Jazz, Blues, & Swing in the Pacific Northwest

‘Twas a very good evening at the N’awlins tonight. Lot of folks, right up until we pulled the plug at 10:00.

Over the weekend Alex had a little tussle with a broken water glass and a kitchen sink … he’ll be fine, but he’s temporarily on injured reserve … so we had our pal Casey MacGill of the Blue Four Trio fill in on piano. Of course, Casey always brings his uke and usually sings a few … a fun guy to have around.

Fifty percent of the Holotradband alumni association was also on hand. Jazzman extraordinaire, Hans Teuber, dropped in with his wife and daughter to have a little something to eat and listen to some music. Hans played clarinet … yup, clarinet … with the band for about six months or so during our first year. I always appreciate that Hans comes down occasionally on his night off to see us. It’s nice to get a chance to say hello. Good seeing you again, Hans.

We had a couple of tables of young folks that came in tonight. Five young cousins came down with their Dads. Three lovely young ladies … I’m guessing 8 to 11 years old … paraded up to the stage, dropped a little something in the tip basket and said thanks. Thank you, girls, we appreciate your acknowledgment. A couple young lads - middle school, junior high - also came up and said hello. One was a trumpet player, the other played piano. We like to see young musicians come in.

As a working musician with a regular gig at the New Orleans, I feel blessed. It’s a pretty rewarding experience to play in an environment which offers young people access to live music. That our music utilizes the instruments they play in school bands also makes it something they don’t see everyday. The New Orleans is a special place. Miss Gaye is a terrific boss. She runs a place that is special not only for the musicians who work there, but for families with kids who are enthusiastically welcomed. Kids get a chance to hear live music, they can chat with working musicians if they like, and there’s no cover charge. For the cost of a plate of beans & rice and a soda your kids will enjoy a musical experience they’d be hard-pressed to find anywhere else in town … at any price.

Again, for the third consecutive Tuesday, we had a birthday in the house. Evelyn was celebrating her 86th. We had the whole place singing “Happy Birthday” while Evelyn took bows and saluted the audience with her Long Island Ice Tea. Evelyn, nice lady that she is, made certain to come up and thank the band for the birthday serenade and to tell us how much she was enjoying the music and her evening out at the New Orleans. We literally had people from 8 to 86 in the restaurant tonight, all of them apparently having a very nice time.

For me, the most fun part of the evening was when about a dozen of our young, local, very good swing dancers dropped in for a couple of sets. They’re always a lot of fun; tonight was certainly no exception. I usually get a chance to say “Hi” to a few of these folks who show up regularly, and there were a number of couples I recognized from the Balboa fest we played last month. Having these great dancers in the place, doing their thing, puts a really nice vibe in the room. Eight or ten folks dancing in the aisles … really bringin’ it … puts a lot of energy in the room, which means we all have a good time - dancers, listeners, and musicians.

Thanks for coming down, everyone. We’ll see you all again real soon, OK?

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