Issue Articles — Fresh
Vintage vinyl treasures (Episode 44)
Another five vintage vinyl gems from 1969 that I believe might just be favorites of my favorite big sister currently residing over Texas way. We both make our way back to New Orleans whenever possible with our one set annual pilgrimage etched in November stone. She brings the wit and intelligence, and I bring the records, plenty of them. I have listed this month’s five in chronological release date order, and I am betting that one or if you are an aficionado, then several below will bring more fond memories of special days gone by all too soon just like the proverbial winds on the plains.
Celebrating & Elevating: New Orleans Music Month Returns
As we come out of summer hibernation, New Orleans Music Month kicks the Crescent City into overdrive. It’s quickly become an annual highlight, what with organic partnership-based growth and unique must-see events.
NOLA Funk Fest is Back, Baby
After last year’s successful debut launched NOLA Funk Fest to the elite tier of the fall festival circuit, it’s returning even bigger in 2024 with a dynamic lineup. Taking place over three days from October 18–20 at the New Orleans Jazz Museum complete with food trucks, face painting, drinks, a special exhibition, symposia, and VIP show alongside the live music. NOLA Funk Fest is intended to showcase the potential of the Louisiana Music & Heritage Experience: a large-scale, immersive museum conceived by music philanthropist and activist Chris Beary to showcase the full story of Louisiana’s music.
The Blues Tells a Story: NOLA Funk Fest amplifies Louisiana blues—past, present, and future
The second annual NOLA Funk Fest returns to the New Orleans Jazz Museum while also heralding support and awareness for the Louisiana Music and Heritage Experience—an upcoming large-scale museum project devoted to comprehensively telling the history of Louisiana’s music.
Nickel A Dance: A Million Dollars’ Worth of Music
The free, popular Nickel-A-Dance series, which started in 1994, is an annual fall event. The series, now presented by the New Orleans Jazz Celebration, runs from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. every Sunday through October 27, 2024.
White Noise & Lightning: Author Sean Kelly’s tribute to The Continental Drifters
In 2005, Susan Cowsill met 13-year-old Sean Kelly at a Hootie and the Blowfish concert in Buffalo, New York. As an opening act that night, Cowsill was setting up her merchandise table when Kelly introduced himself.
Vintage vinyl treasures (Episode 43)
This month’s installment features five debut albums of 1969 that, you guessed it, just so happen to be favorites of mine. Like a kid in a candy store, I am always amazed at how good music, like fine wine of which I know little, seems to age so well.
The OnBeat Sessions Return
Fall has arrived and that means The OnBeat Sessions are back on the menu. OffBeat Magazine’s premiere music series returns for its sixth season of exclusive, intimate live performances by a wide-ranging selection of current New Orleans music.
It’s Time to Celebrate Black Americana Fest
t’s long overdue for the first New Orleans festival focused on elevating “the narrative, music, and history of Black artists in the Folk, Country, and Americana traditions.” Dusky Waters, Teena May, and Mark Williams II have planned a great day focused on music, inclusion, and community.
Young Men Olympian Jr. Celebrates Its Amazing 140th Anniversary
It’s difficult to conceive that the Young Men Olympian Jr. Benevolent Association has been active since 1884, just over to 20 years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation freeing enslaved people in the United States. One can imagine, however, how important the organization was at the time when one of its prime functions was to provide burial services to Blacks who during that era were denied life insurance by white owned companies.
