Previewing Jazz Fest’s second weekend

30th April 2019   ·   0 Comments

By Geraldine Wyckoff
Contributing Writer

More great music and difficult decisions abound during the second weekend of the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Thursday, May 2 through Sunday, May 5. Last week, it was recommended to be sure to make a visit to the Cultural Exchange Pavilion and that goes for this weekend too – some great acts there from Cuba, Africa and beyond. Several of those can also be caught at the Jazz & Heritage Stage, a great venue for those who like to get their dance on and mix it up with a lot of locals who like to hang there. While Mardi Gras Indians parading are beautiful and exciting, their Jazz & Heritage Stage performances, which benefit from microphones, allow one to really hear the Black Indians’ stories told in their chants and songs.

Get the feeling of New Orleans street life by buckjumping with one of the many social aid and pleasure clubs’ parades led by some of this city’s many, and ever-growing number of brass bands. And don’t forget: “When in doubt, go to the Gospel Tent, it always swings.”

Thursday, May 2, 2019
Locals Day – $50 tickets at gate with Louisiana identification

National Fav: Ziggy Marley, Congo Square, 5:25 p.m. The swaying rhythm and socially conscious and one love message of reggae always feels just right at Jazz Fest. Eight-time Grammy winning vocalist and composer Ziggy Marley carries on the spirit of his legendary father, Bob Marley, as is again heard on Ziggy’s 2018 release, Rebellion Rises. On the title cut he sings, “They talkin’ about world revolution, we talkin’ about a peaceful solution.”

Local Fav: Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, Acura Stage, 3:30 p.m. Keyboardist and big B3 player, vocalist and composer Ivan Neville leads one of the best, funkiest, most harmonizing bands in the land. You’ve got to go to the bottom of a dumpster to get the real funk and that’s accomplished by doubling up on bass notes with Tony Hall and Nick Daniels, who, more than incidentally, are great singers. Keepin’ it in the pocket is Alvin Ford on drums and keepin’ it in the family is Ivan’s cousin Ian on guitar.

Personal Fav: Nicholas Payton and The Light Beings, Jazz Tent, 3:45 p.m. One can never tell what the brilliant, Grammy-winning trumpeter, keyboardist and composer might do on any given set. The inspiration for the ensemble’s name, The Light Beings, comes from the award-winning science fiction writer Octavia Butler who often explored the flaws in humanity in her works. The make-up of the group includes drummer Robert “Sput” Searight of Snarky Puppy and the experimental bassist MonoNeon of Ghost Note. A guitarist and dancer round out the sure to be unusual yet don’t miss program.

Friday, May 3, 2019

National Fav: Gladys Knight, Congo Square, 5:45 p.m. Legendary vocalist Gladys Knight first hit it big with the Pips in 1961 with “Every Beat of My Heart” and in 1979 made it to the top of the charts with “Midnight Train to Georgia.” She’s continued that locomotion for over six decades garnering Grammys and Lifetime Achievement Awards from BET and Soul Train. An inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Knight has also enjoyed a successful career in film and television.

Local Fav: Trumpet Mafia, Jazz Tent, 2:50 p.m. Since this brassy ensemble made its Jazz Fest debut in 2015, it’s been back by popular demand ever since. Trumpeter Ashlin Parker, who calls himself a “facilitator,” gathers many – a dozen have hit the stage – of this city’s finest trumpeters to create a joyful noise. This year, the Mafia will include Maurice Brown, Leon “Kid Chocolate” Brown and his young son, Deuce. This set will act as a tribute to the great trumpeter Roy Hargrove, who passed away in 2018. In his honor, students from his alma mater, Dallas’ Booker T. Washington High School will be guests at the show.

Personal Fav:

Kamasi Washington, Gentilly Stage, 4:20 p.m. Tenor saxophonist Kamasi Washington has been rippin’ up the jazz world with his progressive and energetic approach. His creds include working with monsters like Gerald Wilson, Kendrick Lamar, Chaka Khan and Wayne Shorter. He made big waves with his 2014 debut, The Epic, and again for his 2018 release Heaven and Earth. Washington will be fronting a big 10-piece band that includes former New Orleans resident, trumpeter Maurice Brown. Playing the Gentilly Stage gives the audience room to get down.

Saturday, May 4, 2019

National Fav: Diana Ross, Gentilly Stage, 5:45 p.m. Superstar Diana Ross hardly needs an introduction. The vocalist has reigned as a magnetic force since the 1960s as the lead singer of the Motown’s hit-making group, the Supremes. Her palm-up gesture when singing “Stop! In the Name of Love,” remains a classic. As a solo artist, she immediately continued her pop status, topping the charts with “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.” In 2012, Ross was honored by the Grammys with a well-deserved Lifetime Achievement Award. Her impressive career also includes acting in “The Wiz” and “Lady Sings the Blues.”

Local Fav: Tank & the Bangas, Acura Stage, 1:40 p.m. Led by the always optimistic and eclectically coifed and attired Tarriona “Tank” Ball – she’s stylin’ – this group has soared beyond a “local fav,” acquiring fans around the nation. Good grooves delivered with enthusiasm and obvious sincerity are key to its success as Tank mixes up genres moving from funk, soul, hip-hop and spoken word with her gospel background providing a solid base. She has fun and so do audiences.

Personal Fav: Boukman Eksperyans, Jazz & Heritage Stage, 3:30 p.m. Haiti’s most renowned ensemble, formed in 1978, gained world-wide attention with its debut album, A Vodou Adjae, for its ability to blend traditional Haitian music and instrumentation with that of the Caribbean while also adding in rock and reggae elements. From its onset, the band, led by founder and lead singer Theodore “Lolo” Beabrun, gained the favor of “the people” by lyrically expressing its opposition to a dictatorial government. It continues to deliver its political message over highly danceable rhythms.

Sunday, May 5, 2019

National Fav: Chaka Khan, Congo Square Stage, 3:25 p.m. The “Queen of Funk” once said she “wouldn’t dare” leave out “Tell Me Something Good,” the Grammy-winning 1974 hit she recorded with Rufus, or her anthem-like chart-topper, “I’m Every Woman,” from a set. The Chicago native and social activist is right about that. Khan, a real deal, is a one of a kind vocalist and performer who has remained vital, and, yes, funky diggin’ in for almost five decades.

Local Fav: Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue with Nevilles, Acura Stage, 5:30 p.m. Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews carries on the tradition of New Orleans most beloved artists, who totally represent the heartbeat of this city, closing out the festival at the big Acura Stage, that is still known to many as the Fess Stage in honor of piano legend Professor Longhair. The hugely talented, Treme-born trombonist, trumpeter and vocalist boasts a heart as big as his sound that suits the bitter-sweet feelings that come as the final notes of Jazz Fest are blown. It’s so suitable that members of the musical Neville family join Shorty as this was the Neville Brothers slot for years. Their spirit remains.

Personal Fav:

Herbie Hancock, Jazz Tent, 5:30 p.m. One of the most respected musicians in jazz for decades, the brilliant pianist and composer Herbie Hancock has played with “them all” and led the way as an innovator in his individual and collaborated work. For this closing Jazz Fest set, Hancock, whose “Cantaloupe Island” is now a jazz classic, will be joined by drummer Vinnie Colaiuta, bassist James Genus, guitarist Terrance Martin and multi-instrumentalist Terrance Martin. Don’t miss the legends.

This article originally published in the April 29, 2019 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.