In order to pepper your Jazz Fest experience with a dab of culture, some old time torch songs, some misty mountain bones and a cool sprinkling of religion to boot, this column, which I’m admitting to have thrown together at the last possible second (we are quite busy around here during Jazz Fest season), will hastily cover a few events you otherwise may regret missing if you hear about them later.
Don’t miss this one. On April 23 and 24, the one and only Miss Hadda Brooks will be singing and (at age 81) swinging at one of New Orleans’ hippest new clubs, the Shim-Sham. Strangely enough, after over 60 years of performing, this will be Hadda’s first appearance ever in New Orleans. Due to racial intolerance, Brooks stayed away from the Big Easy throughout her career, which began in the late 1930s. Come out to the club to see the lovely miss
Brooks singing some of her hits including (hopefully) “Swingin’ the Boogie,” “Sometimes I’m Happy” and the beautiful ballad “Dream.” This may be your only chance to see this living legend in New Orleans. Just so you’ll know what’s hip, Johnny Depp hosted Hadda’s 80th birthday at his Los Angeles club, The Viper Room, and Hadda is definirely embarking on perhaps one of the greatest comebacks in music history.
Don’t forget that the third annual LMNOP (Louisiana Music-New Orleans Pride) music business conference and showcases will take place April 25-28. The conference covers all the musical bases: jazz, blues, country, alternative, rock, folk, rap, and singer song-writers. The three nights of LMNOP feature performances at eight of the top night clubs in New Orleans. Cafe Brasil will serve as the “Electronica/World Groove” head-quarters with performances by Mackeel from Halifax, Nova Scotia and Boulder, Colorado’s own Zuba.
Local chanteuse/song- writer Theresa Andersson will play Levon Helm’s Classic American Cafe which will serve as an Americana/Blues stage; Astral Project takes the stage at the Storyville District Jazz Parlor on April 28, at midnight. In all there are more than 140 groups or solo performers scheduled, therefore, shelling out a piddly $30 for a showcase wristband may be worth your hard- earned money. Call (504) 592-9800 for more information.
Mark Mullins will present his own bizarre manifestations of trombone music at Bone Fest on Aptil 28 ar Tip’s Ftench Quarter. This should prove to be quite the event with New Orleans’ own Leigh “Li’l Queenie” Harris performing Led (dude) Zeppelin songs with special arrangements by the Jimmy Page of the trombone himself, ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Mark Mullins.
The event features several groups including MuleBone, Woodenhead and two venerable drummers, Mike Barras and Mark Whitaker. Mullins, who admits that he’s a litde mythed as to why Tips is allowing him to do basically anything he wishes in his “Mark Mullins Presents” series, says he is simply trying to keep things interesting. “We will be coming out in full [Red Hot] Chili Peppers artire, just socks, nothing else; we want to stay as true as we can to our ‘Bone Fest’ theme,” Mullins (I think) jokes.
If you can find some time during this busy Jazz Fest season, be sure to catch the Mike West Band simultaneously celebrating both their 1,000th gig and the release of their fifth CD, 16 Easy Songs For Drill and Banjo.
One of New Orleans’ finest instrumentalists, West and his band are guaranteed to put on one hell of a show. West is a banjo virtuoso who traverses the high lonesome highways with a respect for bluegrass tradition and a keen ear for the innovative.
The show, which takes place at Margaritaville’s main stage on April 25, will also showcase New Orleans songwriters including Lenny McDaniel, Jim Smith, Myshkin and The Fens.
Pianist Henry Butler may be blind, but he has never allowed his lack of sight to obstruct his vision. For one week during Jazz Fest (April 2’2-30) Butler will be featured in an exhibit of his own, surprisingly lush, photography “From the Mind and Hands of Henry Butler” that will be presented at the Jonathan Ferrara Gallery.
“I want to know about what’s there,” says Butler, “I also want to know how people’s minds work… how they see things and how they interpret what they see. Many [seeing] people just look at things then write them off. Part of the exercise is to get people to talk about what they’re looking at right now.”
To kick off the event, on April 22 a reception will be held at the gallery from 6.10 p.m. Butler will perform on a baby grand piano and discuss his photographs and his work with blind and visually-impaired children. Libations will be provided.
Jazz Fest fan? Jewish? Well get yourself down to the Touro Synagogue on April 30 for the eighth annual Jazz Fest Shabat. This smooth Sabbath service will feature reverent yet innovative performances by jazz greats James Singleton (bass), Johnny Vidacovich (drums), Peter Martin (piano), Eric Traub (tenor sax) Scott Bowgeois (alto sax) and Eric Jakobson (trumpet), Leading the service will be Cantor Richard Botton accompanied by the harmonies of The Touro Synagogue Adult Choir.
