I am not going to sit here and convince you that the Neville Brothers are exactly within the jazz category. Hell, I am not even going to sit here and tell you I know a single Neville Brothers song or what their music sounds like. What I do know is that they are all originally from New Orleans and that it had become a tradition for those hometown boys to close out the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Then came Katrina, and all of that changed.

The brothers scattered to the winds and across the country. Every year, the fans would attend the festival in hopes the brothers would make a return. That hadn’t happened. Aaron Neville had personal issues and his wife died last year and that sort of sidetracked him. All of that changed with the ‘08 festival.

As written about in this article at CNN.com, the Neville Brothers returned triumphantly to the city where they were born and closed out the festival. By all accounts, it was worth the wait and just the celebratory event the citizens of New Orleans were hoping for.

The festival, as I mentioned, is a symbol and the residents who have scattered since the storm often make the trek back just to see the performers. According to many of them, the return of the Neville Brothers marked a remarkable thing and was a significant event a least in the hearts of New Orleans residents everywhere.

The population of New Orleans was around 455,000 people before Katrina. Since then, some 320,000 have returned. It is a city that is far from being complete and there are still vast areas that show damage, not to mention those who worry about the possibility of the next storm.

Still, when things like this can happen and elighten and brighten the hearts of those who have experienced so much, well, you just can’t deny the healing power of music, can you?

For me, having only visited New Orleans once, and then as a teenager, I felt this was a story that crossed music genres. I hope it is a sign that maybe the city will come back and, perhaps, stronger than ever. I hope to be able to attend the Jazz and Heritage Festival some day and I am glad it has grown and continues to be a symbol of hope.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge

Still, this month and into May one of the biggest jazz festivals in the country is going on in the city still trying to recover from a hurricane: New Orleans.  It is known as the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and if you click on that link you will find a detailed listing of the events. 

The festival kicks off on Friday April 25 and goes through the 27th.  But wait…there’s more.  It then starts up again on Thursday May 1 and goes through May 4.  Yes, it is a festival so big they have to break it up into chunks with a few days of rest in between.

This is an interesting festival.  It has “jazz” in the title, but has performers like Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder and Jimmie Buffet.  Of course, that just scratches the surface.  The concerts also include enough jazz to satisfy you for the rest of the year and perhaps many years.

In fact, the list of performers is so huge, I cannot even attempt to give it here.  I strongly suggest you click on the link above and take a look at the schedule.  They have a schedule for you to look at for each day of the festival.  Given the fact that the city of New Orleans is a place to party like you may never party again, actually having a scheduled, city-sponsored party is an event not to be missed.

I would love to attend, but I am not going to be able to make it.  So, if you have plans and would like to report and send stories from the festival, please just let me know.  I would be glad to publish the tales here and give credit where credit is due.

Post from: Jazz & Blues Lounge