Jazz, Blues, & Swing in the Pacific Northwest

The last couple of Tuesdays have been especially enjoyable sessions at the New Orleans Creole Restaurant. A couple of pretty good audiences - a lot of nice folks having a nice time - and a couple of special events.

March 6th, of course, marked the return of Matt and Mike to the NOCR after more than a month’s absence. It was also birthday night at the New Orleans. David Loomis turned … well let’s just say he added another birthday party to his growing collection. David’s family was there; always nice to see them. Happy Birthday, David.

David wasn’t the only birthday boy in the house, though. A nice young man by the name of Ben was celebrating his 11th birthday with us. Miss Gaye said he’d asked his parents to bring him to the New Orleans for his birthday. He wanted to hear a live jazz band. On our intermission, we went down to Ben’s table and serenaded him with a few rousing choruses of Happy Birthday. As always, the audience at the New Orleans joined in. Ben, we hope you had a nice birthday, and thank you for spending it with us. One of the things I’ve always appreciated about the New Orleans, and just one of it’s unique attributes, is that it’s a place where kids can actually come in and experience live music.

Last night, March 13th, we also had a pretty good house. There were a couple of tables full of folks we see on a not-as-frequent-as-we’d-like basis … Thanks, Dave and your brothers - and yep, you can bring your kids next time. They’re always welcome.

We had a few young couples in attendance that periodically come down to dance. It’s a lot of fun for us when they do. The band likes playing for dancers, and the audiences really enjoy watching them strut their stuff. It makes for a festive atmosphere on a Tuesday evening. You folks are ALWAYS a treat for us.

Again last night, there was birthday in the house. Jessica & friends celebrated her 21st with us listening to hot jazz. Given the number of musical choices out there, it’s pretty rewarding that folks of all ages can come down and enjoy themselves at the New Orleans on a Tuesday evening.

And last, but not least, Ham Carson stopped by and sat in for our second set. Other than playing a couple of tunes with Ham at the Celebration of Life that the New Orleans held to honor Floyd Standifer, I hadn’t played with Ham in years. Ham, a very busy local swing clarinetist, leads the Thursday night house band at the New Orleans. We called this set mostly from the Chicago-type portion of our repetoire and played a pretty nice set with a “jam session” feel to it. The audience seemed to enjoy it. Thanks, Ham.

Sorry I’ve got no photos for this post. It’s hard to get the shots with a horn in my hands, so maybe some of you budding photographers out there will take a few snaps on your next visit and email them to me. With your kind permission, I’ll certainly try to incorporate them on the site.

So … that’s it for now … stay tuned … please ….

Filed under: Uncategorized by daveholo