Comments on: NOLA JazzFest Lineup Announced

By: j love

j love — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 17:03:30 +0000

i know i’m SO way behind on postings, considering this string was weeks ago…
but is anyone wondering why trey isn’t on the jazz fest lineup? if you’ve seen his most recent tour, he’s got a friggin NOLA style brass band out on stage with him, and takes a second line into the audience at the end of the show. seeing that in december, i figured he’d DEFINITELY be at the fairgrounds in April.
oh well.

By: Chilly Jackwater

Chilly Jackwater — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 14:56:00 +0000

Great call, dude. Who could possibly forget the Candy Girl>Mr. Telephone>Cool It>drums>Man>space>Candy Girl reprise>jam>Cool It Down*>Down sandwich from the Spectrum in ’84? (* – Velvet Underground cover) Man, the jheri curl was FLYING that night. Although, I also remember that night as the time that wook slung me some bunk Z-Cavaricci’s in the lot.

And crunk, I hear you. One of the odder memories I had from the Fairgrounds was taking some much needed time out INSIDE the grandstand where Willis Proudomme was “performing.” Well, that is if you consider “playing 2 3-minute songs with about 45 minutes of filler about the time he met Elvis at some radio station in 1953,” performing. But I agree, if a performer has the words “brass band” in their name, you usually can’t go wrong. Unless it’s like the KKK Brass Band. Those dudes blow.

By: o_crunk

o_crunk — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 04:21:55 +0000

hey, but wasn’t panic playing in 1983? i keeed i keeed.

seriously though, i would put panic in one of those slots in the fest lineup that ‘don’t fit’, odd even more is the fact that they are given a 3 hour set considering they aren’t the nevilles or dr john. just sayin’.

i always tend to read the lineup from bottom up. some of those bands you mention with the funny names have given me some of my fondest jazzfest memories. no one knows who the uptown allstars are…hell, they only play during jazzfest, but pound for pound they are the best funk unit i’ve ever seen.

rockin’ dopsie is pretty far down on the list too, but for me they are a consistent highlight year after year.

heck, a band called 007 isn’t even in the allmusic directory and they are almost all the way to the bottom of the list. i gave them fifteen minutes of my ear once and i’ll never miss their set if they play the weekend i go. they’re that good.

not that you’re putting them down or anything…just thoughts.

By: Some Dude

Some Dude — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 02:45:56 +0000

Ah Chilly out of all those bands you failed to mention that New Freakin’ Edition is playing – listed right there in between Bonnie Raitt and Gilberto Santa Rosa. Did anyone tell the JazzFest organizers that it’s not 1983? But you know everyone is going be loving it when they bust into a Cool It Down -> Mr. Telephone Man -> Cool It Down. That’s going to be hot.

By: Chilly Jackwater

Chilly Jackwater — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 20:42:22 +0000

Seeing as though my handle is “Chilly Jackwater” (as in an allusion to one of my favorite Panic sandwiches, Chilly>Jack>Water), I had the full-on Eli Manning face when I saw this list and noticed that one, prominent, popular drunk southern rock band was missing. But then I remembered that nothing – and I mean NOTHING – gets my gears a-revvin’ like checking out the names of perfomers at the Fairgrounds. It’s like the Louisiana State Council decreed that band names were to be limited heretofore with the words “Jazz”, “Cajun”, “Brass”, “Swingers”, “Original”, “Brothers,” “Creole”, and “Zydeco”. So let’s say your name is…I don’t know…”Big Chief Monk Bernaise Prouleueuaueuaux” and you want to form a band. Well, then by law, your band will be called something along the lines of “Big Chief Monk Bernaise Prouleueuaueuaux and the Zydeco Brass Swingers.” Say your group really doesn’t have a leader. No problem, sayeth the Lousiana State Constitution, you can always try “The Original Creole Brothers Band” or “The Zydeco Jazz All-stars.”

To wit, some of this year’s performers include: Clive Wilson & the Original Camelia Jazz Band, Michael White & the Original Liberty Jazz Band, Brian Jack & the Zydeco Gamblers, and Willis Prudhomme & Zydeco Express. Like Celine Dion’s heart, I could go on. But I won’t.

Other thoughts: Every year when they release the list, two things strike me as odd. One, they always list the headliners first and there is ALWAYS one who doesn’t seem to quite fit. It’ll be like “Stevie Wonder, Dr. John, Bruce Springsteen, the guy who sang ‘The Lady In Red,’ Dave Matthews…” Check it out this year: Harry Connick Jr., Rod Stewart, Steely Dan, Norah Jones, ZZ Top, John Legend, Van Morrison. Harry Connick? That’s fine, he’s a NOLA legend. Rod? Is probably more popular now than he has ever been. Norah? The best-selling jazz vocalist in a loooong time. John Legend? Huge year for the guy. Van The Man? He’s always relevant, if only for the “I hope he gets really tanked and starts berating his band and audience” factor. So who’d I skip? ZZ Top. ZZ Top? Where are they playing? The meth lab stage? Look, I love Cheap Sunglasses as much as the next guy, but come on. (That being said, count me in for ZZ!!)

The other thing that strikes me in this list every year is the precipitous drop it takes after the headliners are listed. Again, check it out this year: …Roy Hargrove, Galactic, The Holmes Brothers, The Radiators, Chuck Leavell, Irma Thomas’ Tribute to Mahalia Jackson, Clarence “Frogman” Henry, Elder Baab & the Madison Bumble Bees of Winnsboro, The Dixie Cups… Do you see it? Chuck Leavall? He’s big time. Irma Thomas plays every year. But after Irma? First, there’s Clarence “Frogman” Henry who I assume has naked pictures of the festival organizers. Then there’s something called “Elder Baab & the Madison Bumble Bees of Winnsboro”. Catchy name. I’m glad that they distinguished themselves from the OTHER “Elder Baab & the Madison Bumble Bees” out there. I mean, if Elder Baab & the Madison Bumble Bees of Harlem were playing, then fuck those dudes. I’m not going.

Alright, maybe I am just bitter that Panic is on there.