Music mania

It is well known that New Orleans is a jazz hotspot; in fact, it is the birthplace of jazz. It is also home to rhythm and blues; New Orleans is the native land of such legends as guitarist Earl King, pianist Professor Longhair, drummer Earl Palmer, as well as the dynamic duo of Dave Bartholomew and Fats Domino; also native to New Orleans are Allen Touissaint, Harry Connick Jr., Deacon John, Irma Thomas, and the Neville Brothers Band. But rhythm and blues and jazz are not the only mainstream musical New Orleans offerings. New Orleans gospel is some of the best most soulful worship music on the planet. In fact, the gospel tent at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival continues to be one of the most popular attractions specific to that event.

Cajun music and zydeco melodies are both local to Louisiana. Cajun music is unique to southern Louisiana, having come from the Acadians that settled the area in the 18th century. It is an incredible blend of sounds that reflect the land and inhabitants of the Cajuns’ new home: Native American Indians, British, Germans, French, and Creoles. Zydeco is very lively, relying a great deal on the distinctive sound of the accordion; it is best described as a combination of African and Caribbean rhythm and blues, with a dash of Cajun splashed in for good measure. Zydeco came from the Afro-Caribbeans and French that settled south Louisiana. The name “Zydeco” originates from the French term “les haricots”, which translates to “snap beans”; a term heard in many of the earliest Zydeco tunes.

The music of New Orleans is distinctive, unique, and memorable. Whether it is pouring out from a club or shop into the streets of the French Quarter on a warm summer night or wafting from the living room windows of neighborhoods, it is something that visitors will crave long after they return home.