Jazz Fest Bible 2017
BackTalk
- Herb Alpert talks back
Herb Alpert, the trumpet-playing leader of the Tijuana Brass and co-founder of the enormously successful A&M Records, makes his New Orleans…
Cover Story
- The New King of Jazz Fest: Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews Rules
TROMBONE SHORTY & ORLEANS AVENUE: SUNDAY, MAY 7—ACURA STAGE, 5:35 P.M. Over the past half-century the New Orleans Jazz and…
Features
- Jazz Fest A to Z: Your guide to every artist at Jazz Fest 2017
How do you choose from the variety of cultures, rhythms and sounds available at Jazz Fest? Our guide should help. Happy… - 20 in 20: A selection of Basin Street releases since 1999
Irvin Mayfield: Irvin Mayfield “Mayfield proves that he is more interested in pushing boundaries than establishing a commercial persona.” —Jonathan Tabak… - Basin Street Records celebrates its 20th anniversary
A sense of community among musicians has long set New Orleans apart from most other cities. Being a component of a greater… - Piano-1-O-Fun! The social music of Jon Batiste
JON BATISTE & STAY HUMAN: SATURDAY, APRIL 29—ACURA STAGE, 3:25 P.M. “It’s like a day job except with instruments,” says… - Hot Horns: Trumpet Mafia upholds the tradition of the trumpet
TRUMPET MAFIA: FRIDAY, APRIL 28—WWOZ JAZZ TENT, 1:40 P.M. “We grow up hearing that trumpeters blew down the walls of… - Love for the City: William Bell returns to New Orleans
WILLIAM BELL: FRIDAY, MAY 5—BLUES TENT, 4:10 P.M. For someone who never crossed over to lasting pop success in his… - Life Is a Rap Cabaret: Boyfriend celebrates self-awareness and self-acceptance
BOYFRIEND: SUNDAY, APRIL 30—GENTILLY STAGE, 12:45 P.M. When Beyoncé’s Lemonade came out, Boyfriend—New Orleans’ bespectacled, lingerie, robe and hair rollers–clad… - Rhythm & Rhymes: The sky’s the limit with Nas and the Soul Rebels
NAS WITH GUESTS THE SOUL REBELS: FRIDAY, APRIL 28—CONGO SQUARE STAGE, 5:30 P.M. When New Orleans’ own Soul Rebels aren’t… - If It Makes You Happy: The Revelers are never going to be a pop band
THE REVELERS: SUNDAY, APRIL 30—FAIS DO-DO STAGE, 2:50 P.M. Legend has it that the Revelers began when the ghost of… - BAM, BAM! Nicholas Payton’s musical journey through the African diaspora
At this year’s Jazz Fest set, don’t expect trumpeter/keyboardist Nicholas Payton to play the classic jazz that in 1997 won him… - Soulful Tenor: Charlie Gabriel and Friends debuts at Jazz Fest
CHARLIE GABRIEL AND FRIENDS: THURSDAY, MAY 4—ECONOMY HALL STAGE, 2:55 P.M. On a recent Tuesday evening in March, a teenage… - Preservation Propagation: Preservation Hall Jazz Band has left the museum behind
If there’s one thing you don’t expect to see at Preservation Hall, it’s David Bowie—hundreds of David Bowies in fact, in… - High Fidelity: Bill Summers on Herbie Hancock’s 1973 Head Hunters
Percussionist/ethnomusicologist Bill Summers played a key role in shaping Herbie Hancock’s 1973 groundbreaking and platinum-selling Head Hunters record. Here, he reveals… - No Genre, No Peers: Egg Yolk Jubilee celebrates 20 years
EGG YOLK JUBILEE: THURSDAY, MAY 4—LAGNIAPPE STAGE, 5:30 P.M. For 20 years now, the members of Egg Yolk Jubilee have practiced… - The Gumbo Thing: PJ Morton takes on the Buddy Bolden spirit and keeps innovating.
PJ MORTON: FRIDAY, MAY 5—CONGO SQUARE STAGE, 3:30 P.M. MAROON 5: SATURDAY, APRIL 29—ACURA STAGE, 5:15 P.M. New Orleans native… - Partners in Jazz: Alia Shawkat’s unlikely collaboration with New Orleans Swamp Donkeys
FRIDAY, MAY 5—ECONOMY HALL TENT, 4:25 P.M. If you’re familiar with Alia Shawkat, there’s a good chance it’s because of… - Honoring Fallen Musicians: Tributes to Buckwheat Zydeco at Festival International and Jazz Fest
A TRIBUTE TO BUCKWHEAT ZYDECO: SATURDAY, MAY 6—BLUES TENT, 2:35 P.M. “Buckwheat is special to the whole world,” says Corey… - Built on Heritage: Jazz Fest Developed Its Identity Through Repetition
Since its inception, the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival has sought to pair big name touring acts with local talent.… - Sacred and Profane: The festival-opening invocation by Michael Skinkus and Moyuba
MICHAEL SKINKUS & MOYUBA: FRIDAY, APRIL 28—LAGNIAPPE STAGE, 11:30 A.M Jazz Fest 48 will be remembered as the year New…
Fresh
- My Music: Maggie Koerner
“When I want to chill, I like to listen to Radiohead. As for singers, I like this new guy Sampha. And… - United Bakery Records: Offering Up A Dozen
If you were lucky enough to catch a concert or art show at the United Bakery Art Gallery, you know what… - Life Is A Ride: Chris Joseph’s Tears Of Healing
Whether you’ve ever met the man or not—and since he lives in Los Angeles, odds are you haven’t—New Orleans music owes… - Five Questions with Andre Bohren
Johnny Sketch and the Dirty Notes recently celebrated its 15th anniversary as a band. How has the band evolved over time…
In The Spirit
- Leora Pearl Madden at Pearl
“I grew up here but spent seven years in California and got spoiled with great wine bars and retailers, so that’s…
Jazz Fest Focus
- Fest Focus: Lee Konitz
THURSDAY, MAY 4—WWOZ JAZZ TENT, 2:55 P.M. With its ever-growing audience and notoriety, New Orleans’ beloved Jazz Fest has gone through… - Fest Focus: Lake Street Dive
FRIDAY, MAY 5—GENTILLY STAGE, 2:05 P.M. Lake Street Dive has earned quite the following in recent years with a modern take… - Fest Focus: Gregg Martinez
FRIDAY, MAY 5—FAIS DO-DO STAGE, 1:20 P.M. Gregg Martinez, the powerhouse swamp pop vocalist from Cajun country, inspires audiences through his… - Fest Focus: Kim Carson
FRIDAY, APRIL 28—LAGNIAPPE STAGE, 4:20 P.M. If you don’t always see Kim Carson in New Orleans, that’s because she spends part… - Fest Focus: The Iguanas
THURSDAY, MAY 4—FAIS DO-DO STAGE, 2:55 P.M. If you want to give your visiting friends one of those quintessential New Orleans… - Fest Focus: The Revealers
FRIDAY, APRIL 28—CONGO SQUARE STAGE, 11:20 A.M. “We’re in New Orleans, man.” According to leader Chris “DeRoc” DeBose, that explains a…
Letters
- JFB 2017 Letters to OffBeat Magazine
Charlie Sims He was a “minister” in the purest sense of the word. He and Donna served out the secrets of…
Mojo Mouth
- R-E-S-P-E-C-T
There’s a real groundswell of change in the city of New Orleans. If, as a Jazz Fest lover, you’ve been here…
OffBeat Eats
- Margie Perez: Red Beans and Rice, or Rice and Beans?
Margie Perez’s Cuban heritage has her looking perhaps extra forward to listening, playing and eating at Jazz Fest this year. … - Havana Banana: Local pop-up Congreso Cubano serves fried plantains and other Cuban goodies at Jazz Fest
When Orlando Vega moved from Miami to New Orleans five years ago, he wasn’t exactly planning on planting his Cuban roots… - Yum City: Mapping New Orleans neighborhoods one cheap meal at a time
Carrollton/Riverbend Lebanon’s Café 1500 South Carrollton Avenue; Mon-Thur 11a-9:45p, Fri-Sat 11a-10p, Sun 12-9:30p; (504) 862-6200, lebanonscafe.com Hummus with Lamb $13.99 There…
Dining Out
- Toast Fairgrounds
Festers walking into the Fair Grounds from the Sauvage Entrance have a number of options for grabbing a quick bite, whether…
The Spot
- Meschiya Lake hits the Spot
What are your favorites here? Definitely the Craw Rangoons [with crawfish, cream cheese and spicy honey], and the Pork Belly Buns.…
Reviews
- Irvin Mayfield + The New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, "Live at Newport" (Basin Street Records)
Complete with introductions and crowd reaction, Live at Newport, by trumpeter Irvin Mayfield leading the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, was captured… - REWIND: James Booker, "Classified" (Rounder Records)
“James Booker had a gig every week at the Maple Leaf with Johnny Vidacovich on drums, James Singleton on bass and… - Debbie Davis & Josh Paxton, "Vices & Virtues—A Live Record" (Independent)
Debbie Davis has always been a musical polymath, with a wide-open definition of what qualifies as a jazz song: Material on… - Sam Price & the True Believers, "Sam Price & the True Believers" (Independent)
Some people make solo albums so they can do something much different than their regular band; others do it just because… - Preservation Hall Jazz Band, "So It Is" (Legacy Recordings)
Under Ben Jaffe’s leadership, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band has spent much of the past decade redrawing the boundaries of traditional… - Captain Green, "Jazz Noise" (Independent)
It’s always possible that they’re just being self-effacing, but the members of Captain Green probably meant the title of their third… - The Rayo Brothers, "Take You for a Drive" (Independent)
With a family that includes members of the Lost Bayou Ramblers and the late Hadley Castille, it would seem more likely—and… - The Tangiers Combo, "Are You in the Mood?" (Independent)
If you were a New Orleans expat in the early days of the Great Depression, one who suddenly needed to leave… - Black Laurel, "Black Laurel" (Independent)
If rock and roll, like any other form of music, stops growing, is it still alive? More to the point, is… - Bon Bon Vivant, "Paint & Pageantry" (Independent)
You might well guess, from both their band name and the title of their debut full-length album, that the cabaret is… - Chris Belleau, "Swamp Fever" (Proud Dog Records)
The great thing about a Chris Belleau record is that you never know what the Baton Rouge roots musician is going… - Sam Friend, "Twin" (Independent)
A true Jack of all musical trades, Sam Friend is perhaps best known to New Orleanians for his tenure in the… - Marco Benevento, "Woodstock Sessions" (Royal Potato Family)
Locals probably know Marco best as a late-period member of Garage a Trois, unless you really keep your ear close to… - Flow Tribe, "Boss" (Independent)
There’s plenty of good reason why Flow Tribe has established itself as one of New Orleans’ go-to party bands. The homegrown… - Marcello Benetti, "Il Vizio!" (Independent)
In the liner notes for Il Vizio! drummer Marcello Benetti writes, “there’s always a lot of personal meaning in my compositions.”… - Dirty Bourbon River Show, "The Flying Musical Circus" (Independent)
The Crescent City is undergoing a golden age of musical burlesque theater, and no one is working harder at it, or… - Jumbo Shrimp Jazz Band, "Live at the Spotted Cat" (Independent)
As George Carlin once said, the phrase “jumbo shrimp” is a contradiction in terms. As Carlin didn’t say, so is a… - Ken Swartz & the Palace of Sin, "Smile the Blues Away" (Adelphi)
There may be no single person better in New Orleans at smiling away the blues than Ken Swartz; whether it be… - Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, "Ruler Rebel" (Ropeadope)
Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah is, no doubt, a brilliant trumpeter and composer with a serious statement to make. Ruler Rebel represents… - Bicycle Jones & Stover, "Song Shed (Vol. 2)" (Independent)
This is the second half of a project initiated between Dave Stover, longtime NOLA-rock scenester and all-purpose songwriter, and Training Wheels… - Marc Stone Band, "Live in Europe" (Independent)
Well, ain’t this a gift that keeps on giving. Ace blues guitarist, songwriter, singer and bandleader Marc Stone produced this special… - Bag of Donuts, "Superpop" (Independent)
There’s cover bands, and there’s cover bands. Bag of Donuts is arguably the most popular one in town, because they have… - Trombone Shorty, "Parking Lot Symphony" (Blue Note)
Stunningly Good Musicianship “Multi-instrumentalist and vocalist extraordinaire” might be the best way to describe today’s Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews.…
