Bands - May 6

June Gardner and the Fellows

June Gardner is the drummer. The band includes Leroy Jones on trumpet and vocal, Reynold Richard on trumpet, Lucien Barbarin on trombone, Thaddeus Richard on piano and Chuck Beatty on string bass. They played Jazz Me Blues, Indiana, Tin Roof Blues, Bourbon Street Parade, What a Wonderful World, Sweet Georgia Brown, Do You Know What It Means to Miss New Orleans? and Big Chief.

The Pfister Sisters

The Pfister Sisters do a re-creation of the Boswell Sisters act. The Boswells were natives of New Orleans who were the first close harmony group (and the inspiration for the Andrews Sisters). Connie, Martha and Vet Boswell were all instrumentalists as well as singers, and they wrote their own arrangements. They started performing profesionally in the twenties, and in the thirties recorded with The Dorsey Brothers, Red Nichols and Don Redman. The Pfister Sisters do a good job of performing the Boswell Sisters's material, and also do some of their own. The songs they performed included There'll Be Some Changes Made, Going Back to Old Yazoo, Mood Indigo, When I Take My Sugar to Tea and Sentimental Gentleman from Georgia.

Mark Braud and the New Orleans Jazz Giants

Mark Braud is a talented young trumpet player who is in demand both as a sideman and a bandleader. This band includes Lucien Barbarin on trombone, Tom Fisher on clarinet and tenor sax, Don Vappie on string bass (not his usual instrument), Steve Pastorius on piano and Gerald French on drums. The band also had two grand marshals - Andrew McDuff (I think that's his name) and Bernal Brunious. The pieces they performed include Hot Sausage Rag, My Ideal (featuring Tom Fisher), Down in Honky Tonk Town, Mardi Gras in New Orleans (the Professor Longhair song), Li'l Liza Jane and Whoopin' Blues.

Clive Wilson's New Orleans Serenaders

Trumpet player Clive Wilson did a set honoring Louis Armstrong and Kid Ory (the trombonist who gave Armstrong his first job and who played with Armstrong on many of the Hot Five and Hot Seven records). Members of the band include Freddy John on trombone, Richard Cook on clarinet, Steve Pastorius on piano, Tom Saunders on string bass and Sven Stelberg (sp?) on drums. The set included Rocking Chair, Wild Man Blues, Ballin' the Jack, Savoy Blues and Wolverine Blues.

Dr. Michael White and the Original Liberty Jazz Band with Guest Thais Clark

Clarinetist Dr. Michael White is a professor of music and Spanish at Xavier University in New Orleans. He is loved and appreciated locally, but he rarely tours (possibly because of professional obligations). He always performs at Jazzfest with Thais Clark, a singer who has also written and produced shows. The band included Gregg Stafford on trumpet and vocal, Mark Braud on trumpet, Fred Lonzo on trombone, Steve Pastorius on piano, Mark Brooks on string bass, Herman Labeau on drums and Detroit Brooks (I think) on banjo. The set included Fidgety Feet, Canal Street Blues, Give It Up (written by Michael White), There Will Be a Brighter Day (also written by Michael White) and Dinah. Thais Clark sang I Get the Blues When It Rains, Precious Lord and Horn Man Blues (another Michael White composition).