Terence Blanchard, Let’s Get Lost (Sony Classical)

Marva Wright, Marva (Aim)

Swinging Sundays

New Orleans loves to have a good time when it’s not supposed to. Take the “Blue Monday” jam session led by Bob French at Donna’s, for example. Or the ReBirth […]

Jazz Fest 2001, R.I.P.

As we cope with the demise of yet another wonderful Jazz Fest, I present the six stages of Jazz Fest grief: Denial – Jazz Fest is not over. If I […]

Ones to Watch

The New Orleans jazz tradition is as strong as ever, but many of today’s rising jazz stars are not as traditional as you may think.

Nicholas Payton, Dear Louis (Verve)

“He’s the closest to Louis Armstrong that I’ve ever heard,” Doc Cheatham used to say of Nicholas Payton, and anyone who’s experienced Payton’s wondrously expressive trumpeting—equally explosive in a modern […]

Die Like a Dog at JazzFest 2002

Forget about sleep. Say goodbye to that nightcap. Tell those sheep to stop jumping the fence. It’s Jazz Fest time. If you’re not out hearing music, you’re missing something tasty. […]

Kermit Ruffins, 1533 St. Philip Street (Basin Street)

Los Hombres Calientes, Vol. 3: New Congo Square (Basin Street)

Wayne Boyd, New Orleans Sessions (Sound of New Orleans)