Music junkies annually swarm to the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival by the hundreds of thousands, thanks to the 10-day event's reputation as a nearly unrivaled garden of sonic delights. And the 31st edition of the festival, held through last Sunday at the New Orleans Fair Grounds and several venues around the Crescent City, was no exception. The aural feast of rootsy American music and a variety of international styles attracted a record-breaking crowd of more than 500,000 fans. The plentiful sunshine and mouth-watering Louisiana food specialties didn't hurt the cause, either.
Regionally based artists doubtless have gained valuable career boosts through exposure at Jazzfest, and a long list of second-weekend acts took advantage of that opportunity for high-profile exposure in front of a group of devoted music aficionados. Royal Fingerbowl, for starters, turned in an early Thursday set long on punky blues and jazz grooves, boozy singing from grizzled front man Alex McMurray, and good humor. "Welcome to breakfast with Royal Fingerbowl," McMurray cracked. "We're really a great band at night."
Phillip Manuel, an exuberant, resonant singer and scatter, took advantage of his berth with the help of a brassy vocal attack, standards like "These Foolish Things" and "Just Squeeze Me," and a backing band featuring tenor saxophonist Brice Winston.
U.K.-born R&B and blues pianist-singer Jon Cleary and the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, emphasizing material from last year's well-received "Moonburn" disc, was also among those local acts caught making good on their time in the limelight. Likewise for veteran jazz quintet Astral Project, mixing tunes from 1999's "VooDooBop" with bassist James Singleton's meditative "Untitled," guitarist Steve Masakowski's bluesy "Big Shot," as well as the lush ballad "South By Southwest" and hard-driving "Retroactive," both by saxophonist Tony Dagradi.
Impressive, too, were slide guitarist Anders Osborne, now incorporating tuba and saxophone in his swamp-blues blend; hip-hop brass band Soul Rebels; revered educator and trumpeter Clyde Kerr; and trumpeter Michael Ray and the Cosmic Krewe, grooving on a funk-jazz-jam vibe that owed much to Ray's former employer Sun Ra.
Juanita Brooks proved her mettle as a songstress, deftly navigating through strains of R&B, gospel, and jazz on righteous swings through "My Favorite Things" and other standards. Accordionist Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys turned in tangy traditional-to-modern Cajun sounds, and the Zulu Ensemble Male Choir made a joyful noise at the gospel tent. Ellis Marsalis, the patriarch of the city's first family of jazz, strolled through "Love For Sale" and "Sophisticated Lady" with his trio, and was joined by saxophonists Brice Winston and Derek Douget for "Sweet Georgia Brown" and others.
The out-of-towners, as usual, turned in especially inspired performances. Chicago funk crunchers Liquid Soul made plenty of converts, with exhilarating work-outs on material from the band's new "Here's The Deal," livened by the belting of singer Simone, daughter of Nina Simone. Tanably of Cote D'Ivoire, from the Ivory Coast of West Africa, hypnotized listeners with tribal drumming and an elaborate dance presentation. Elsewhere, legendary jazz pianist McCoy Tyner was joined by regular trio mates Avery Sharpe on bass and Aaron Scott on drums for a vibrant seminar on the art of modern jazz, drawn in part from the leader's recent recording with Stanley Clarke and Al Foster.
Every type of music was seemingly on the menu. John Hiatt was joined by slide guitarist Sonny Landreth for a set of roots rock, while Brazilian multi-instrumentalist Hermeto Pascoal turned in a sublime set of bossa, bebop and experimental sounds. Lyle Lovett brought his ace Large Band to town for a recreation of the songs heard on his recent two-CD live release, and was accompanied by surprise guest Jimmy Buffett on "If I Had a Boat."
Seasoned avant-jazz saxophonist Sam Rivers led his Orlando-based trio through a rangy, brilliant performance that had the bandmates constantly switching instruments, while revered juju master King Sunny Ade and His African Beats closed out the Congo Square stage with long flowing guitar and pedal-steel lines, intoxicating rhythms, and infectious call-and-response vocals. Theimpromptu supergroup Oysterhead were the talk of the event, having sold-out the 2,800-seat Saenger Theatre in just 13 minutes.
Regionally based artists doubtless have gained valuable career boosts through exposure at Jazzfest, and a long list of second-weekend acts took advantage of that opportunity for high-profile exposure in front of a group of devoted music aficionados. Royal Fingerbowl, for starters, turned in an early Thursday set long on punky blues and jazz grooves, boozy singing from grizzled front man Alex McMurray, and good humor. "Welcome to breakfast with Royal Fingerbowl," McMurray cracked. "We're really a great band at night."
Phillip Manuel, an exuberant, resonant singer and scatter, took advantage of his berth with the help of a brassy vocal attack, standards like "These Foolish Things" and "Just Squeeze Me," and a backing band featuring tenor saxophonist Brice Winston.
U.K.-born R&B and blues pianist-singer Jon Cleary and the Absolute Monster Gentlemen, emphasizing material from last year's well-received "Moonburn" disc, was also among those local acts caught making good on their time in the limelight. Likewise for veteran jazz quintet Astral Project, mixing tunes from 1999's "VooDooBop" with bassist James Singleton's meditative "Untitled," guitarist Steve Masakowski's bluesy "Big Shot," as well as the lush ballad "South By Southwest" and hard-driving "Retroactive," both by saxophonist Tony Dagradi.
Impressive, too, were slide guitarist Anders Osborne, now incorporating tuba and saxophone in his swamp-blues blend; hip-hop brass band Soul Rebels; revered educator and trumpeter Clyde Kerr; and trumpeter Michael Ray and the Cosmic Krewe, grooving on a funk-jazz-jam vibe that owed much to Ray's former employer Sun Ra.
Juanita Brooks proved her mettle as a songstress, deftly navigating through strains of R&B, gospel, and jazz on righteous swings through "My Favorite Things" and other standards. Accordionist Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys turned in tangy traditional-to-modern Cajun sounds, and the Zulu Ensemble Male Choir made a joyful noise at the gospel tent. Ellis Marsalis, the patriarch of the city's first family of jazz, strolled through "Love For Sale" and "Sophisticated Lady" with his trio, and was joined by saxophonists Brice Winston and Derek Douget for "Sweet Georgia Brown" and others.
The out-of-towners, as usual, turned in especially inspired performances. Chicago funk crunchers Liquid Soul made plenty of converts, with exhilarating work-outs on material from the band's new "Here's The Deal," livened by the belting of singer Simone, daughter of Nina Simone. Tanably of Cote D'Ivoire, from the Ivory Coast of West Africa, hypnotized listeners with tribal drumming and an elaborate dance presentation. Elsewhere, legendary jazz pianist McCoy Tyner was joined by regular trio mates Avery Sharpe on bass and Aaron Scott on drums for a vibrant seminar on the art of modern jazz, drawn in part from the leader's recent recording with Stanley Clarke and Al Foster.
Every type of music was seemingly on the menu. John Hiatt was joined by slide guitarist Sonny Landreth for a set of roots rock, while Brazilian multi-instrumentalist Hermeto Pascoal turned in a sublime set of bossa, bebop and experimental sounds. Lyle Lovett brought his ace Large Band to town for a recreation of the songs heard on his recent two-CD live release, and was accompanied by surprise guest Jimmy Buffett on "If I Had a Boat."
Seasoned avant-jazz saxophonist Sam Rivers led his Orlando-based trio through a rangy, brilliant performance that had the bandmates constantly switching instruments, while revered juju master King Sunny Ade and His African Beats closed out the Congo Square stage with long flowing guitar and pedal-steel lines, intoxicating rhythms, and infectious call-and-response vocals. Theimpromptu supergroup Oysterhead were the talk of the event, having sold-out the 2,800-seat Saenger Theatre in just 13 minutes.
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