Music
Monogram Hunters, Blood Sweat and Tears (Independent)
Blood Sweat and Tears welcomes listeners to the Monogram Hunters’ Sunday night Indian practice at the First and Last Stop Bar. The chants and ringing tambourines of the Black Masking […]
Derrick Shezbie, The Ghost of Buddy Bolden (Clubhouse Records)
Derrick “Kabuki” Shezbie remains best known as a former member of the Rebirth Brass Band, blowing the trumpet and enlivening the crowds with the Grammy-winning group. The Ghost of Buddy […]
Bad Operation, Bad Operation (Community Records/Bad Time Records)
Jimmy Cliff once explained that ska, which originated in Jamaica in the 1960s, was upbeat because it was born during the period of Jamaican independence from British rule, so people […]
Dancing in the Streets: The Historic New Orleans Collection honors a New Orleans tradition
When Sylvester Francis gave tours of the Backstreet Cultural Museum, which he founded in 1999, he often offered this sage advice: “It’s better to be two hours early to a […]
Kyle Roussel, Church of New Orleans (Independent)
Keyboardist, vocalist and composer Kyle Roussel immediately brightens the atmosphere with wonderful choir-like harmony of “Daylight,” the opening song of his album Church of New Orleans. As the title of […]
Joe Dyson, Look Within (Independent)
New Orleans and world audiences have been listening to and watching the remarkable rise of drummer Joe Dyson for almost three decades. At age two, he began playing in church, […]
Best of the Beat: Lifetime Achievement in Music – Dirty Dozen Brass Band
In 2002, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band celebrated its 25th anniversary and several of its core members related the ensemble’s history and its remarkable rise to fame […]
What does it mean to be in the Dirty Dozen Brass Band? Gregory “Blodie” Davis, Roger Lewis, Kirk Joseph and Kevin Harris let us know.
What is one of your most memorable performance? Gregory Davis: In the early days when we first started traveling, I got a sense of the power of what was happening—when […]
New Orleans Nightcrawlers, Atmosphere (Threadhead Records)
“Who’s in the band?” is often the first question asked by ardent music enthusiasts. When it comes to the New Orleans Nightcrawlers, the answer is: “All ace players on […]
Various Artists, New Orleans Mambo – Cuba to Nola (Putumayo World Music)
Listening to this recording is similar to having a knowledgeable friend spin some tunes that fit together in many likely though not necessarily expected ways. It is a “mix tape” […]
