Media Sponsor
For more info, click on the photos or the name of the artist. Click on Schedules Page for dates and times.
This band has such chemistry that it's hard to say that their music is "just rock n roll. Just ask their fans, the self-named "Ezralites." BTE released their first album, Deluxe, in 1993 with the hit "Rosealia." Friction, Baby in '96 offered up "King of New Orleans" and "Desperately Wanting." Now, 8 albums into a musical career that's brought them international fame and platinum records, Kevin, Travis, and Tom have hit their stride. For us, the Ezralites, they're still the guys from New Orleans that we love so much.
Marcia Ball honed her powerful singing and deft, rollicking keyboard chops while growing up in the small town of Vinton, Louisiana. Full-tilt or subtle as the moment demands, this unabashed powerhouse will keep you jumping. 1998 W.C. Handy Contemporary Female Vocalist of the Year, 2002 Blues Music Award for “Blues Album of the Year,” 2004 Blues Music Award for “Contemporary Blues Album of the Year” and “Contemporary Blues Female Artist of the Year”. In 2005 and 2006, the Blues Music Awards honored Ball as the “Pinetop Perkins Piano Player of the Year.”
Edgar's early recording of "Tobacco Road" is a powerful, emotionally devastating masterpiece that propelled him into the national spotlight. Edgar Winter's White Trash enjoyed huge success in 1971 with both a studio and a live album. In late 1972 Edgar brought together Dan Hartman, Ronnie Montrose and Chuck Ruff to form The Edgar Winter Group, the legendary band that created such hits as the number one "Frankenstein" and the ever popular "Free Ride." They Only Come Out at Night peaked at the number 3 position on the Billboard Hot 200 and stayed on the charts for an impressive 80 weeks. Edgar Winter's live shows still consistently receive rave reviews.
Johnny Sketch & The Dirty Notes has gained a loyal following in a competitive New Orleans music scene. Their unique FUNK/ROCK style blends guitar, violin and harmonica with a hard driving rhythm section reminiscent of the Radiators' swamp funk added to the punchy horns of Tower Of Power. JSDN's debut album, Bandicoot was voted by Offbeat Magazine as 2003 Best Rock Album by a Louisiana Artist. JSDN was also voted Best Rock Band in 2003 for The Big Easy Entertainment Awards. Their music has an energy that fuels the crowd into an enthusiastic frenzy, and the band has been known to jump into that frenzy head first (sometimes literally).
From humble origins as a folk-rock duo playing tiny clubs, today’s Benjy Davis Project has evolved into an innovative six-piece ensemble with hordes of loyal fans in the South and a burgeoning audience around America. These admirers are drawn to a sound that’s been aptly described both as "collegiate rock with a Southern influence" and "harmony-laden acoustic pop" for its eclectic blend of original material, the innocence and spontaneity of ‘60s rock, and the band’s roots in South Louisiana culture.
This crowd-pleasing Louisiana Reggae/Funk band builds a fusion of contemporary and ethnic rhythms to create their music. Henry's early musical influences came from blues and jazz greats B.B. King and George Benson, as well as the hypnotic mellow reggae tones of Bob Marley. ”Give Me Love" was recorded live at Café Negril in New Orleans, and picked up by Hurricane Healing (www.hurricanehealing.us) for its Volume II compilation CD.
The band began as a side project for the trio of Todd “Whisky T” McNulty, Taylor “Red Stick” Garrett, and Brian “Big Country” Ayres. Exhausted of the trail country music had taken, they began paying tribute to roots music greats. Discovering more and more the power of this sound, they quickly country fried some of their rock originals and things took off. Now playing with bassist Joel “Rocky Mountainhigh” Webb and drummer, "Diamond Joe Gelini", the sound is complete.
Walter “Wolfman” Washington has been an icon on the New Orleans music scene for decades. His searing guitar work and soulful vocals have defined the Crescent City’s unique musical hybrid of R&B, funk and the blues since he formed his first band in the 1970s. With Wolfman's seemingly endless repertoire, each of his highly danceable shows is one-of-a-kind. The band plays the blues, R&B, soul, funk, jazz and everything in between with pure heart.
Amanda Shaw, the teenage fireball from Covington, LA started as a classical music violin prodigy, then she became a good-time Cajun fiddler. Now, after three independently released albums, she has signed with Rounder Records and is maturing into a pop-rock singer-songwriter. Amanda has appeared in the Disney films “Stuck in the Suburbs” and “Now You See It,” and is now starring in the IMAX documentary, "Hurricane on the Bayou," narrated by Meryl Streep. Amanda is joined on stage with Austin/New Orleans music veteran and local favorite, Brint Anderson.
Presiding over his Funky Nation is Big Sam, formerly the trombonist for the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, who blows the funk out of his trombone and refuses to let the audience sit still. A talented group of jazz-trained musicians makes up the Funky Nation, bringing with them the improv-style associated with jazz and the horn-heavy front section that's the hallmark of big band funk.