NEW ORLEANS — Gospel singers were harmonizing and brass-band horns were pumping out a parade oompah. Between them, Glen David Andrews was dressed like an R&B star in shades and a heavily sequined T-shirt, shouting to the rafters, singing about the Lord. It was Friday afternoon in the gospel tent at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. In typical New Orleans style, traditions were getting all mixed together.
This was the 40th annual Jazzfest, which ended on Sunday. Quint Davis, who produced them all, often describes it as the “world’s biggest backyard barbecue”: a giant New Orleans house party with food, drinks and live music, plenty of it. This year, on 12 stages during two long weekends, Jazzfest presented more than 400 acts, the great majority of them from Louisiana.
To draw pop fans, there were visiting hitmakers — Kings of Leon, Bonnie Raitt, Tony Bennett, the Dave Matthews Band, Erykah Badu, Neil Young, Bon Jovi and Sugarland. But the core of the festival is the music and food that New Orleanians used to take for granted and visitors are overjoyed to discover.
The festival marked its milestone largely by sticking to business as usual. That meant Cajun fiddle tunes floating across the grass from bands like BeauSoleil, Feufollet and Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys. That meant people with parasols stepping to traditional jazz from the Treme Brass Band and the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. It meant brass-band parades through the crowd. It meant the aromas of jambalaya and etouffe, and countless “Oh yeah!” singalongs and dancing feet.
This was the 40th annual Jazzfest, which ended on Sunday. Quint Davis, who produced them all, often describes it as the “world’s biggest backyard barbecue”: a giant New Orleans house party with food, drinks and live music, plenty of it. This year, on 12 stages during two long weekends, Jazzfest presented more than 400 acts, the great majority of them from Louisiana.
To draw pop fans, there were visiting hitmakers — Kings of Leon, Bonnie Raitt, Tony Bennett, the Dave Matthews Band, Erykah Badu, Neil Young, Bon Jovi and Sugarland. But the core of the festival is the music and food that New Orleanians used to take for granted and visitors are overjoyed to discover.
The festival marked its milestone largely by sticking to business as usual. That meant Cajun fiddle tunes floating across the grass from bands like BeauSoleil, Feufollet and Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys. That meant people with parasols stepping to traditional jazz from the Treme Brass Band and the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. It meant brass-band parades through the crowd. It meant the aromas of jambalaya and etouffe, and countless “Oh yeah!” singalongs and dancing feet.
