24 Apr. Backonstage.
Watching Corey Ledet & his Zydeco Band pe scena Fais Do Do. Fa nani? … lively!

Young Pinstripe Brass Band de negri. Colourfull, brashy. Jazz and Heritage stage.

At the Heritage and cultural tent anu asta celebreaza Belize. Crashed into Garifuna Generation si ritmurile astea africane. O negresa all rounded and vibrant isi scutura energic picioare, fund, sâni, umeri. Sare si un tip din formatie upfront for a dance-off. The same moves dar intr-un mod mai putin flashy. Jumping and jolting around her. Tremolos. Mi-aduce aminte de miscari din rumba. Convincingly macho. Nothing’s overdone. Muzica populara, asta e. Instrumente si sonoritati gen orga electronica si tobe gen litoral ani 2000z. Dar pe coloratie de alta ritmica. Il populum belizeum. All young. Mid early 20s. + un tataic de 60 ani, carnea zdravana pe el, parul alb, la chitara electrica. :-), very villegy style. Next a raggae..!
http://www.bayoumovimiento.com – pe tricoul unui tip care dansa mai in față.
La final nu mai are nimeni rabdare, se suie pe scenă rand pe rand tipi si tipe (astea toate care de care mai dorsate). O cutremurare de posterioare si piciore, piepturi. Bombeu in the air.

Moving on to catch the end of Royal Teeth. Niste pusti de 22-25 de ani. Pop-rock style. Must be someones ca ii vad pe Gentilly Stage. Jumping with joy! Arunc palaria si topai si eu ca la concert.

Quickly running to the Blues Tent. Mama striga dupa mine sa pastrez palaria pe cap. Eu cred ca de soare. De fapt sa ma vada cand ma pierd in multime. Par+palarie mare. Easy. Ne regasim in buza cortului. E Glen David Andrews Band. At times bluesy, at times country (mai ales when guest staging a blonde violin girl din alta trupa), often gospel “Put your hands in the air!” style. Pe urma the lead vocal in red outfit dispare in sir indian cu un cârd de muzicieni dupa el back stage. “That’s it, se termina, ii zic mamei” astia nu prea dau bisuri in festival. Cand deodata all turns participatory rock!, omul apare intr-o imbulzire de multime din spatele cortului cu un card de oameni dansand. O mamaie de 70 mulatra cu parul alb scurt din public danseaza de mamă-mamă cu el si omul o insoteste vreo 30m pe culoar invitand-o mai departe. Valuri de oameni dupa el. Jumping jack beans all, moi included 🙂 Mama entuziasmata. E cald, can be overwhelming, dar ii place! 🙂
Se termina cu redman back onstage, digresand gosp-bluesic. Si la sfarsit aruncand tricoul de pe el in multime. Aerosmith way! Hahaha!

O las aici, o sa ne vedem mai tarziu pe undevaz. Mai sta, mai scrie, mai mai.
Fug la cortul de jazz unde mai sunt 20-25 de minute de recital. Aici lumea si mai întesata, overflowing. Mii de oameni. zeci. Antrenant. Sunt totul un zambet nefortat abounding. The Herlin Riley Quintet/Qurtet. Abia e loc pe culoare. Chiar si unde nu e voie. Deja organizatorii incearca sa previna ce urmeaza. Dar nu stiu cum vor face. Lumea nu pleaca dupa ce termina Herlin. Dimpotriva, mai vine. Urmeaza Herbie Hancock!

Beaming myself across to Congo Square pentru Carlos Vivens. Mi l-a recomandat Annie aseara pentru latino sounds. A sort of Colombian gathering of sorts cu fuste colorate si palarii de cowboy, acordeoane, muzicuta si un sound expansiv latin intr-adevar. Un merengue energic first. O cumbia, mixed with pop. Ierba buena, fumegand. Multi le stiu versurile pe de rost. In spaniola bineinteles. Ricky Martin is dead. Long live Rocky Martin! :-)) (yes, rOcky)
Doi negri de 17-18 ani unul sta sub palarie, altul crestococky, both disengaged, pe margine. Cu ghiul Denim si piatra mare verde kitsch, lantisor de aur, digitand amandoi sms-uri. “I don’t have the money yet man” prind peste umarul unuia din ei. Ii intreaba atunci asta ceva gen cand cum de ce. Etc. O familie de colombianos de un entuziasm fluent isi fac poze si danseaza in fata lor. Astia doi par totusi mai ok decat credeam. Apare o tipa cu musette hat si ochelari de soare, sandale șic. Prietena crestatului.
Intra o echipa de “gaitas colombinos” cu niste fluiere lungi mufate cu nu stiu ce chestie curbata de cauciuc. Ceva pur traditional. Congas si timbales in fundal.
Stai ca intra cu “saca tu bandeeeraaa!”. La pariu, la cum a inceput un speech despre fratii mei venezueleni, mexicani, chilieni, etc… Ia sa vedem. Well no, but something along those lines though.

Gata, hai la Herbie!

Mesaje cu mama:
Eu: Sunt la blues tent, in stanga intrarii principale la intrare, sub buza cortului.
MV: Pai sunt si eu tot la blues tent, unde, de la 15:50 canta o tipa subtirica (Rhiannon Ginddens). Cand am venit de la wc plecau unii, cred ca la ei a stat. Un tip too fat ocupa doua scaune și mi-a cedat jumătate din unul. Sunt la ultimul grup de scaune din stanga.
Eu: Hahaha! Tare asta cu grasu!
Eu iti scriam asta mai devreme cand abia ajunseseram la cort. Acum o ora. Dar ne-am vazut dupa.
MV: Ok. O sa ma mut mai pe mijloc, intrucat au inceput sa mai plece. L-am parasit pe grasu. Am capatat un junghi pe stinga din cauza pozitiei. Sunt destul de în fata-stanga. Langa un tip care miroase a carmol.
Eu: Nu stiu cum e carmolul.
MV: E din ce în ce mai bine. M-a părăsit carmolul.
Eu: Am fost la jazz tent pt 25′ pe urma la Congo Square vreo 40′. Acum la Jazz Tent again unde e macel de multa lume. Herbie Hancock este celebru in lumea jazzului. Si canta de o ora. Cred ca mai am vreo juma de ora sau asa ceva din recitalul lui. Sper ca mai mult.
La voi am vazut ca e ceva ce suna country asa.. Sper ca te distrezi.

HerbieH & Wayne Shorter Duo
Aici e asa multa lume ca nu te mai lasa sa intri. Ma strecor atunci lateral printre scaunele pliante si ma bag printre cablurile de sustinere. Gasesc un loc mai central.
Jazzy electro synthy worldsize sound. Foarte misto. A trombone clarinet/alto sax weaving through the synthed piano-keyboard harp celestial mix. Cu elemente sacadate de percutie acuta, ciudata that in the end takes over and dominates, like a scene from Baraka where nature is overcome by the rhythm of a divination rite at a temple in the middle of the jungle by hundreds of natives. Asa suntem noi aici. Cu inimile feliate by the beat! Acut! Curge sangele din noi si se inrosesc ochi, buze, limba tot. Cerul e albastru. Si mai si. Intre noi si el panză albă de cort. The house of GO..MUSIC!
Cea mai culta experienta of the fest so far for me.

Grabbing mum and over to a musical jogg between 4-5 gigs in just over an hour:
15′ in People’s Health Economy Hall la
Don Vappie & the Creole Jazz Serenaders
Music of the missăzippie! Dixieland style. An eclectic mix: un negru de 19 ani in costum de duminica, un tip cu sapca de cartier. Un fel de Seba mulatru poate putin mai overdimensional totusi. Intre RR si Sba. Cu ochelarii aia negri si saxofonul mufat, șapca pe spate. Golan muzical. Un tip in camasa siclam inchis, altul in bluza polo si tamburinistul leading in camasa piersicutza. Lead vocal o mulatra in rochie anii 50-60, southerner style, inflorata, zambitoare, se leagana ca un clopot amuzat. Baterie – un pusti de 17-18. For y’all folls.
Gata, moving on.

20′ in Gentilly la Nick Jonas
a 20-25 something pop rocker. Balade. La chitara. O da in Purple Rain in the middle of another song. Bringing the glorious past to a whole new generation. Ii spun mamei si atunci observa imediat niste tipe cu palarii si bandane lungi pufoase violete rhyming in with intent. (acum imi dau seama ca apropo-ul asta muzical e de fapt parte dintr-un tribut generalizat pentru Prince. I spot similar innuendos in lots of other performances). La Jonas puzderie de tineri. Mai multi decat credeam. Lots of preteens, teenagers sau 20s. Tipe mai ales. Most of the guys must be on the Acura stage la Red Hot Chilli. Or in the crowded area frontstage.
Ok, hai de aici!

J Cole then for 10′ on the Congo grass

Un rapper, hiphopper. Cu un tricou de basketballist cu The Sign pe fata si PRINCE pe spate.
“Whatch out for my LA sisters”. Canta tot stadionul frate.
“No sane! u don’ wanna be sane.”
Funny e ca asta era unu din giggurile recomandate de un blog din cele 2-3 pe care mi-am aruncat privirea inainte de a pleca in US. De ce? de asta:
http://m.axs.com/news/jazz-fest-2016-here-are-the-5-bands-that-need-to-be-on-your-day-3-sche-74416

Slipped into Red Hot … but disappointingly they had rushed it through si cand am ajuns bagau ultimele 5 minute de extended run of
What I got u gotta give it to yo’ mammmaaa!
Pentru o clipa un pic șocat ca pe ecrane il proiectau pe unul din ei din spate, la bustu gol like most of them … the usual show-shape, dar cam chel saracu. Ras in cap dar cu urme evidente de calvitie. Oh my God!, Anthony Kiedis is going baaald!?!! Way too much crowd festing the arena, nu iti dai prea bine seama ce e pe scena. In cele din urma the actual AK shows up cu parul relativ scurt si suvite, cu o mustata gen hitler slash Sasha Brown crying out loud into gruesome faces. It’s him alright. Hasn’t lost a thread. Nearly as slim fit as before but the fittnes of a 30s instead of a 20s body. They close the performance 20′ earlier than anticipated. Poate cu prea multa energie? must’ve been, as the people flowing by while they finish the song – “it’s been surreal!”. No worries, poate ii prind la Lisabona in iulie. Vin?

We transfer to the Jazz Tent but back logged into the outpouring crowd digging between the shoulders and knees of everyone around to catch the last 10′ of the
Terence Blanchard following The E Collective
Well, my friend!, I should just stick to this tent! Forever! I would get drunk and fuse my brains to the strings of piano, guitars, vocal chords, thin vibrato in saxo tones! UAAAAAAAAHAAAU! Unbelievable! I exploded my whole energy, ebriated or not, half fueled by a blue moon and a cider.
This and the HERBIEs have been the MAGIC of my weekend!

1617 Sauvage street -” jam!
This is the best jazz fest after party I walked into the band leader keeps saying. In the garage of number 1617 house next to a basketball high screen. And they make it happen.
We’d got out of the Fairgrounds Fest compound through a lateral exit and walked right into this… or, to be correct, first there was a good crowd around a corner band of negros+an american asian. Brass and percussion buskers.

Then, 40m away this even bigger musical debauchery. With people flooding street, stairs, house, sitting or climbing out the windows. Boozed enthusiastically. Some jumping on the platform of a pickup SUV. Dancing all around. Couple of excited girls hooked up fast with two willing guys. That state of drinkxcited when just holding gaze for longer than 10″ could have get you somewhere. I avoided an overly dosed one, connected with a more mysterious swinger, just not the best match as she was with someone, even if less obvious. In that share of joy, just to prove a point I walked right into the house. No-one was startled. Kids on the sofa, parents, teenagers, 20s-punks, tourists, talking and used to or amused by the setup. A guy (the host we thought) was shooting 5 seconds clips for a collage of total strangers asking his departed friend to “get yo’arse back here!”. Mum smiled her part through, but the guy insisted. Chad was the man of the house though.

“Give it up for Chad over here!” HEEEY CHAAAD! ” See you in the bathroom line!” striga leadul. Ha!!! It’s a tradition here, you meet and greet ppl, make friends setting on to the loo 🙂 Ca si cum proximitatea asta cu organicul si nevoile vitale este ceva inherently manifest in the way people befriend each other here. Curly tall early 30s white caucasian, Louisiana gait and shallow humor. Friendly and almost always slightly tipsy. Girls, neighbors, buskers, all seem to know Chadmanjoe. We later find out this afterparty has been a regular fit on Jazz Fest days for the past (seven!?!) years.

Walking home we come across one or two similar situations, but probably not as open fly as this one. Still, the works, Newrleans fest colour.