Music
Larry Scala Band, Swing Stories from New Orleans (Independent)
“Play the melody, improvise, tell a story, and make it swing.” That quote, from composer/pianist Steve Elmer, is on the cover of this new CD from guitarist Larry Scala, and […]
Shotgun Jazz Band, Yearning (Independent)
Gutsy, gritty and grabbing is the way I would describe the Shotgun Jazz Band, and it is precisely the way I’d label this CD. It is an excellent example of […]
Smoking Time Jazz Club, I Need Someone Like You (Independent)
The Smoking Time Jazz Club has established itself as a regular at Maison and the Spotted Cat on Frenchmen Street and as a frequently seen street band in the Quarter. […]
The Dukes of Dixieland: The Assuntos Start a Musical Legacy
Anniversaries aren’t always happy affairs and this one has more than its share of melancholy. Forty years ago, on February 25, 1974, Frank Assunto, New Orleans trumpet player and leader […]
Back to the Basics, Again
The first New Orleans jazz revival took place in the 1930s and ’40s. It was sparked by a book called Jazzmen that led to the reappearance of first generation jazz […]
Oscar “Papa” Celestin, Oscar “Papa” Celestin with Adolphe Alexander (American Music)
If you are interested in the history of New Orleans jazz, here’s an opportunity to own a piece of it. Papa Celestin was one of the key figures in the […]
Warren Battiste, Quiet Storm in New Orleans (Progressive)
In a city graced with a good number of first class jazz guitarists, Warren Battiste remains a standout. Though thoroughly grounded in R&B, rock ’n’ roll, and traditional jazz (his […]
The Pfister Sisters, Puttin’ It On (Mambo Goddess)
Let’s start with what would ordinarily be the fourth or fifth paragraph in a review of this kind: The version of Hoagy Carmichael’s “New Orleans” done here by veteran Pfister […]
Jerry Jumonville, You Are My Dream (Carryon)
You could call it rugged. You might say boomy. Even crusty. It’s a big rich sound that Jerry Jumonville gets out of his tenor sax, that’s for sure. He lists […]
Seva Venet, Mens Working (Jazzology)
Seva Venet has been an active side man on the New Orleans trad scene for about five years now with a pleasantly recognizable sound of his own on banjo and […]
