Miscellaneous

If you like elbow room with your music, today was the day to be at Jazz Fest. Thursday is always a relatively low-key day. And on this particular Thursday, the clouds and threat of rain kept the wimps at home. There were plenty of people out there, but I never once had to stand in line for a Port-O-Let, food, or beer. All day I was able to stroll up to the front of the big stages (Acura and Gentilly), and I had no trouble finding seats in the Gospel and Blues tents.

The first act circled on my schedule was Little Freddie King, playing the Blues Tent at 12:25. With a bit of time to kill before LFK, I decided to check out Bamboula 2000 at the Acura stage. They?re local, but their music is sort of an African-Caribbean melange (in other words, New Orleans roots), the kind of act that makes records for Putamayo. Anyway, they were terrific. Their act includes dancers. One of them was a fat woman, whose dress revealed just as much skin as the thinner female dancers. She made it giggle good. A great dancer, and I loved her attitude.

After Bamboula 2000, I headed to the Blues Tent, where I caught Little Freddie King?s entire set. Little Freddie is a bit of an anomaly; he lives in the city (New Orleans), but he plays country-style blues?the same genre as R.L. Burnside. And Little Freddie is a bit of a showman, with a little Chuck Berry streak. As usual, he brought the house down.

After Little Freddie, I had some tough choices to make. (See immediately preceding post.) Between Anders Osborne and Theresa Andersson, I opted for T.A. Good call. Lately she has been doing a one-woman band, accompanying herself with a bunch of loop pedals. It?s an amazing thing to see, and an even more amazing thing to hear. Besides being the goddess of loop pedals, she?s one hell of a singer?dynamic, with tremendous range, and she really means it. And she?s the second cutest thing on the planet after my wife. Her finale, ?Find the Cost of Freedom,? drew goosebumps. If you ever get a chance to see her live, do. Here?s a taste:

After Theresa?s set, I wandered over to Congo Square to catch most of the New Birth Brass Band?s set. These guys play the kind of jazz that is bubbling up today from the streets of New Orleans. Enough said.

Next up was the Gospel Tent for the Mississippi Mass Choir. I got what I expected: hard-core, high-energy gospel singing.

For the finale, I headed to the Acura stage for Emmylou Harris. After a few minutes, I noticed that the sign on the stage said ?Ben Harper & the Relentless 7.? Then I checked my schedule and noticed that Emmylou Harris was actually playing the Gentilly Stage, on the other end of the Fair Grounds. Sometimes I?m so poor that I can?t even pay attention. Off I went to the Gentilly Stage. A half-mile later, I was there. I missed a little of the opening song, but otherwise saw the entire set. This was country/bluegrass as it was meant to be played. And because the crowd, though vast, wasn?t too thick, I found a spot on the right side of the stage, about six feet from the barricade. She and her music were beautiful.

As I?m writing this post, I don?t remember who?s playing tomorrow. So let?s look at the schedule together to see what looks interesting.

Hmmm. Tony Bennett is closing the Gentilly Stage. An odd act for Jazz Fest. I guess on his way to Vegas, he took a wrong turn at Albuquerque. I may actually see him. Also on tap:

Must see:

• Bonnie Raitt, 3:30?4:4, Acura.
• Washboard Chaz, 11:10?11:55, Blues Tent.

Try to see (and yes, there are some conflicts here):

• J. Monque D, 12:15?1:05, Blues Tent.
• Frankie Ford, 12:55?1:55, Gentilly Stage.
• Marcia Ball, 1:50?2:50, Acura.
• Dirty Dozen Brass Band & Glass House Reunion with Rebirth Brass Band, 2:05?3:15, Congo Square.
• Walter ?Wolfman? Washington, 4:15?5:15, Blues Tent.