Here's link to some of my photos from Bayou'n'Boogie Fest II
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Bayou'n'Boogie Fest II
Memorial Day weekend kicked off a month long run of Lousiana-themed music festivals in the Northeast with the return of Bayou'nBoogie Fest, a joint venture of Sal's and Lagniappe Productions. Last time, it was a one day event in Foster, RI over 4th of July weekend a few years ago, with CJ Chenier headlining. This year it was held at the Elk's club in Smithfield, RI, on Saturday and Sunday of Memorial Day weekend. The 2 day festival featured several Cajun and Zydeco bands and one blues act, but we only attended one day, since we sometimes have to take a break from all this festive living to tend to other tasks, like getting the garden started. So we headed out there on Sunday, when Curley Taylor and Leroy Thomas were the featured Louisiana acts, augmented by local favorites Lil Anne & Hot Cayenne, River City Slim and the Zydeco hogs, and Midwest based Dennis Stroughmatt & Creole Stomp. The setting was on a lake in a semi-rural area, with a covered wooden dance floor outdoors. The Elk's hall served as a place for accordion and dance workshops. A few hundred people were there, mostly a core group of dancers from the local area. It was a nice laid back and relaxed event, and may become an annual event.
Here's link to some of my photos from Bayou'n'Boogie Fest II
Here's link to some of my photos from Bayou'n'Boogie Fest II
Friday, May 9, 2008
Jazzfest 2008 - First Weekend (and a few more days)
No place embodies the spirit of festive living as much as the city of New Orleans, so when we go for Jazzfest, it is not for just a music festival, but an entire sensory experience of music, food, and hanging out with friends from all over the country. It is the kind of vacation where you have to spend a few days resting afterwards.... in other words, the good kind! Here's how we spent our 6 days there for Jazzfest 2008:
Thursday
We arrived in the French Quarter around 12:30, had some lunch at Napoleon House, then eased into fest mode by checking out some in-store performances at Louisiana Music Factory, and a couple of $2 Abita drafts at Ol'Toones saloon across the street. Checked into our hotel on Royal Street, then went back out to see the Rebirth Brass Band outside of La Belle Gallerie on Chartres.
This happened to be right across the street from Bacco restaurant, which was having a half-price wine happy hour; they had a table available, so we decided to have dinner there, and indulged in a decadent plate of lobster ravioli in champagne cream sauce. Not exactly New Orleans-style cuisine but delicious just the same. Met up with some friends at the hotel, and joined some of them at the Howling Wolf... for a so-called "brass band blowout", but we arrived during a very long set break and only ended up seeing one band, the Hot 8.
Friday
was the perfect opening day - started out with beautiful clear blue skies and sun, not too hot- and was our fullest day at Jazz Fest, which is like a big family reunion. We hit Liuzza's first, our favorite pre /post fest gathering spot, to have a couple of the most festive Bloody Marys in town while catching up with old friends, some we hadn't seen since last year's jazzfest. After a brief stop in the Gospel tent to get energized (and apply sunscreen) we went for a festival breakfast of Oyster Patty for me and Cochon de Lait for Joe, then headed over to Fais Do Do to catch the Figs, a new all-girl band out of Lafayette, playing country/ western swing. They had good harmonies and interesting material, plus colorful retro outfits.
They were followed by Joe Hall & the Louisiana Cane cutters, a traditional sounding Creole accordion player with 2 fiddle players in the band. After that we headed to the blues tent to see J. Monque D' a blues harmonica player/ singer , who is always entertaining. On the way in to the fest we had run into an old friend who is always raving about a Latin band called "Paky Saavedra's bandido", so we decided to check them out. We heard a few songs like "la Bamba", "Guantanamero", etc. then went to meet up with some friends. After that, we went to the blues tent to see CC Adcock & Doyle Bramhall - straight ahead blues/ rock, then over to Acura for Robert Plant & Alison Krauss- wow! I liked this more than I thought I would. It sounded better live than on the CD. T-bone Burnett and Buddy Miller accompanied them. They sounded good together, and I liked Plant's rendition of Allen Toussaint's "Fortune Teller". Hearing Black Dog with banjo was cool and they sounded good together on some of Alison's tunes too. However after spending over 30 minutes standing, shoulder to shoulder, packed in the thick crowd, barely able to move, craning my neck to see, I had to move on, and headed over to Congo Square for Leo Nocentelli's Rare Funk gathering. At least you could move around there, and dance, though it seemed to end a little early. Next was Ozomatli on the Gentilly stage, a kind of world music mix, with lots of percussion and horns and dance moves. Then in true Jazzfest fashion we switched gears again and went back to fais-do-do for Bruce Daigrepont, where we got some good Cajun dancing in. Ai-eee!
It's been a while since I've witnessed the watermelon sacrifice at Jazzfest, that bizarre ritual that takes place before the last act on the Fais do-do stage. It's tough to describe in words but I took some video:
After that was grammy award winning Terrence Simien, who always puts on a good show. There was a good crowd there.
Then we drifted back to Congo Square for the mellow reggae of Burning Spear, who seemed to be making up songs on the spot, and on the way out, stopped in Economy Hall to hear jazz chanteuse Banu Gibson. ...We saw about a dozen different acts that day, not counting the Second line parades and Mardi Gras Indians. It was a great first day at the fest!
Dinner that night was at Deanie's seafood - char broiled oysters, fried oysters and shrimp, stuffed crab. Yum!
Saturday
We started out in Economy Hall, where we heard Connie Jones' Crescent City jazz Band. After so much running around the day before it was nice to have a seat in this tent, listening to the traditional dixieland Jazz band. After that it was over to Fais Do Do to see Hadley J. Castille, a Cajun band with a country/ string band style. The next act I wanted to see was Turbinton's House - tribute to Willie Tee and Earl Turbinton, two brothers on the New Orleans music scene, who had both passed away within the last year. Those tributes can be good, since you never know who might show up. The first part of the set was the jazz portion, with members of Astral Project, and David Torkanowsky on piano; the second half was more of an R&B set. A few minutes into this tribute set, it started pouring rain outside, and became very crowded in the tent, so we stayed for the rest of the day, and this was how I heard the most jazz ever in one day at Jazz fest. Ever since the schedule came out, I was looking forward to seeing Billy Joel that day, and maybe some of the Ponderosa Stomp revue in the neighboring Blues tent, but we decided to stay put since we had pretty good seats in the jazz tent, and it was not a bad thing. Astral Project was up next, and they were very good. I had heard of them for years, but never seen them before. Then we were treated to a tight performance by the 17-piece Count Basie Orchestra, led by the dapper and dignified looking John Hughes.
That's how it goes at jazzfest- usually whatever you see is bound to be something good, even if it is not something you planned on. Later that night we headed out to Rock'n'Bowl, where we saw Jon Cleary, then Sonny Landreth.
Sunday started off sunny, though the grounds were still muddy from the day before. After an extravagant breakfast at Brennan's, we arrived at the fairgrounds a little later that day, starting off in the Gospel tent with Shades of Praise, then a little hoo-na-tee-na-nay, with the Golden Star Hunters Mardi Gras Indians. We watched a bit of Shamarr Allen, then made our way over to the Voice of the Wetlands Allstars at Acura. If you could only see one set at jazzfest, that was a good one to pick, since it included Tab Benoit, Dr. John, Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne, Jumpin' Johnny Sansone. As they sang "Don't let the water - wash us away" I looked up at the darkening skies and echoed the song's plea. The next song was "Louisiana Sunshine" but it didn't do much to stop the deluge.
After about a half-dozen more songs, including a touching Johnny Sansone ballad for everyone trying to return home to New Orleans, the skies opened up and sent us running for cover under a food tent. When it let up a little bit we made our way over to the Gospel tent for a while, and I convinced Joe to stay by taking shelter in the Grandstands - it just couldn't rain all day! As we approached the sheltered Lagniappe stage inside the paddock area, we heard a familiar twang - the schedule said "Del McCoury Interview" but there was no interview, just Del and The Boys, picking away! I guess the interviewer didn't want to compete with the sound of the raindrops. No strangers to rainy festivals, the conditions didn't seem to bother them, and they let loose with their trademark hard-driving bluegrass, studded with humor. The announcer said they would be on the Fais-do-do stage later, and Del quipped, we'll be "dosey-do-ing". It was funny, they were one band I had not planned on trying to see that day, because I usually get to see them at other bluegrass festivals. But the venue provided a welcome refuge, and the music was uplifting anyway. Since it was still coming down pretty good we decided to stay put, and I slurped down a dozen oysters while listening to the New Orleans Klezmer Allstars. As soon as the sky started to brighten, we went back out, and I headed down to the jazz tent to see Nicholas Payton. The sun was back out, and I met up with Joe afterwards near Fais-do-do, where Del and the boys were playing to a mud-stomping crowd that included a couple of hula-hoopers. Not your average bluegrass festival.
For the last set of the day, I found a peaceful, relatively dry spot to watch Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint from across a moat full of with turtles. From that vantage point, I could hear and see the video screen pretty well and it was right near the Mango Freeze booth --- ah, nirvana! a nice way to end the day at the faigrounds, though we left a little earlier than usual, in search of dry socks and hot food. Even though it was a little wet, it was still a good jazzfest.
Here are the rest of my pictures from the first weekend.
Monday was a nice relaxing day, full of surprises. We had breakfast at Mena's, then wandered down to the French Market for some shopping, and rode the streetcar back and went to LMF to get some CD's. A little later we headed over to our friends' house in Gentilly for the raffle drawing / party, which I wrote about several weeks ago. There was some delicious food, including our hosts' famous homemade crawfish bread and crawfish cheesecake, and dozens of Threadheads hanging out in the backyard. Paul Sanchez, (ex-guitarist from Cowboy mouth, singer, songwriter, and just one of New Orleans uniquely talented musicians) was there, and silly me, I thought he was just there as an invited guest, and just "happened" to have his guitar with him. But he was there to perform, and he entertained us with a beautiful set of originals and covers, as only he can do it. Some were funny, like Manana, and Hurricane Party, and some were sad. When he sang Randy Newman's "Louisiana 1927" there was not a dry eye, but he soon lifted us back up with "At the Foot of Canal Street". While all this was going on, the raffle prizes were being drawn inside, so at the end of the performance, some people were matched up with their winnings. I won a bunch of CD's and DVD's, mostly live recordings - can't wait to hear them all! Later on we went to Gumbo Shop for dinner, then on the advice of a couple of friends we just met, to Kerry Irish pub to see Kim Carson, and there was a whole crew of threadheads there too! Kim said something about Jazzfest being the best time in New Orleans, when all the real music lovers descend upon the city, and I must agree, it is wonderful to be in the company of so many like-minded individuals. We love it!
Tuesday was the fourth annual Threadhead party, aka "the patry", an excellent ending to the week that made up for some of the less than ideal conditions at the fairgrounds over the weekend. Organized by a group of threadheads from all over North America, what started as a simple backyard gathering in 2005 has turned into a somewhat larger event with a fundraising component, which benefits New Orleans Musicians Clinic (NOMC) and Silence is Violence (SIV) [see previous posts in this blog, or visit threadheads.org for more info.] This year over $20k was donated to the 2 charities, mostly from the raffle. The party itself was almost like a mini version of Jazzfest, but without all the running around. It started around noon, with Bob French and the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, followed by the Hot 8 Brass band, who were joined by Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and some Mardi Gras Indians.
Paul Sanchez entertained us again, this time with his "Rolling Road show" revue, which included John and Lillian Boutte, Craig Klein from Bonerama, Susan Cowsill, and more.
To eat, there was plenty of boiled crawfish, jamabalaya,
shrimp pasta, salad, and awesome desserts - plus plenty of beer, soft drinks, and spiked ice tea from the Old New Orleans Rum Distillery. One of the highlights of the day was the performance by the kids from the SIV sponsored music clinic, supported through the Fest4kidz initiative. What a jam! From where I was standing it was hard to get good pictures; here is a link to a short video on youtube. After that, Big Sam's Funky Nation got everybody grooving, then Shamarr Allen closed out the night with his band. The bass player, Will, had won a grammy for his work with Terrence Simien, and he brought the grammy out for all of us to behold. The night ended with a everyone second-lining and singing along to his "Meet me on Frenchmen Street", around 10pm.
A ten-hour party sounds like a long time, but it just flies by when in the company of good friends, great music and food, like a fest within the fest.
More pictures from Monday's raffle party and Tuesday's Threadhead patry
Inevitably, we had to leave New Orleans the next day, but we will return next year for Jazzfest, if not before. We consoled ourselves the following weekend by watching and listening to live internet broadcasts 2nd weekend... some year I hope to be able to make it for both weekends, but I don't think I would ever want to trade first weekend for second... there's just something about being there for the opening day that is so special.
Thursday
We arrived in the French Quarter around 12:30, had some lunch at Napoleon House, then eased into fest mode by checking out some in-store performances at Louisiana Music Factory, and a couple of $2 Abita drafts at Ol'Toones saloon across the street. Checked into our hotel on Royal Street, then went back out to see the Rebirth Brass Band outside of La Belle Gallerie on Chartres.
This happened to be right across the street from Bacco restaurant, which was having a half-price wine happy hour; they had a table available, so we decided to have dinner there, and indulged in a decadent plate of lobster ravioli in champagne cream sauce. Not exactly New Orleans-style cuisine but delicious just the same. Met up with some friends at the hotel, and joined some of them at the Howling Wolf... for a so-called "brass band blowout", but we arrived during a very long set break and only ended up seeing one band, the Hot 8.
Friday
was the perfect opening day - started out with beautiful clear blue skies and sun, not too hot- and was our fullest day at Jazz Fest, which is like a big family reunion. We hit Liuzza's first, our favorite pre /post fest gathering spot, to have a couple of the most festive Bloody Marys in town while catching up with old friends, some we hadn't seen since last year's jazzfest. After a brief stop in the Gospel tent to get energized (and apply sunscreen) we went for a festival breakfast of Oyster Patty for me and Cochon de Lait for Joe, then headed over to Fais Do Do to catch the Figs, a new all-girl band out of Lafayette, playing country/ western swing. They had good harmonies and interesting material, plus colorful retro outfits.
They were followed by Joe Hall & the Louisiana Cane cutters, a traditional sounding Creole accordion player with 2 fiddle players in the band. After that we headed to the blues tent to see J. Monque D' a blues harmonica player/ singer , who is always entertaining. On the way in to the fest we had run into an old friend who is always raving about a Latin band called "Paky Saavedra's bandido", so we decided to check them out. We heard a few songs like "la Bamba", "Guantanamero", etc. then went to meet up with some friends. After that, we went to the blues tent to see CC Adcock & Doyle Bramhall - straight ahead blues/ rock, then over to Acura for Robert Plant & Alison Krauss- wow! I liked this more than I thought I would. It sounded better live than on the CD. T-bone Burnett and Buddy Miller accompanied them. They sounded good together, and I liked Plant's rendition of Allen Toussaint's "Fortune Teller". Hearing Black Dog with banjo was cool and they sounded good together on some of Alison's tunes too. However after spending over 30 minutes standing, shoulder to shoulder, packed in the thick crowd, barely able to move, craning my neck to see, I had to move on, and headed over to Congo Square for Leo Nocentelli's Rare Funk gathering. At least you could move around there, and dance, though it seemed to end a little early. Next was Ozomatli on the Gentilly stage, a kind of world music mix, with lots of percussion and horns and dance moves. Then in true Jazzfest fashion we switched gears again and went back to fais-do-do for Bruce Daigrepont, where we got some good Cajun dancing in. Ai-eee!
It's been a while since I've witnessed the watermelon sacrifice at Jazzfest, that bizarre ritual that takes place before the last act on the Fais do-do stage. It's tough to describe in words but I took some video:
After that was grammy award winning Terrence Simien, who always puts on a good show. There was a good crowd there.
Then we drifted back to Congo Square for the mellow reggae of Burning Spear, who seemed to be making up songs on the spot, and on the way out, stopped in Economy Hall to hear jazz chanteuse Banu Gibson. ...We saw about a dozen different acts that day, not counting the Second line parades and Mardi Gras Indians. It was a great first day at the fest!
Dinner that night was at Deanie's seafood - char broiled oysters, fried oysters and shrimp, stuffed crab. Yum!
Saturday
We started out in Economy Hall, where we heard Connie Jones' Crescent City jazz Band. After so much running around the day before it was nice to have a seat in this tent, listening to the traditional dixieland Jazz band. After that it was over to Fais Do Do to see Hadley J. Castille, a Cajun band with a country/ string band style. The next act I wanted to see was Turbinton's House - tribute to Willie Tee and Earl Turbinton, two brothers on the New Orleans music scene, who had both passed away within the last year. Those tributes can be good, since you never know who might show up. The first part of the set was the jazz portion, with members of Astral Project, and David Torkanowsky on piano; the second half was more of an R&B set. A few minutes into this tribute set, it started pouring rain outside, and became very crowded in the tent, so we stayed for the rest of the day, and this was how I heard the most jazz ever in one day at Jazz fest. Ever since the schedule came out, I was looking forward to seeing Billy Joel that day, and maybe some of the Ponderosa Stomp revue in the neighboring Blues tent, but we decided to stay put since we had pretty good seats in the jazz tent, and it was not a bad thing. Astral Project was up next, and they were very good. I had heard of them for years, but never seen them before. Then we were treated to a tight performance by the 17-piece Count Basie Orchestra, led by the dapper and dignified looking John Hughes.
That's how it goes at jazzfest- usually whatever you see is bound to be something good, even if it is not something you planned on. Later that night we headed out to Rock'n'Bowl, where we saw Jon Cleary, then Sonny Landreth.
Sunday started off sunny, though the grounds were still muddy from the day before. After an extravagant breakfast at Brennan's, we arrived at the fairgrounds a little later that day, starting off in the Gospel tent with Shades of Praise, then a little hoo-na-tee-na-nay, with the Golden Star Hunters Mardi Gras Indians. We watched a bit of Shamarr Allen, then made our way over to the Voice of the Wetlands Allstars at Acura. If you could only see one set at jazzfest, that was a good one to pick, since it included Tab Benoit, Dr. John, Cyril Neville, Anders Osborne, Jumpin' Johnny Sansone. As they sang "Don't let the water - wash us away" I looked up at the darkening skies and echoed the song's plea. The next song was "Louisiana Sunshine" but it didn't do much to stop the deluge.
After about a half-dozen more songs, including a touching Johnny Sansone ballad for everyone trying to return home to New Orleans, the skies opened up and sent us running for cover under a food tent. When it let up a little bit we made our way over to the Gospel tent for a while, and I convinced Joe to stay by taking shelter in the Grandstands - it just couldn't rain all day! As we approached the sheltered Lagniappe stage inside the paddock area, we heard a familiar twang - the schedule said "Del McCoury Interview" but there was no interview, just Del and The Boys, picking away! I guess the interviewer didn't want to compete with the sound of the raindrops. No strangers to rainy festivals, the conditions didn't seem to bother them, and they let loose with their trademark hard-driving bluegrass, studded with humor. The announcer said they would be on the Fais-do-do stage later, and Del quipped, we'll be "dosey-do-ing". It was funny, they were one band I had not planned on trying to see that day, because I usually get to see them at other bluegrass festivals. But the venue provided a welcome refuge, and the music was uplifting anyway. Since it was still coming down pretty good we decided to stay put, and I slurped down a dozen oysters while listening to the New Orleans Klezmer Allstars. As soon as the sky started to brighten, we went back out, and I headed down to the jazz tent to see Nicholas Payton. The sun was back out, and I met up with Joe afterwards near Fais-do-do, where Del and the boys were playing to a mud-stomping crowd that included a couple of hula-hoopers. Not your average bluegrass festival.
For the last set of the day, I found a peaceful, relatively dry spot to watch Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint from across a moat full of with turtles. From that vantage point, I could hear and see the video screen pretty well and it was right near the Mango Freeze booth --- ah, nirvana! a nice way to end the day at the faigrounds, though we left a little earlier than usual, in search of dry socks and hot food. Even though it was a little wet, it was still a good jazzfest.
Here are the rest of my pictures from the first weekend.
Monday was a nice relaxing day, full of surprises. We had breakfast at Mena's, then wandered down to the French Market for some shopping, and rode the streetcar back and went to LMF to get some CD's. A little later we headed over to our friends' house in Gentilly for the raffle drawing / party, which I wrote about several weeks ago. There was some delicious food, including our hosts' famous homemade crawfish bread and crawfish cheesecake, and dozens of Threadheads hanging out in the backyard. Paul Sanchez, (ex-guitarist from Cowboy mouth, singer, songwriter, and just one of New Orleans uniquely talented musicians) was there, and silly me, I thought he was just there as an invited guest, and just "happened" to have his guitar with him. But he was there to perform, and he entertained us with a beautiful set of originals and covers, as only he can do it. Some were funny, like Manana, and Hurricane Party, and some were sad. When he sang Randy Newman's "Louisiana 1927" there was not a dry eye, but he soon lifted us back up with "At the Foot of Canal Street". While all this was going on, the raffle prizes were being drawn inside, so at the end of the performance, some people were matched up with their winnings. I won a bunch of CD's and DVD's, mostly live recordings - can't wait to hear them all! Later on we went to Gumbo Shop for dinner, then on the advice of a couple of friends we just met, to Kerry Irish pub to see Kim Carson, and there was a whole crew of threadheads there too! Kim said something about Jazzfest being the best time in New Orleans, when all the real music lovers descend upon the city, and I must agree, it is wonderful to be in the company of so many like-minded individuals. We love it!
Tuesday was the fourth annual Threadhead party, aka "the patry", an excellent ending to the week that made up for some of the less than ideal conditions at the fairgrounds over the weekend. Organized by a group of threadheads from all over North America, what started as a simple backyard gathering in 2005 has turned into a somewhat larger event with a fundraising component, which benefits New Orleans Musicians Clinic (NOMC) and Silence is Violence (SIV) [see previous posts in this blog, or visit threadheads.org for more info.] This year over $20k was donated to the 2 charities, mostly from the raffle. The party itself was almost like a mini version of Jazzfest, but without all the running around. It started around noon, with Bob French and the Original Tuxedo Jazz Band, followed by the Hot 8 Brass band, who were joined by Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and some Mardi Gras Indians.
Paul Sanchez entertained us again, this time with his "Rolling Road show" revue, which included John and Lillian Boutte, Craig Klein from Bonerama, Susan Cowsill, and more.
To eat, there was plenty of boiled crawfish, jamabalaya,
shrimp pasta, salad, and awesome desserts - plus plenty of beer, soft drinks, and spiked ice tea from the Old New Orleans Rum Distillery. One of the highlights of the day was the performance by the kids from the SIV sponsored music clinic, supported through the Fest4kidz initiative. What a jam! From where I was standing it was hard to get good pictures; here is a link to a short video on youtube. After that, Big Sam's Funky Nation got everybody grooving, then Shamarr Allen closed out the night with his band. The bass player, Will, had won a grammy for his work with Terrence Simien, and he brought the grammy out for all of us to behold. The night ended with a everyone second-lining and singing along to his "Meet me on Frenchmen Street", around 10pm.A ten-hour party sounds like a long time, but it just flies by when in the company of good friends, great music and food, like a fest within the fest.
More pictures from Monday's raffle party and Tuesday's Threadhead patry
Inevitably, we had to leave New Orleans the next day, but we will return next year for Jazzfest, if not before. We consoled ourselves the following weekend by watching and listening to live internet broadcasts 2nd weekend... some year I hope to be able to make it for both weekends, but I don't think I would ever want to trade first weekend for second... there's just something about being there for the opening day that is so special.
Sunday, April 13, 2008
Jazz Fest Training, and Recovery
Jazzfest starts in less than two weeks, but there are some fine events taking place in the Northeast to help us get in shape (musically that is). Last night we were treated to a smokin' zydeco show by JJ Callier and the Zydeco Knockouts, at the German Club in Pawtucket. This was my first time seeing them and I was impressed by the way he alternated between different styles of zydeco and more, deftly switching between three accordions (single row, triple, and full-size piano key). The rubboard player and drummer kept a great groove going, reminding me a little of Beau Jocque on some songs ... heard later that the drummer used to play with Beau. Then the bass player (a Broussard) took a turn on accordion and he kicked it up even more. The dance floor was hopping all night.
Next Thursday 4/17, Marcia Ball will be at the Narrows Center for the Arts, and Saturday 4/19 CJ Chenier returns to the German Club.
After the fest there is a month long run of festivals featuring Lousiana Music:
The Bayou and Boogie Fest by Sals Productions on Memorial Day weekend brings a couple of Louisiana zydeco bands back to RI: Curley Taylor, Leroy Thomas , plus Dennis Stroughmatt, and local favorites Magnolia and Li'l Anne.
Later that week, Bonerama and Tab Benoit play at Chan's in Woonsocket, just before appearing at Mike Arnone's Crawfish Fest in NJ, 5/30 - 6/1, which again features a stellar jazz-fest like lineup, including Alan Toussaint, Rosie Ledet, Little Freddy King, the Radiators, and so much more. Check it out at http://www.crawfishfest.com/
The following weekend 6/5 - 6/8 is the Blast from the Bayou at Strawberry park, featuring Beausoleil, Steve Riley, Geno Delafose (to name just a few) , followed by the Cajun / Zydeco fest at Sunrise resort in Moodus CT. with its annual visits from Brian Jack, Dora and the zydeco Bad Boys, Pine Leaf boys and more.
If you're a fan of Louisiana music but favor more of the New Orleans styles, the Radiators and Henry Butler will be at the Narrows around that time too..... as well as lots of other excellent shows. There may be some I've left out, but I am not trying to give a comprehensive listing here- I am just amazed at the wealth of Lousiana music that will seemingly be following us up north after Jazz Fest. This may make it a little easier to leave the promised land of New Orleans and head home to New England, knowing that we will still be dancing and grooving our way into summer with some of our favorite bands. And that is just in June!
Next Thursday 4/17, Marcia Ball will be at the Narrows Center for the Arts, and Saturday 4/19 CJ Chenier returns to the German Club.
After the fest there is a month long run of festivals featuring Lousiana Music:
The Bayou and Boogie Fest by Sals Productions on Memorial Day weekend brings a couple of Louisiana zydeco bands back to RI: Curley Taylor, Leroy Thomas , plus Dennis Stroughmatt, and local favorites Magnolia and Li'l Anne.
Later that week, Bonerama and Tab Benoit play at Chan's in Woonsocket, just before appearing at Mike Arnone's Crawfish Fest in NJ, 5/30 - 6/1, which again features a stellar jazz-fest like lineup, including Alan Toussaint, Rosie Ledet, Little Freddy King, the Radiators, and so much more. Check it out at http://www.crawfishfest.com/
The following weekend 6/5 - 6/8 is the Blast from the Bayou at Strawberry park, featuring Beausoleil, Steve Riley, Geno Delafose (to name just a few) , followed by the Cajun / Zydeco fest at Sunrise resort in Moodus CT. with its annual visits from Brian Jack, Dora and the zydeco Bad Boys, Pine Leaf boys and more.
If you're a fan of Louisiana music but favor more of the New Orleans styles, the Radiators and Henry Butler will be at the Narrows around that time too..... as well as lots of other excellent shows. There may be some I've left out, but I am not trying to give a comprehensive listing here- I am just amazed at the wealth of Lousiana music that will seemingly be following us up north after Jazz Fest. This may make it a little easier to leave the promised land of New Orleans and head home to New England, knowing that we will still be dancing and grooving our way into summer with some of our favorite bands. And that is just in June!
Thursday, March 20, 2008
On Line Raffle to Benefit New Orleans Music
New Orleans Jazzfest is only about a month away and I CAN'T WAIT! A highlight of my trip to Jazzfest for the past several years has been festing and and partying with other Jazzfest fanatics from all over the US, Canada and overseas that I've met through the Jazzfest message board. This forum is a great way to keep up with all the news and tips on stuff to do in New Orleans before, during and after Jazzfest. Due to the somewhat addictive nature of the board, and the fact that topics are called "threads", those of us who read and post there have come to be called Threadheads.
In 2008, for the third year in a row, some of the Threadheads have organized an online raffle to benefit New Orleans Musicians Clinic, which provides access to health and social welfare services for the local music community. A new beneficiary this year is a charity called Fest4Kids, which partners with Silence is Violence in a program to give New Orleans youth an opportunity to learn and play music, mentored by some of the talented local musicians, and to send kids to fest that might not otherwise be able to afford it.
There are over 100 items being raffled off this year, in so many categories - collectibles, music, art, travel and more. The way the raffle works, is you buy tickets for specific items on the website, threadheadraffle.org using Paypal. You can buy several tickets for one item, or one ticket for each of several items. Some of the prizes are for use in New Orleans, like tickets to night shows and restaurant certificates, but there are lots of other fun items that can be enjoyed anywhere, like t-shirts, posters, one-of-a-kind hand made artwork, jewelry, wine, and so much more. In the Travel category, there is a trip to Disney World being offered, as well as a weekend in New Orleans. And in the category of "Other", there's even an animatronic parrot - Squawkers McCaw - who loves to go to festivals! 
The Threadhead Raffle will be held on 4/28, the Monday between Jazzfest weekends in New Orleans, but you need not be present to win. Prizes not picked up in New Orleans will be shipped to the winner, who will be notified by email. A list of the winners will also be posted on the messageboard. You can read more about the Threadheads, the raffle, and other related projects here. But to jump in and buy some tickets for any of these fun items, please click the link below:
Sunday, February 24, 2008
Mardi Gras - RI Style
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A fine time was had by all last night at the RI Mardi Gras Ball (yeah, I know Mardi Gras was a few weeks ago, but it's RI and we do it our way)
The Mardi Gras Ball was like a really great night in the dance tent at Rhythm and Roots, only with a much more spacious and comfortable dance floor. The Hot Tamale Brass band kicked things off, playing for early arrivals, and also between sets, during the costume parade to make it extra festive. The Red Stick Ramblers were joined by Jesse Lege on accordion, then Steve Riley and the Mamou playboys took the stage. What made it seem more like the festival was the jam at the end of the set, when Tara Nevins of Donna the Buffalo joined them on rubboard, plus Kevin Wimmer of the Red Stick Ramblers also returned to the stage, with Brad Frank on drums, for an extended "Oh Mam" jam then a bluesy "All Night Long".
Then Tara and Kevin also played with Keith Frank. This is like the half way point between the last Rhythm and and Roots and the next one, so it is a good opportunity to reunite with many of our festival-loving friends, looking forward to another season of festive living.
Here is some video of the costume parade - lots of good ones, including some Roman soldiers, pirates, Marie Antoinette, and a jambalaya pot. The grand prize winners were a pair of colorful Mardi Gras Peacocks. I think one of the prizes this year was a tattoo or body piercing - glad I didn't go nuts putting together a costume for this one! My favorite was a gent dressed as Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz, who can be seen dancing around. He didn't win, but I think he should have won something for most gutsy.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Jammin' at Joe Val
The Joe Val Bluegrass festival is held at a 6-story Sheraton hotel that resembles a castle.
Upon entering this bluegrass kingdom, you are in for an experience that may at first seem more like a conference or convention than a festival because of its indoor setting, but as soon as you arrive, you realize this is no ordinary hotel experience. The entire hotel is filled with bluegrass musicians and fans, and there is usually a jam or two taking place right in the main lobby.
When one thinks of elevator music, it usually brings to mind some bland, boring background music meant to relax, but invariably having the opposite effect (at least to me). But at the festival this past weekend in Framingham, MA , the term "elevator music" took on a whole new meaning. As you ride the elevator between floors, you can hear the sounds of banjos and mandolins getting closer and closer and then surprise! The doors slide open to a pickin' party. Don't care for that rendition of "Old Home Place"? Step back in, go up or down a floor and find another group playing "Foggy Mountain Breakdown". This is what turns a 3-day concert into a real bluegrass festival, since bluegrass is a type of music where a high percentage of the audience are musicians themselves. You can just travel between floors listening to or taking part in endless jams all weekend.
Of course, these spontaneous jams are just one part of the 3 day event, the main focus of which is to present high quality bluegrass music from a wealth of national and regional bands. This year's festival seemed to be skewed more to the traditional side of bluegrass. On Friday night, Miller's Crossing, from NY, sang about a Cabin in the Pines and other such classic bluegrass subjects, and Mike Cleveland's aptly named band Flamekeeper closed out the night with their hard-driving music to a very enthusiastic crowd. Even though that was his only official set on the main stage, he joined several others the next day. It is such a joy to watch Michael play fiddle. After that I was in no mood to settle in for the night so I went wandering the halls in search of more music, and it was easy to find. Just step into aforementioned elevator, press the button and see what happens.
The next day, after a visit to the fitness center, I decided to try a yodeling workshop, and apparently I wasn't the only one intrigued by this, as it was standing room only in one of the conference rooms on the lower level. Have you ever heard of harmony yodeling? I wasn't sure I had, but it sounded very nice when Alan Kaufman and his partner demonstrated it, and all of us weekend cowpokes were eager to try it as well. Yodel-lay-ee-hoo!
After that I went to hear Frank Wakefield Band upstairs in the main room - he has a unique style, and is quite entertaining to watch, impishly playing his mandolin in his band-mates' ears while they are trying to take a break. He seemed to be having a great time up there, but I was pretty far back during that set, and got to appreciate his antics from a closer angle at a workshop later on. I also went downstairs to the vendor's area to hear some bands on the showcase stage. The whole lower level of the hotel has been renovated, so it is less maze-like and more open, so it was easier to listen to the bands on the showcase stage. Representatives from Grey Fox bluegrass festival had a table set up there, with pictures and info on the new site for that festival, and most people stopping by seemed receptive to and excited about the new digs in Greene County, NY.
My favorite band on Saturday was the Steeldrivers, a band with a traditional sort of name, but one of the less "bluegrassy" sounds, even though the instrumentation was traditional string band. The guitarist/lead vocalist had a bluesy, outlaw-country style, and harmonized beautifully with the female fiddle player. Looking forward to seeing them at other festivals this summer.
Audie Blaylock and Redline, then the Steep Canyon Rangers, got things back on the hard-driving bluegrass track. Veterans Seldom Scene closed out the night on the main stage. I enjoyed another night of jam-hopping, though I was not inspired to join in with my bluegrass accordion, since some of my usual cohorts were missing. One sign of the festival's success is that the hotel sells out so quickly, months in advance, so not everyone that would like to attend can make it. Sure there are other hotels in the area, but if you want to participate in the after hours jams, it is best to stay on site.
Sunday was a mad scramble to get everything packed up and ready to go -then downstairs for more music. My favorite band on Sunday was a family group called the Abrams Brothers, 14 and 16 year old brothers from Canada, with a cousin on bass and father on guitar, plus Bob Burtch on Mandolin and Brandon Green on banjo. They were amazing instrumentalists and did a varied set of bluegrass, gospel, progressive instrumentals, and some covers of Arlo Guthrie and Bob Dylan songs from their upoming recording.
Reminiscent of the time the Grascals filled in for someone due to illness a few years ago, the
surprise set of the afternoon was a last minute substitution. The band Dailey and Vincent were snowed in somewhere and couldn't make it, so James King and Audie Blaylock's bands joined forces for a rousing set of double-barreled bluegrass in the style of Jimmy Martin, the Stanley Brothers, and other classic material. It was a great unplanned set. Here's a little snippet of them doing "How Mountain Girls can Love":
Blue Highway wound things up for the weekend, with their dobro accented bluegrass and thoughtful country songwriting. And speaking of Stanley Bros, they augmented their set with some very funny Ralph Stanlely impressions, including a mock rendition of Led Zeppelin's Black Dog. As usual the weekend went by much too fast, so we're Goin' Down the Road feelin' Bad, like this guy:
But thanks to the magic of digital photography and youtube we can already start reliving it! Some of my other photos of the 2008 Joe Val festival can be viewed here. And it won't be long now til festival season is in full swing. Next weekend there is more festive living on tap at the RI Mardi Gras Ball. See, winter's not so bad!
Upon entering this bluegrass kingdom, you are in for an experience that may at first seem more like a conference or convention than a festival because of its indoor setting, but as soon as you arrive, you realize this is no ordinary hotel experience. The entire hotel is filled with bluegrass musicians and fans, and there is usually a jam or two taking place right in the main lobby.
When one thinks of elevator music, it usually brings to mind some bland, boring background music meant to relax, but invariably having the opposite effect (at least to me). But at the festival this past weekend in Framingham, MA , the term "elevator music" took on a whole new meaning. As you ride the elevator between floors, you can hear the sounds of banjos and mandolins getting closer and closer and then surprise! The doors slide open to a pickin' party. Don't care for that rendition of "Old Home Place"? Step back in, go up or down a floor and find another group playing "Foggy Mountain Breakdown". This is what turns a 3-day concert into a real bluegrass festival, since bluegrass is a type of music where a high percentage of the audience are musicians themselves. You can just travel between floors listening to or taking part in endless jams all weekend.Of course, these spontaneous jams are just one part of the 3 day event, the main focus of which is to present high quality bluegrass music from a wealth of national and regional bands. This year's festival seemed to be skewed more to the traditional side of bluegrass. On Friday night, Miller's Crossing, from NY, sang about a Cabin in the Pines and other such classic bluegrass subjects, and Mike Cleveland's aptly named band Flamekeeper closed out the night with their hard-driving music to a very enthusiastic crowd. Even though that was his only official set on the main stage, he joined several others the next day. It is such a joy to watch Michael play fiddle. After that I was in no mood to settle in for the night so I went wandering the halls in search of more music, and it was easy to find. Just step into aforementioned elevator, press the button and see what happens.
The next day, after a visit to the fitness center, I decided to try a yodeling workshop, and apparently I wasn't the only one intrigued by this, as it was standing room only in one of the conference rooms on the lower level. Have you ever heard of harmony yodeling? I wasn't sure I had, but it sounded very nice when Alan Kaufman and his partner demonstrated it, and all of us weekend cowpokes were eager to try it as well. Yodel-lay-ee-hoo!
After that I went to hear Frank Wakefield Band upstairs in the main room - he has a unique style, and is quite entertaining to watch, impishly playing his mandolin in his band-mates' ears while they are trying to take a break. He seemed to be having a great time up there, but I was pretty far back during that set, and got to appreciate his antics from a closer angle at a workshop later on. I also went downstairs to the vendor's area to hear some bands on the showcase stage. The whole lower level of the hotel has been renovated, so it is less maze-like and more open, so it was easier to listen to the bands on the showcase stage. Representatives from Grey Fox bluegrass festival had a table set up there, with pictures and info on the new site for that festival, and most people stopping by seemed receptive to and excited about the new digs in Greene County, NY.
My favorite band on Saturday was the Steeldrivers, a band with a traditional sort of name, but one of the less "bluegrassy" sounds, even though the instrumentation was traditional string band. The guitarist/lead vocalist had a bluesy, outlaw-country style, and harmonized beautifully with the female fiddle player. Looking forward to seeing them at other festivals this summer.
 |  |
| Steeldrivers | Steep Canyon Rangers |
Audie Blaylock and Redline, then the Steep Canyon Rangers, got things back on the hard-driving bluegrass track. Veterans Seldom Scene closed out the night on the main stage. I enjoyed another night of jam-hopping, though I was not inspired to join in with my bluegrass accordion, since some of my usual cohorts were missing. One sign of the festival's success is that the hotel sells out so quickly, months in advance, so not everyone that would like to attend can make it. Sure there are other hotels in the area, but if you want to participate in the after hours jams, it is best to stay on site.
Sunday was a mad scramble to get everything packed up and ready to go -then downstairs for more music. My favorite band on Sunday was a family group called the Abrams Brothers, 14 and 16 year old brothers from Canada, with a cousin on bass and father on guitar, plus Bob Burtch on Mandolin and Brandon Green on banjo. They were amazing instrumentalists and did a varied set of bluegrass, gospel, progressive instrumentals, and some covers of Arlo Guthrie and Bob Dylan songs from their upoming recording.
Reminiscent of the time the Grascals filled in for someone due to illness a few years ago, the
surprise set of the afternoon was a last minute substitution. The band Dailey and Vincent were snowed in somewhere and couldn't make it, so James King and Audie Blaylock's bands joined forces for a rousing set of double-barreled bluegrass in the style of Jimmy Martin, the Stanley Brothers, and other classic material. It was a great unplanned set. Here's a little snippet of them doing "How Mountain Girls can Love":
Blue Highway wound things up for the weekend, with their dobro accented bluegrass and thoughtful country songwriting. And speaking of Stanley Bros, they augmented their set with some very funny Ralph Stanlely impressions, including a mock rendition of Led Zeppelin's Black Dog. As usual the weekend went by much too fast, so we're Goin' Down the Road feelin' Bad, like this guy:
But thanks to the magic of digital photography and youtube we can already start reliving it! Some of my other photos of the 2008 Joe Val festival can be viewed here. And it won't be long now til festival season is in full swing. Next weekend there is more festive living on tap at the RI Mardi Gras Ball. See, winter's not so bad!
Sunday, February 10, 2008
Grey Fox finds a Home
Uncertainty has been in the air the past few months, ever since the news came out in December that the Rothvoss Farm in Ancramdale, NY, was to be sold. Where would our beloved Greyfox Bluegrass festival, which has taken place at that same location every July for the past 30+ years, be moved to? After much rumor and speculation, an official announcement was made today on the Greyfox website, naming Walsh Farm in nearby Greene County, NY as the successor to the Rothvoss Farm. This should ease any doubts in the minds of some potential festival goers who may have been on the fence about making plans without knowing where we would end up. The new location, with its camping described as being "on the level" sounds promising. While I will miss the beautiful sunsets and overall atmosphere of the old location, I will not miss many of the challenges of festing on a hillside - walking on a slant all weekend, constantly trying to keep things in camp from rolling away, digging the tires in, worrying about people parking their cars the wrong way, getting stuck up top or down below when the road is closed due to r**n. It is still in the mountains of upstate NY, in the Hudson Valley, an area known for its natural beauty and laid back atmosphere - home to Sleepy Hollow and Rip Van Winkle. An article in a local newspaper, the Independent, says it is "right off the Thruway (I-87), ... and also comes with a stream for wading", which will be great for those hot July days. I am looking forward to finding out more about the new site in the coming months, and possibly at next weekend's Joe Val Festival, where there will undoubtedly be some more info to be shared. Move it on over!
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