Let's presume: you're reading this issue of OffBeat so you're probably in New Orleans and not, thankfully, somewhere ridiculous.  You are already aware of that massive smorgasbord of music in the middle of the nation's third largest thoroughbred racetrack. But, is your palate yet prepared for Jazz Fest Nights, a two-week movable musical feast?

In the "It's-a-Dirty-Job" department, I set out to prepare for the Fest by investigating the clubs, dance halls and music joints of New Orleans. I b...