter “Wolfman” Washington and the Roadmasters (BL) 10p Joy Theater: Jay and Silent Bob with Kevin Smith (VR) 8p Kajun’s Pub: Karaoke (KR) 5p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Kermit Ruffins (TJ) 7p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge:Angie’s Karaoke (KR) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Patrick Cooper (FO) 8p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Joe Krown Swing Band (SI) 8p Snug Harbor: Uptown Jazz Orchestra (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Monty Banks (JV) 12p, Chris Christy (JV) 2p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 6p,Antoine Diel and the New Orleans Power Misfits (JV) 10p Starlight: Davis Rogan (VR) 5p,Tuba Skinny (JV) 8p Three Muses: Leslie Martin (JV) 5p, Joy Patterson and Matt Bell (JV) 8p THURSDAY FEBRUARY 27 30/90:Tony Lee Thomas (FO) 5p, Raw Deal (FK) 9p, DJ Trill Skill (VR) 10p Buffa’s:Al Farrell (VR) 5p,Tom McDermott and Aurora Nealand (JV) 8p Café Negril: Claude Bryant and the All-Stars (VR) 6p, Sierra Green and the Soul Machine (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Dick Johnson and the Big Willies (BL) 6p, New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars (KZ) 9p d.b.a.: Sam Price and the True Believers (VR) 10p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Colgate Collective (JV) 8p Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Comedy Gumbeaux (CO) 8:30p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Kermit Ruffins and the BBQ Swingers (JV) 7p Kerry Irish Pub: Chip Wilson (FO) 8:30p One Eyed Jacks: Cult of Luna, Intronaut, Space Cadaver (VR) 7p, Fast Times ‘80s and ‘90s Night (VR) 10p Palm Court Jazz Cafe: Duke Heitger and Tim Laughlin with Crescent City Joymakers (TJ) 7p Rock ‘n’ Bowl: Leroy Thomas and Zydeco Roadrunners (ZY) 8p Snug Harbor: the Extended Trio (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat: Sal Geloso Band (JV) 2p, Miss Sophie Lee (JV) 6p, Jumbo Shrimp (JV) 10p Three Muses:Tom McDermott (PI) 5p,Arsene DeLay (VR) 8p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Hot 8 Brass Band (FK) 8p Vaughan’s: Corey Henry and the Treme Funktet (FK) 10:30p FRIDAY FEBRUARY 28 30/90: Kettle Black (SS) 2p, Sleazeball Orchestra (JV) 5p, Smoke N Bones (FK) 8p, DJ Fresh (VR) 10p, Deltaphonic (FK) 11p Ace Hotel (Lobby): Brass and Beats: Kings of Brass and Raj Smoove (BB) 8:30p Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Brass and Beats: Kings of Brass and Raj Smoove (BB) 10:30p Buffa’s: Meryl Zimmerman (JV) 6p, Greg Schatz (VR) 9p Café Negril: Shawn Williams (VR) 2p, Dana Abbott Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p Carnaval Lounge: Dusty Santamaria (ID) 6p,Vedas, Paris Avenue, Lip Candy, Dustin Cole (RK) 9p d.b.a.: Russell Welch’s Wood Floor Trio (JV) 4p, Aurora Nealand and the Royal Roses (JV) 7p, O F F B E AT. C O M

express KreweDelusion (Marigny/French Quarter) 7p FEBRUARY 9 Krewe of Little Rascals (Metairie) 12p;‘tit Rex (Marigny) 4:30p FEBRUARY 14 Krewe of Cork (French Quarter) 3p; Oshun (Uptown) 6p; Cleopatra (Uptown) 6:30p;Alla (Uptown) follows Cleopatra; Excalibur (Metairie) 6:30p; Krewe of Eve (Mandeville) 7p FEBRUARY 15 Adonis (West Bank) 11:45a; Nemesis (Chalmette) 1p; Pontchartrain (Uptown) 1p, Choctaw (Uptown) follows Pontchartrain; Krewe of Tchefuncte (Madisonville) 1p; Freret (Uptown) follows Choctaw; Sparta (Uptown) 5:30p; Pygmalion (Uptown) follows Sparta; Caesar (Metairie) 6p; Krewe of Olympia (Covington) 6p FEBRUARY 16 Femme Fatale (Uptown) 11a; Carrollton (Uptown) follows; King Arthur (Uptown) follows; Dionysus (Slidell) 1p; Barkus (French Quarter) 2p; Krewe of Push Mow (Abita Springs) 2p;Atlas (Metairie) 4:30p; Kings (Metairie) 5:30p FEBRUARY 19 SATURDAY FEBRUARY 29 Druids (Uptown) 6:15p; Nyx (Uptown) 6:45p 30/90: Jonathan Bauer Project (JV) 11a, Organami FEBRUARY 20 (JV) 2p, Retrofit (SO) 5p, New Orleans Johnnys Knights of Babylon (Uptown) 5:30p; Chaos (RK) 8p, DJ Dot Dunnie (VR) 10p, Big Easy (Uptown) 6:15p; Muses (Uptown) 6:30p Brawlers (BB) 11p FEBRUARY 21 Ace Hotel (Three Keys): Edgeslayer: C00CHI3 Album Release Party (VR) 10p Bosom Buddies (French Quarter) 11:30a; Buffa’s: Saturday Jazz Brunch (JV) 11a, Russell Hermes (Uptown) 5:30p; Krewe d’Etat Welch Hot Trio (JV) 6p, Hunter Burgamy (JV) 9p (Uptown) 6:30p; Morpheus (Uptown) 7p; Centurions (Metairie) 6:30p; Krewe of Selene Café Negril: John Lisi and Delta Funk (VR) 2p, (Slidell) 6:30p Jamey St. Pierre Band (VR) 6p, Higher Heights (VR) 10p FEBRUARY 22 Carnaval Lounge:Anne Elise Hastings and her Krewe of Bush (Bush) 9a; NOMTOC Revolving Cast of Characters (FO) 6p, Cirque(Westbank) 10:45a; Iris (Uptown) 11a;Tucks Lesque (VR) 9p (Uptown) 12p; Endymion (Mid-City) 4:15p; d.b.a.:Tuba Skinny (JV) 7p Krewe of Isis (Kenner) 6p Dew Drop Social and Benevolent Hall: Chris FEBRUARY 23 Thomas King (BL) 6:30p Okeanos (Uptown) 11a; Mid-City (Uptown) House of Blues: Strangelove:The Depeche Mode 11:45a;Thoth (Uptown) 12p; Bacchus (Uptown) Experience (RK) 8p 5:15p;Athena (Metairie) 5:30p; Pandora Howlin’ Wolf (the Den): Brooks Hubbard (FO) (Metairie) 6:30p 10p FEBRUARY 24 Irish Cultural Museum of New Orleans: Reds Beans (Marigny) 2p; Dead Beans Parade Celebration of Ireland Concert feat. Four Shillings (Mid-City) 2p; Proteus (Uptown) 5:15p; Orpheus Short (IR) 6p (Uptown) 6p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p FEBRUARY 25 Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: Keva Holiday Zulu (Uptown) 8a; Rex (Uptown) 10a; Elks (VR) 8p Orleans follows Rex, Crescent City follows Elks Kerry Irish Pub: Beth Patterson (FO) 5p, Piper Orleans;Argus (Metairie) 10a; Krewe of Elks Jones Band (FO) 9p Jefferson follows Argus, Jefferson follows Elks Palm Court Jazz Cafe:Will Smith and Palm Court Jefferson; Covington Lions Club (Covington) Jazz Band (TJ) 7p 10a; Krewe of Covington (Covington) follows; Snug Harbor: Jon Cleary Trio (JV) 8 & 10p Krewe of Folsom (Folsom) 2p; Krewe of Chahta Spotted Cat: Jazz Band Ballers (JV) 2p, Panorama (Lacombe) 1p Jazz Band (JV) 6p,Vegas Cola Band (JV) 10p Three Muses: Eric Merchant (JV) 5p, Debbie Davis SPECIAL EVENTS FEBRUARY 21-24 (JV) 6p, Shotgun Jazz Band (JV) 9p The French Market holds its annual Mask Treme Art and Music Lounge: Song Swap Series Market. FrenchMarket.org feat. Paul Sanchez and Justin Molaison (SS) 9p FEBRUARY 24 MARDI GRAS PARADE SCHEDULE The Krewe of Orpheus presents its annual FEBRUARY 1 Orpheuscapade at the Morial Convention Krewe of Chewbacchus (Marigny/French Center. KreweOfOrpheus.com Quarter) 7p ONGOING FEBRUARY 7 The New Orleans Jazz Museum at the Old Krewe Boheme (Marigny/French Quarter) 7p U.S. Mint presents “Noel Rockmore & Emilie FEBRUARY 8 Rhys: New Orleans Jazz Painting Retrospective.”

Krewe du Vieux (Marigny/French Quarter) 6:30p; Opens January 30.

Good Enough For Good Times feat. members of Galactic and special guest (VR) 11p House of Blues (Foundation Room): Jake Landry and the Right Lane Bandits (FO) 7p House of Blues: the Prince Experience (FK) 8p Kermit’s 9th Ward Juke Joint: Ladies Night with DJ Teddy (VR) 6p Kermit’s Mother-in-Law Lounge: DJ Sugar Ray (VR) 6p Kerry Irish Pub: Patrick Cooper (FO) 5p,Van Hudson (FO) 9p Maison: Rhythm Stompers, Swinging Gypsies, Shotgun Jazz Band, Big Easy Brawlers, Buena Vista Social Latin Night (VR) 4p Snug Harbor: Dr. Michael White and Original Liberty Jazz Band (JV) 8 & 10p Spotted Cat:Andy J. Forest (JV) 2p,Washboard Chaz Blues Trio (JV) 6p, Soul Brass Band (JV) 10p Starlight: Sean Riley (BL) 4p, Menage a Trois (JV) 8p, Keva Holiday (SO) 11p Three Muses: Matt Johnson (JV) 5:30p, Doro Wat Jazz Band (JV) 9p Tipitina’s: Poguetry feat. Spider Stacy, Cait O’Riordan and Lost Bayou Ramblers (VR) 9p Treme Art and Music Lounge: Doug Burr (FO) 9p

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backtalk

Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph talks back

Photo BY GUS BENNETT

A

s eclectic as the New Orleans music scene is, it’s still pink-maned unicorn, platform boots, and a chakra bracelet her hard to imagine an artist having a more diverse career aunt gave her that she never takes off. than Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, who, at the age of 31, sings in In the following interview, the singer discusses her eclectic three bands that could hardly be more different. career, how she connects with crowds, and what it’s like to make Until recently, she was primarily known for her role as the Katy Perry cry. backing vocalist and self-described “hype-man” for the wildly Let’s start out with a question about your American Idol eclectic Tank and The Bangas, who are one of the five nominees experience. If you had actually gone on to win, do you for this year’s Best New Artist Grammy (see cover story). But think the opportunities that would have opened up for you now, Joseph is also commanding center stage as lead vocalist for would be nearly as interesting as the ones you’ve found on the funk-jazz jam band Galactic, a role she took on last summer your own? when Erica Falls left the group to focus on her solo career.

Honestly, I only did American Idol just to prove to myself that And, as if all that weren’t enough, Joseph is also the lead singer I could do American Idol. I didn’t have any intention of going of The Original Pinettes, the New Orleans all-female brass band there to win. I really didn’t. I went because I wanted to get that that was founded back in 1991 and currently performs every fear out of me. I wanted to prove something to myself more Friday night at Bullets Sports Bar in the heart of the Treme. than for the competition, you know what I mean? Because I’d Joseph was in the 12th grade when she made her public debut never competed before, like vocally, and I thought it would be as a singer, performing the solo vocal on “O Holy Night” with something good to do. her high school choir during the Celebration in the Oaks Festival Plus, Katy Perry cried when you weren’t picked to go on at New Orleans City Park. By 2015, she was singing in Bourbon to the next round.

Street clubs, performing with the upstart Tank and The Bangas, She did. The judges when I was there were J-Lo, Keith Urban and singing Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep” on the season debut of and Katy Perry. And she was so sweet to me—I don’t even American Idol. understand why—she just kind of gravitated to me like that.

In addition to her proven vocal talent, Joseph also has an And once I got eliminated, she cried, and I was like, “Stop crying, ebullient personality coupled with an ever-changing wardrobe because I don’t want to cry.” Because I wasn’t sad about it; I came that, on the day of this interview, included camouas far as I was supposed to go in that competition.

by Bill Forman So finishing in their top 40 was great for me. I flage-green hair, a shirt emblazoned with a furry

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backtalk proved something to myself, and that was important to me.

How did you first hook up with Tank and The Bangas?

Did you know each other growing up?

No, I actually met Tank when we were both going to Southern University at New Orleans. I’ll never forget it. I saw her on the campus, and she just had this big personality, and I have a big personality, and I was like, I want to be her friend! And we’ve been friends ever since.

When did you first hear her recite her poetry?

It was on campus. I wasn’t a big fan of poetry back then. I’m still probably not; I don’t like to listen to that shit all the time. But Tank is one of the only poets that I can actually sit through a set. So she did a poem on campus one day, and then I decided to go check her out at Loyola, where she gave a small performance. And I was like, “Girl, I don’t even like poetry, but I like what you’re doing.” She’s great, and she’s grown so much since then, both as a poet and as a musician, period.

She’s just awesome.

I understand you used to play clubs on Bourbon Street. What was that like for you?

That was where I got one of my first steady gigs.

I was one of the lead singers in a band that played every Monday through Friday night, which was good training for me. We would play all night, from seven in the evening to maybe one o’clock in the morning.

At that time, smoking was still allowed in the clubs, and guys with big cigars would sit in front of the stage and just blow cigar smoke right at you, and so you’re coughing while you’re trying to sing.

And then you’d have to leave your clothes out on the porch when you got home, right?

Um-hmm. I’d leave all my stuff up on the porch, I’d put all my hair on the porch, everything had to go out on the porch, because that’s how strong the smell was.

Wait, you put all your hair up on the porch. How does that work?

Oh, you heard what I said.

Uh-huh. I’d take it all, put it on the porch, throw my clothes on the porch...

So this isn’t your hair?

No! That’s another thing about me, too. I change my hair a lot, like every two days. However I’m feeling that day, that’s what my hair feels. I just came over here from a Galactic rehearsal, and they were just laughing at me, because yesterday my hair was long and blond, and today it’s like this.

But your hair changes haven’t been as dramatic as Tank’s.

Oh, no. That’s her thing. You know, we grew up around here, we grew up pretty Black girls, so we are used to seeing everybody in the ‘hood doing freaky stuff with their hair. And when I first met Tank, that’s when we started wearing the big hair. And she was like, “Is this too big?” I said, “It’s never too big. [laughs.] Never, ever, ever.” It’s an energy, you know? It’s a thing that’s a part of us.

At Tank shows, you’re incredibly good at working the crowd. What’s your secret?

It’s because I literally love what I do. I’m a singer, but I also

consider myself a hype-man, you know? I love getting other people to feel what I’m feeling when we’re up there. And it’s a special thing when you connect with a crowd. So I pride myself on being, you know, that person. But then when I get down off the stage, I’m the most introverted person in the world.

That’s kind of hard to believe.

It’s the performance element. It’s like some part of me comes forward onstage, a part of me that I don’t have in regular life.

How did the opportunity to join Galactic come about?

I met them through Erica Falls, because I was singing with her for a while. So I started singing background with Galactic a few years ago, when they had Macy Gray and Erica Falls doing leads. And then last summer, when Erica decided to go off and do her own thing, they were in need of a new lead singer, and they felt like I could handle it, you know? And I totally appreciate that. They’re like the older brothers I never knew I needed.

From a musical perspective, Galactic and Tank and The Bangas are obviously very different. What’s it like moving back and forth between the two?

The only problem I have, which is not even a big problem, is just learning all the lyrics, because I have a whole bunch of lyrics with Tank and The Bangas and a whole bunch more with Galactic. So it’s just trying to etch in stone what is what, and who is who, and kind of go with the flow of everything. It’s so exciting and frightening at the same time, and I’m having so much fun.

And now I’m also writing, which I haven’t had a lot of experience with, so I’m really excited about it.

They work with some awesome writers, including [experimental performance artist] Boyfriend. I’ve actually done my first recording with Galactic—it’s called “Float Up”—and she wrote the song and was at the studio when they recorded it. She helped me so much in the studio with my delivery and being able to get across the point of the song. She is just a joy to work with, and they are, too.

And, in addition to all that, you’re still with The Original Pinettes. Tell me about that.

Well, they didn’t start off with a singer, but I’m good friends with the trumpet player Veronique Dorsey. And she just kind of reached out to me and said, “Hey, our bandleader is looking for a lead singer, are you interested?” With most brass bands, it’s all about hearing the instruments. But including lead vocals creates this crazy mixture that pretty much nobody’s ever done, because nobody had ever thought of it. So they’re at Bullets every Friday, whether I’m there with them or not. It’s one of my favorite gigs to do, because it’s so freeing. I’m just so blessed to be able to work with so many different types of artists, because that’s what keeps me sharp, you know?

So having come this far after 30 years, what do you expect to be doing 30 years from now?

Hopefully, I’ll still be doing music. I’m just so grateful to be part of it. I don’t care in what capacity I’m doing it. I don’t care if I’m singing background, or if I’m singing lead, or just behind the scenes telling people what to sing. I don’t care what it is. I want to be a part of this. O

I love getting other people to feel what I’m feeling when we’re up there.

And it’s a special thing when you connect with a crowd.

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