Satchmo Music

[funkkjunkie]

I will definitely check him out. My daughter is a clarinetist too.

[BigDag]

Bigdag, how many girlfriends have you got? ;)

I had three that particular evening. They got along pretty well.

[ibjamn]

I think this...http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/13/13_4_10.gif...or maybe this...http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/15/15_4_118.gifor even this...........http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/13/13_4_6.gif.....looks more like us than a bunch of bouncing fruit! ;)

[McGregor]

Whooot!http://www.panicfreaks.org/images/smilies/snoopy.gif
The Armstrong Legacy

By John Swenson

“All of the trumpeters that come from New Orleans—whether we know it or not, or whether we acknowledge it or not—we live in the echo of Pops.”
—Wynton Marsalis

Jazz traveled the technological and aesthetic passageways of the 20th Century to a point where it now has millions of faces around the world. In New Orleans, Louis Armstrong stands out as the face of jazz. His music defines the contours of traditional and swing era New Orleans jazz, and it continues to be a direct influence on the city’s young musicians today. In the starkly recontextualized post-Katrina New Orleans, Armstrong’s influence is one of the cultural realities that was not washed away and doesn’t need public money, charitable institutions or political rhetoric to sustain itself. It lives in the musicians themselves, in Leroy Jones, in Kermit Ruffins, in Troy “Trombone Shorty” Andrews, in Maurice Brown and all the other trumpeters who’ll summon Armstrong’s spirit in the annual birthday celebration for “Pops,” the Satchmo Summer Fest.

Though Jelly Roll Morton was the right age to make the claim that he invented jazz, the younger Armstrong was in on the ground floor. He clearly heard Buddy Bolden, who by all accounts played in a style that influenced the young Armstrong. He codified the concept of a jazz soloist on his 1920s recordings, then in later years became even more famous for his singing. The fact that cuts across all of these accomplishments was that he was the first 20th Century pop musician, a man whose sense of how to sing and play electrified everyone who’s ever heard him. He didn’t play rock ’n’ roll, but you could easily say he was the first rock star.

Each trumpet player has his own way of paying tribute to Armstrong. When you hear that sunny voice delivering a melody that you find yourself whistling hours later, it’s hard not to be touched by the sheer joy Armstrong transmitted. Kermit Ruffins probably embodies that spirit most completely in his performances. In fact, Ruffins also resembles Armstrong in his joie de vivre. Ruffins enjoys himself publicly, tacitly inviting his audience to join him. He totes a cardboard suitcase of cold beer cans around with him like it’s an essential piece of music equipment, sings the praises of smoking reefer and always has the grill stoked so his fans can enjoy some barbecue between sets.

Armstrong displayed remarkably similar habits. A thoroughgoing bon vivant, he advocated pot smoking, New Orleans cooking—famously signing letters, “Red beans and rice-ly yours”—and other indulgences. From the 1940s on, Armstrong suffered critics who compared him unfavorably to his earlier work, implying that his personal behavior and lack of professionalism kept him from being able to reproduce his own genius. Even worse, he was vilified by the left in the 1960s for being an Uncle Tom who played to the expectations of the music business. This despicable charge was leveled at a man who spoke out against both the Eisenhower and Nixon administrations.

Recently a Jazz Times critic made the error of listening to Ruffins’ Live at Vaughan’s and reviewing it from a technical perspective. He was shocked—SHOCKED!!!—to hear the sound of casual enjoyment, which he read as lack of professionalism, associated with a jazz “concert.” Those shiftless folks down in New Orleans lack the sophistication of their New York brethren, imagine that. If you listen to all of Armstrong’s recordings carefully, though, it’s clear that he too hit clams, screwed around with the tempo, forgot words (even whole sections of songs) and sometimes played fast and loose with the niceties of arrangements. Many of these moments are acts of sheer improvisational genius.

The point is not that Ruffins shares Armstrong’s technical mastery or improvisational genius; it’s that Ruffins understands Armstrong’s ability to satisfy a crowd with his music and persona, and capitalizes on that ability.

He makes the show about him in the best way, and my guess is that most people think the somewhat obscure but terrific “Skokiaan,” which Ruffins says is his favorite Armstrong tune, is Ruffins’ own song.

Trombone Shorty’s nickname obscures the fact that he’s also one of the top trumpeters in town, and he can move a large crowd the way Armstrong did. Shorty calls to mind all of Armstrong’s dazzling technique, but what really stamps him as Armstrong’s heir is his stage presence. If Kermit embodies Armstrong’s spirit, Trombone Shorty has demonstrated the sheer technical/emotional brilliance that characterized Armstrong. Shorty can voice every note on the horn (and even some that aren’t) with authority and has a quicksilver style that can climb the scale to hit impossible high notes just as Armstrong did.

He merges musical excellence with personal charisma, particularly a subversive smile that seems to say to audience members, “We’re the ones who really know what’s going on. We get it.” The suggestion that he’s one of us means people join him, whether he’s fronting a second line street parade or exhorting a young crowd of festivalgoers to back that thing up. It’s a gift Armstrong had throughout his lifetime, and it helps explain his fame among people who know little or nothing about jazz.

Satchmo Summer Fest always ends with an exciting cutting session at the finale of Ruffins’ set, a friendly rivalry between several trumpeters that features a high-intensity exchange between Kermit and Shorty. Trumpeter Maurice Brown, one of the many local musicians who’ve relocated since Katrina, and he will be in on that jam session as well.

“It’s definitely one of the great moments, playing at such a high level with such great musicians,” he says.

Brown is best known for contemporary jazz, but despite his seeming stylistic differences from Armstrong, he eagerly looks forward to Summer Fest.

“The Louis Armstrong festival and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival are my favorite festivals, and I play a lot of festivals,” he says. “I feel like it’s my duty to play the Armstrong Festival after living in New Orleans for so long.”

For Brown, Armstrong was the total package. “He represented everything you need to be a trumpet player, his attitude, his technique and his ability as an entertainer,” Brown says. “When you came to an Armstrong show, you were in good hands—that’s the main influence on me. I want the audience to feel that way when they come to see me. I think his strongest influence on me was his confidence; he had so much confidence. And his melodic approach. When Armstrong played, everything he played made sense.”

That Armstrong has a festival and an airport named for him speaks to his stature, particularly in his hometown. For New Orleans’ horn players, that means growing up in a long shadow. Just as every athletic young basketball player is measured up for Michael Jordanhood and singer/songwriters in the mid-1970s had to deal with the “New Dylan” tag, trumpet players in New Orleans have to account for the Satchmo legacy.

Some have embraced it, such as Ruffins and James Andrews, who named his first album Satchmo of the Ghetto. Trumpeter Leroy Jones lived it in 1972 during the halftime of Super Bowl IV, when the Dallas Cowboys played the Miami Dolphins in Tulane Stadium. “I performed on two numbers with the Onward Brass Band,” Jones says. “My role was to play as little Louis Armstrong. The halftime theme was Carnival or Mardi Gras, and it was a tribute to Louis Armstrong who had passed away in July of 1971.”

Jones will perform twice during this year’s Satchmo Summer Fest, playing with the Hurricane Brass Band and the traditional jazz combo New Orleans Finest, and his new album, Soft Shoe includes a cover of “Mack the Knife,” which Armstrong recorded in 1955. He heard Armstrong as a child because his parents had a few of his albums. “I remember one of the LPs was a live recording of Louis and his All-Stars,” Jones says.

“Louis’ cadenza at the end of ‘Ain’t Misbehavin” gives me chills to this day. I listened to that track until I was able to play the solo pretty much like Louis when I was 13 years old. In later years, when I played with the Louisiana Repertory Ensemble, I was introduced to the earlier recordings of Armstrong, the Hot 5, Hot 7 sessions and those great recordings he did with his orchestra from 1929 through 1933. Louis Armstrong will always remain my first mentor.”

Initially, that meant playing loudly. “I did have a more big-voiced, brassy tone when I was younger,” Jones says. “Every trumpet player has his or her sound, be it brassy or mellow. Nowadays, I reckon I fit into that mellow category. Armstrong had an unmistakable, unique and tremendous sound, all his own. To possess a distinct and individual sound is the goal of every musician or vocalist, particularly within the jazz genre.”

To help develop a more distinctive voice, he had to look to other New Orleans trumpet players, including Ernie Cagnolatti, Theodore Riley, Alvin Alcorn, Thomas Jefferson and Jack Willis. Another in recent years has been to step away from the trumpet sometimes, including twice on the new Soft Shoe. “I am playing the flugelhorn on the Burt Bacharach tune ‘Alfie’ and one of my tunes, ‘Waltz for the Bride & Groom.’ As with most of my previous recordings, I like to use that instrument to play a beautiful ballad.”

Choosing the flugelhorn can be seen as an attempt to draw the line where his influences end and Jones begins, but is it that? When the figure is as large as Armstrong, it’s sometimes hard to know when you’re seeing influence, when you’re seeing a rejection of influence, and when you’re seeing something that isn’t there at all in the funhouse mirror of time. It’s very possible that Jones picks up the flugelhorn from time to time for purely musical reasons. When he says of Soft Shoe, “I usually prefer to have a mix of original songs and standards or tunes that listeners might be somewhat familiar with,” is he emulating Armstrong, who similarly mixed the new and the familiar, New Orleans songs and standards, or is he just showing good sense? Or, is that sort of mix one that worked so well for Armstrong that other musicians have followed until it now seems like common wisdom?

No one will mistake Jones for Armstrong on Soft Shoe any more than they would mistake Ruffins, Andrews or Brown for him. Jones’ efforts to establish his own voice have succeeded, and they’ve happened over time.

“Since having the opportunity to perform with Harry Connick, Jr. over the past 17 years, I’ve really begun to get into writing more and more. I’ve always had ideas for original compositions and hopefully I will continue to be inspired to compose fresh music,” he says. Where composition is concerned, Jones says he learned a great deal about harmony and chord relationship from Edward Frank, who played piano on his debut CD, Mo Cream From the Crop.

Although Jones has worked to establish his own artistic persona and make his own music, he paid tribute to Armstrong with 1996’s Props for Pops. “I wanted to pay tribute to my first and foremost mentor,” Jones says. “I wanted to approach the music in an honest manner, using the concept that worked best for the musicians on the session.” Armstrong is a difficult subject for tribute albums because his greatest recorded work is so iconic that it can’t be improved upon and simply reproducing it doesn’t accomplish anything. Wynton Marsalis did an outstanding job of bringing the Hot 5s and Hot 7s to live audiences, and with Props for Pops, Leroy Jones did justice to Armstrong and his own work by including well-crafted arrangements of a number of Armstrong favorites and several strong original compositions in the Armstrong style.

As Jones talks about the album, there’s a hint of ambivalence, like the basketball player who loved watching Michael Jordan but is tired of dealing with comparisons. “I never want to find myself trying to copy someone else’s playing,” Jones says, “but I don’t think I really tried to make a conscious effort to avoid playing like Armstrong. The influences are obvious.”

With three stages and a host of seminars and discussions, the Satchmo Summer Fest tries to put Armstrong in perspective, but his legacy may be more obscure than it appears. Historical perspective is an optical illusion. Those objects in the rear view mirror of the past are actually further away than they appear, so legacy turns into myth, and myth into an abstracted reality formed to the convenience of the viewer. At it, Armstrong is deconstructed into a series of faith-based gestures by well-meaning acolytes who would deify him without fully understanding him, the ultimate fate of all mythic heroes. The influences musicians claim—and writers claim for them—say as much about the musicians and writers as they do about Armstrong.

The smile, the handkerchief, the gravel voice and a couple of familiar songs are all a Son of Satchmo needs to get across to crowds of festivalgoers who already know what they want before they get here. Louis Armstrong in this guise is flag-waving, church-going Safe Family Entertainment. But what of Armstrong the Headhunter? The ambitious young player in the streets of New Orleans who would hitch his wagon to the rival band’s as they both attempted to promote that night’s concert, and cut his opponent to ribbons until he was properly humiliated? It’s a vision of a young man more closely related in today’s music world to the hip-hop community. Armstrong boasted, talked bawdy, ridiculed religious hypocrites, promoted drugs, verbally disrespected women in song and called for the grisly demise of his enemies. It’s a very different vision of Armstrong, but it’s all there on the records, too.

Louis Armstrong’s legacy is obvious in the graduating classes of NOCCA and Louis Armstrong Summer Camp, but his legacy goes far deeper than that, extending to the jail cell where Mystikal sits today wondering what his future holds. That his influence can be seen crossing musical genres, classes, races and levels of gentility underlines Louis Armstrong’s importance as a figure we’re still working to fully understand.

Published August 2007, OffBeat Louisiana Music & Culture Magazine, Volume 20, No. 8.

[bywterbro]

Whooot!http://www.panicfreaks.org/images/smilies/snoopy.gif

ss a great article Mac....tank for posting........
one thing id like to add about kermit....his performances at Vaughans on
thursday nites are like a neighborhood get together.....kermit lives within
walking distance of vaughans.....so his shows on thursday nite are not
anything like a ny city jazz "concert".....however if you see Kermit
at Jazzfest, he certainly can perform in the concert mode, and instill
great feelings in large crowds....
also the other part of Louis Armstrong that Kermit definitely embodies
is Louis sense of humor....its a very important part of Satchs live
performances, he was always joking around, no matter who was
playing with or performing in front of....even in his scat singing
if you listen closely, youll hear Louis joking around with other members
of the band...i love that side of louis..

[McGregor]

Weather for the weekend

Sat >>> 89/76 (weather.com) 40% chance of (*(*^(*
93/78 (accuweather.com) RealFeel 106 http://www.oceansofosyrus.com/forums/style_emoticons/default/a-faint.gif

Sun >>> 88/76 (weather.com) 30% chance of (&*^&%)&%
93/78 (accuweather) Real Feel 105

Maybe it'll *(&%_^*(% like it did at FQF and cool everything down, that was nice and breezy after the shower that Saturday.

[funkkjunkie]

Mc, one of the unwritten rules of threadheads is we never ever say the r word (r***) here. Even if you want it to happen. Messes with the mojo, ya know? ;)

[McGregor]

Mc, one of the unwritten rules of threadheads is we never ever say the r word (r***) here. Even if you want it to happen. Messes with the mojo, ya know? ;)

I knew that rule and forgot it. I'm sending myself to my room right now! LOL:(

I did change it above for what it's worth.

[funkkjunkie]

Whew, I feel much mo betta now. You can come out and play. :cool:

[yehyourite]

Lovely posts Mac and all.....If I was only allowed one musician on my desert island it would be Satchmo....There are so many reasons I love him.....Happy Birthday Pops!

I attended a couple of seminars last year, they were great. George Avakian was a giant in the music industry and tells wonderful stories. I think he is being interviewed by Dan Morganstern who is a great jazz historian.

Speaking of rain, last year at da Fest the rain, thunder, and lightning came crashing down during Troy Andrews' set. The band was playing so furiously there was no stopping them and they and the audience carried on ignoring the real danger above. Great Set! Well at the end there was no electricity and unfortunately Irvin Mayfield and the NOJO's set was cancelled. No way to end the day. Someone tells me that The Soul Rebels are doing an "acoustic" set down at the stage with a tent. I walk down there and they and the crowd are having a Love In. Everyone singing, people crying with joy, I was floored, great memories.

[bywterbro]

Lovely posts Mac and all.....If I was only allowed one musician on my desert island it would be Satchmo....There are so many reasons I love him.....Happy Birthday Pops!

I attended a couple of seminars last year, they were great. George Avakian was a giant in the music industry and tells wonderful stories. I think he is being interviewed by Dan Morganstern who is a great jazz historian.

Speaking of rain, last year at da Fest the rain, thunder, and lightning came crashing down during Troy Andrews' set. The band was playing so furiously there was no stopping them and they and the audience carried on ignoring the real danger above. Great Set! Well at the end there was no electricity and unfortunately Irvin Mayfield and the NOJO's set was cancelled. No way to end the day. Someone tells me that The Soul Rebels are doing an "acoustic" set down at the stage with a tent. I walk down there and they and the crowd are having a Love In. Everyone singing, people crying with joy, I was floored, great memories.

yyr..

i was in the jazz tent at the time, and when it finally slowed down a little
i got some fresh air, and wandered over to the heritage stage...i think
thats where your talkin bout...it wazzzz a blassst....was cool out...
plenty of room for dancin..

[McGregor]

Bleu Orleans article >> http://offbeat.com/artman/publish/article_2398.shtml

Offbeat stage!
2:00-3:30 Edward Anderson and Bleu Orleans

I really hope the August Offbeat mag shows up tomorrow, I need a fix!

[tangledupinblue]

Anyone know of a great last minute airline for NOLA from NYC? I am looking and it is a bit high. Not that I won't just DO IT!!!

[grisgris]

Come on down Tangie, you know you want to.

[tangledupinblue]

OH YES< I do, I DO!!! Waiting on a call tomorrow and then I MAY be golden....

[grisgris]

Crossing fingers & toes for you. It would be so good to see my Tangie at SatchmoFest.

[almarco]

Hmmm I know a guy , but hes looking for a place to stay for sacthmo....lol

[tangledupinblue]

Hmmm I know a guy , but hes looking for a place to stay for sacthmo....lol

I am trying to get a good flight. I think I may just deal with it and fly down. Too bad there are other factors involved called WORK! Damn it already!
SWAG? Calling SWAG!!!! HA HA

[almarco]

HEY I FEEL YOUR PAIN , I JUST GOT WORK COVERED AT THE AIRLINE SO I CAN GO THIS WEEKEND, NOW THE LODGING HUNT BEGINS

[jolie]

HEY I FEEL YOUR PAIN , I JUST GOT WORK COVERED AT THE AIRLINE SO I CAN GO THIS WEEKEND, NOW THE LODGING HUNT BEGINS

al email me at cantrellclack at bellsouth dot net, I may be able to help.

[almarco]

TANGIE , email me , almarco@aol.com , might be able to help.

[tangledupinblue]

TANGIE , email me , almarco@aol.com , might be able to help.

Just sent you a message doll!

[funkkjunkie]

I love yall. :cool:

[Leni]

[QUOTE=Leni;86604][QUOTE=McGregor;86470]

Leni as you know...you can't go wrong in NOLA:D

Yeah YOU rite! Harry Shearer, the wonderful actor/satirist (This Is Spinal Tape, The Simpsons, Le Show/his weekly radio show, etc.) has a second home in New Orleans on Gov Nicholls in the Qtr. He once wrote an editorial pre-K about his love affair with New Orleans and how all you need to do is walk out the door and you will find magic somewhere. I wish I could find it and share it with y'all.

[Belle]

I just hope no T heads are trying to fly NW.. A holes. Sounds like NOLA government. It's not me syndrome.

[swag]

Hi Tangie, let me look a bit.

[swag]

I just hope no T heads are trying to fly NW.. A holes. Sounds like NOLA government. It's not me syndrome.

Luckily, NW screwup is not enough pilots with legal hours left at the end of the month. The counters reset at midnight tonight, so Satchmo flights should be unaffected.

[Belle]

Luckily, NW screwup is not enough pilots with legal hours left at the end of the month. The counters reset at midnight tonight, so Satchmo flights should be unaffected.

That is a great thing. And NW wants the China gig? NOT

[funkkjunkie]

almarco, did you look at the apts in the marigny for $60?

[swag]

Hi Tangie, let me look a bit.

I looked for Friday-Monday, NYC->MSY. Tried a bunch of my tricks. Best deal I could find was USAir, choice of 1 stop flights, $313.

[mightyradgumbo]

Tangie
Lastminutedeals.com has a flight and car deal Fri-Mon 293.00 While you prolly don't NEED the car, I am not sure if you can do it with just air. Let me check further.

http://tinyurl.com/3a2cbw

Sorry, babe, after working with this one I found out that the add-ons cost you way too much...better to go with Swag's choice at this juncture...like I shouldh've questioned the Swagmeister.

[funkkjunkie]

Gumbo, gumbo, gumbo. WHat were you thinking? ;)

[Corona]

c'mon Tangie...pull the trigger babe ;)

[yehyourite]

Let's go nowwwwwwwwwwww....

[NOLA]

DO IT TANGIE!!!

[almarco]

GEEZ I CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT....

[almarco]

HEY FUNK STILL WORKING ON IT, NOTHING LIKE LAST MINUTE!..LOL

[funkkjunkie]

Ok, I hit the road in an hour! ETA: 10pm! Wooooooooooooo to the Hooooooty hooot hoo!

[McGregor]

Ok, I hit the road in an hour! ETA: 10pm! Wooooooooooooo to the Hooooooty hooot hoo!

Jealous! Drive Safe!

[jolie]

HEY FUNK STILL WORKING ON IT, NOTHING LIKE LAST MINUTE!..LOL

I've been playing phone tag this am with the sales manager at the Inn. Has this one been ruled out??

[McGregor]

Can I get some rec's for quality restaurants in the FQ area that are open Sunday nights?

[almarco]

HI JOLIE

Nothing ruled out as of this moiment , was waiting to hear from tangy , think i can help her and get us both to nawlins

[jolie]

HI JOLIE

Nothing ruled out as of this moiment , was waiting to hear from tangy , think i can help her and get us both to nawlins

I finally spoke to Sales Manager for New Orleans Fine Hotels and he said he couldn't go lower than those prices offered on The French Market Inns web site (as it is a special that the Inn is running). Sorry. But still for those rates a very nice place and centrally located in the 1/4.

[almarco]

hi jolie

thx for the update , it is a great location and is making the decision diffcult....lol

[ibjamn]

Can I get some rec's for quality restaurants in the FQ area that are open Sunday nights?

Mac, I'm not sure what's open Sunday, but here is a list of FQ restaurants with their phone numbers.

My recommendations: Galatoire's, Arnaud's, Dickie Brennen's, Bacco, Bayona, The Bombay Club.

http://www.nomenu.com/RestaurantsOpen.html#FrenchQuarter

[McGregor]

Mac, I'm not sure what's open Sunday, but here is a list of FQ restaurants with their phone numbers.

My recommendations: Galatoire's, Arnaud's, Dickie Brennen's, Bacco, Bayona, The Bombay Club.

http://www.nomenu.com/RestaurantsOpen.html#FrenchQuarter

Thank you ibjamn, I really appreciate it!

[NYMAMA]

:D Have a great time and safe trip to all of you who are leaving in the next few days for Satchmo. Be sure to raise a glass or two(or three or four) for all the threeadheads who wish they could be with you in body instead of spirit. Can't wait tto hear the reviews and see all the pictures.

[mightyradgumbo]

:D Have a great time and safe trip to all of you who are leaving in the next few days for Satchmo. Be sure to raise a glass or two(or three or four) for all the threeadheads who wish they could be with you in body instead of spirit. Can't wait tto hear the reviews and see all the pictures.

Thanks, Deb...Threadhead Nation will be representin' fo sho. We will do y'all right.

[ShaSha]

HI JOLIE

Nothing ruled out as of this moiment , was waiting to hear from tangy , think i can help her and get us both to nawlins

Have you tried Priceline? If the hotels are advertising $60 a night, you may be able to get $35-$40 a night...Good luck!

[AtPontchartrain]

Have you tried Priceline? If the hotels are advertising $60 a night, you may be able to get $35-$40 a night...Good luck!

For tips using Priceline, there's a website called betterbidding.com that I've found useful. It helps you get a clue as to which hotel you might be bidding on, some bidding tactics, and a few examples of what rates other people are finding when they bid.

[Belle]

:D Have a great time and safe trip to all of you who are leaving in the next few days for Satchmo. Be sure to raise a glass or two(or three or four) for all the threeadheads who wish they could be with you in body instead of spirit. Can't wait tto hear the reviews and see all the pictures.

Amen! They will raise glasses and just chuckle at the poor souls left behind!!

Thats ok too. I only have a few months to wait.

Have a great time, raise some hell (without getting arrested) and tape, record, and take pix:p

[linza22]

:D Have a great time and safe trip to all of you who are leaving in the next few days for Satchmo. Be sure to raise a glass or two(or three or four) for all the threeadheads who wish they could be with you in body instead of spirit. Can't wait tto hear the reviews and see all the pictures.

thanks nymama! i'll have a jello shot for you!

[Corona]

:D Have a great time and safe trip to all of you who are leaving in the next few days for Satchmo. Be sure to raise a glass or two(or three or four) for all the threeadheads who wish they could be with you in body instead of spirit. Can't wait tto hear the reviews and see all the pictures.
We definitely will mama...don't you worry and know that we wish all of you could be there with us!!

Funkk....you drive safely girl!! I know you're gone already but I just needed to say that lol! Ib, see ya in about 24 hours sistah friend!!

[grisgris]

WooooooooHoooooooo just got off from work. See yall tomorrow.

[sunnyla]

:(

I'm so sad. I've never felt SO far away from NOLA as I do right now. Wish I could get in the car and drive too! I'm quite jealous. (although I have been looking at last minute deals...they're just a little TOO pricey from LA...besides, I'm on call for Jury Duty this week!)

Y'all have a GREAT (and safe) time. Send reports!

Cheers!

[grisgris]

Bye yall. I'm hittin the road in the morning for Satchmo. Yall have a good weekend.

[McGregor]

Nice article from today on the Fest:
Satchmo festival kicks off today

By Jaquetta White

After nervousness about traveling to New Orleans during hurricane season discouraged international travelers from attending last year's Satchmo Summerfest, this year's event kicks off today with a new focus on luring visitors who live along the Gulf Coast.

For the first time since its launch in 2001 to honor the 100th birthday of Louis Armstrong, the Satchmo Summerfest, a four-day music and food festival that this year is expected to attract more than 30,000 people, is being marketed in a campaign that spans several states and advertising mediums. The festival has traditionally appealed to international travelers.

Last year, attendance at the festival was down by about half, from about 50,000 in 2004 and 2005 to about 25,000 in 2006, said Kathleen Alter, chief executive of French Quarter Festivals Inc., the nonprofit organization that produces the Satchmo Summerfest and the French Quarter Festival.

"We didn't get any (European) bus tours," Alter said. "That was one of the reasons we had such lower attendance last year."

Alter is hoping this year's event will attract about 35,000 people.

"Whether we'll do that or not, I don't know," Alter said. "I think August and September are now very scary months for people to come to New Orleans."

Not that bringing travelers to New Orleans for the Satchmo Summerfest has ever been without its challenges. The festival's date at the start of August means it falls during the height of hurricane season, when parents are preparing kids for the start of the school year, and when heat-averse travelers are sprinting north and those who can stand the rays are headed to the beach.

"So a whole group of people are not taking vacations during that time," said Sandy Shilstone, chief executive of New Orleans Tourism and Marketing Corp.

This year, however, the goal is to draw from the region, particularly the Gulf Coast. Alter thinks it might be easier to attract people who live on the Gulf Coast because they can drive in with little advance planning and because they may not harbor the same reservations about traveling to New Orleans during hurricane season.

Since the festival started, European travelers, many of whom vacation in the United States in August when the majority of the continent is on holiday, have been an important part of the festival's attendance base.

But mixed messages about the state of the city's recovery and greater difficulty in getting international flights into New Orleans conspired last year to keep them away, Shilstone said.

"The challenge we face is with the international market," Shilstone said. "That is going to be a problem in growing this into the festival we know it can be."

Instead of advertising the festival in tourism industry publications, as had been the case in past years, this year the festival is being promoted to the general public, Alter said.

"What we've done this year is an entire shift in the way we've done marketing in the past," Shilstone said. "It's the best way to say that the city is open and ready for business."

This year's promotion also is backed by the resources of the marketing corporation, which had done limited work advertising Satchmo in the past, Shilstone said. The marketing corporation is using a mix of radio spots imploring potential visitors to "Come for Satchmo" and print ads in travel and leisure magazines in 25 newspapers from Dallas to Atlanta. In a further bid to generate widespread appeal, the ads also jointly promote Satchmo and White Linen Night, the gallery crawl that always coincides with the festival.

The marketing corporation has used Community Block Development Grant funds to similarly advertise other events this year including the Essence Music Festival, Tales of the Cocktail and the French Quarter Festival.

"With those infusions of dollars, we've been able to promote the events this year and we've been very successful," Shilstone said. "We've had greater depth in our advertising, more frequency and more reach."

Hotel occupancy is floating around 50 percent this summer. Shilstone is hopeful the marketing effort will generate a bump in traffic similar to the one experienced for French Quarter Festival. Although the French Quarter Festival draws a mostly local and regional crowd, it did boost hotel occupancy into the 80 percent range. Despite heavy rain one day, this year's festival was bigger than last year's, drawing about 425,000 revelers and setting a single-day record.

"The music lovers and art lovers will come to New Orleans," Shilstone said. "Satchmo Summerfest has an audience unto itself. This is the birthplace of jazz, and people want to come here to celebrate that."

[Festngator]

Today
Partly cloudy with isolated thunderstorms. Highs in the mid 90s. Northeast winds around 5 mph shifting to the east in the afternoon. Chance of thunderstorms 20 percent.

Tonight
Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 70s. Southwest winds around 5 mph shifting to the west after midnight

Saturday
Partly cloudy. Isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 90s. Southwest winds around 5 mph shifting to the southeast in the afternoon. Chance of thunderstorms 20 percent.

Saturday Night
Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 70s. West winds 5 to 10 mph.
Sunday
Partly cloudy. Isolated thunderstorms in the afternoon. Highs in the mid 90s. South winds 5 to 10 mph. Chance of thunderstorms 20 percent.

Sunday Night
Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 70s.

[McGregor]

I'm ready to leave now! :( I'm going to have to pack all of my fun into Sat/Sun/Mon!!!

Don't worry, I'll make it happen! :p

[Belle]

I'm ready to leave now! :( I'm going to have to pack all of my fun into Sat/Sun/Mon!!!

Don't worry, I'll make it happen! :p

You have a great time!!! Hugs and I am settling into a big funk! Oh well this will pass and on to VooDoo! Just a bit of envy:o

[NYMAMA]

You have a great time!!! Hugs and I am settling into a big funk! Oh well this will pass and on to VooDoo! Just a bit of envy:o

Hang in there Belle. Only 266 sleeps for me untill Jazz Fest.

[Priestboy]

You have a great time!!! Hugs and I am settling into a big funk! Oh well this will pass and on to VooDoo! Just a bit of envy:o

Belle, I'm with ya on that envy front:) ...MRG is tippin' 'em back for the two of us!:D Y'all have a great time down in NOLA!! See y'all at JF '08!!:D

[Belle]

Hang in there Belle. Only 266 sleeps for me untill Jazz Fest.


What is that Avatar by the way?

[Crawfish Fest]

We headed to the boom boom room sat evening, i had 4 dozen oysters and lots of beer, then dinner at tostillos's and margarita's in the courtyard, i missed tips.
woke up this morning, could not find directions to brunch, got home a few minutes ago, they were on the kitchen counter where i left them. this may seem strange, but when i go to a festival, i watch to see how it is run more than the music, do the stages start on time? food lines moving?cleanup crew on top of things? clean bathrooms? I did like the frenchman hotel. Hope y'all had a great time. i got to say hello to Mitch, the Lt Gov. I sure wish LAtravel.com would become a presenting sponsor.

[NYMAMA]

What is that Avatar by the way?

Just something I saw and liked. to me it looked like a closed peace sign that made a heart.
Ya know LOVE & PEACE