Sazerwrap 2025

In years past we have delivered a Sazerwrap to catalog our personal New Orleans Jazzfest experience, so we will continue this year. 

We have reviewed some of the shows we caught already and it should be stated: Jazzfest in New Orleans is RtBE's absolute favorite time of the year. 

Sazerwrap 2024

In years past we have delivered a Sazerwrap to catalog our personal Jazzfest experience, so we will continue this year. 

We have reviewed some of the shows we caught already and it should be stated: Jazzfest in New Orleans is RtBE's absolute favorite time of the year. 

Sazerwrap 2023

In years past we have delivered a Sazerwrap to catalog our personal Jazzfest experience, so we will continue this year. 

We have reviewed some of the shows we caught already and it should be stated: Jazzfest in New Orleans is RtBE's absolute favorite time of the year. 

Like in 2022 (and probably for the foreseeable future) RtBE managed to hit parts of both weekends at the Fairgrounds with Sunday April 30th and Thursday May 4th being our two racetrack days. With so much music it is hard to put it all into words, RtBE won't really try this year, the pics can do the work:

Caught music from everyone from Dumpstaphunk to Kenny Loggins, Flagboy Giz to Jon Cleary, Buddy Guy to Meschiya Lake at the Fairgrounds. Also had some amazing eats.

Hard to call a favorite between the BBQ Fried Oysters and the Duck/Shrimp pasta...and impossible to pick a favorite artist from the load of amazing ones we saw from Los Lobos to The Rumble, The Iceman Special to Mdou Moctar, Hot 8 Brass Band to Santana. The hits just kept coming...

The trip isn't only the Fairgrounds though, outside of the fest proper we caught shows at Tipitina's, the Jazz Museum, The Rabbit Hole, BJ's, Saturn Bar, The Spotted Cat, The Joy Theater and so many more locales. 

That city is electric and getting to know more and more friends, catch amazing shows, and just reveling in that towns mix of magic and mayhem makes the last weekend in April and first week in May RtBE's favorite time of the year.

Until 2024...

Sazerwrap 2022

In years past we have delivered a Sazerwrap to catalog our personal Jazzfest experience, so we will continue this year, even though this trip had the most official reviews we have ever done. 

2022 Jazzfest was a dream come true after the last two years were canceled. It was the first festival that RtBE was in town for both weekends in 10 years when we were down for an extended time in 2012.  This was also the first festival trip where we also got to stay in our own New Orleans home that was purchased pre-pandemic. Magical on all levels. 

We have reviewed many of the shows we caught down there for both Glide Magazine and this site, with even more reviews coming, but there was still a lot of music we didn't review and just enjoyed. 

The first ever Factory Fest was a hoot and we got to find some shade and relax to the sounds of New Orleans Nightcrawlers. 

The fantastic Little Freddy King also played the free show presented by the Louisiana Music Factory and was held at the New Orleans Jazz Museum in the lower French Quarter.   

The city always delivers as we made it over to catch Big Chief Donald Harrison play a set of classics in Congo Square which was a definite highlight of the whole trip. 

Other days saw us catching Meschiya Lake and the Little Big Horns at The Spotted Cat, our friends in Obliquestra with special guest scary clowns and so much more that we didn't take pics of.  

While we didn't review the Fest itself on the Friday we went, our favorite set was probably from The Stooges Brass Band as they delivered protest party music under the blazing sun. Preservation Hall Jazz Band was excellent as always on the Gentilly Stage and Big Freedia brought tons of ass shaking to Congo Square Stage as well; Friday was a scorcher in more ways than one.  

As far as the food front, so many good meals it is hard to pick a best. Gianna was amazing Italian offerings, Le Petite Grocery was divine, Herbsaint was tasty as all hell and the new Miss River was a food overload. 

No food pics like past years this time, but trust me that each restaurant delivered A+ offerings. Impossible to pick a favorite and can't wait to go back to all of them. 

The town now is officially part of RtBE's life now and we can not wait to return, or for next years fest. Until then, some video from this years fest:

Sazerwrap Part 1: The Food

The Sazerwrap has been the @RockBodyElec way of rounding up all the amazing things that happen down at our annual trip to Jazzfest in New Orleans.  We will breaking the review up into two parts, Food and Music, today is the Music.  Only 11 Months until next years festival!

It has been a few years, but RtBE is bringing back the Sazerwrap for the 50th Anniversary of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. This is our 11th straight year of catching the fest and needless to say each year is magic. The trips keep evolving as does the festival and city which hosts it. Today we will chat about the food we sampled and tomorrow the tunes we heard.

Sazerwrap Part 1: The Food

The Sazerwrap has been the @RockBodyElec way of rounding up all the amazing things that happen down at our annual trip to Jazzfest in New Orleans.  As in past years we will breaking the review up into two parts, Food and Music, today is the food.  Only 11 Months until next years festival! 

Food and joyous celebration of eats, cocktails and ribaldry are just as important to the music on our annual Jazzfest pilgrimage. Click the read more and jump in...

Sazerwrap Part 1: The Food

The Sazerwrap has been RtBE way of rounding up all the amazing things that happen down at our annual trip to Jazzfest in New Orleans.  This year we will breaking the review up into two parts, Food and Music, today is the food.  Only 11 Months until next years festival! 

Every year it gets harder and harder to put into words how amazing the NOLA Jazzfest experience is. From the amazing friends whose numbers keep expanding to the all night raging to the music and food that just melts your brain and clogs your heart...Things are pretty much magical in that town.

Today we will talk about the calorie inducing portion of the trip, the tasty eats that NOLA is famous for. Each year seems to up the ante on the restaurants we hit and the great variety and quality of the grub and cocktails.

Sazerwrap Part 2: Jazzfest

The Sazerwrap has been RtBE way of rounding up all the amazing things that happen down at our annual trip to Jazzfest in New Orleans.  This year we spent a week in town so we will breaking the review up into a few parts.  Only 11 Months until next years festival! 

Now we get to focus on our two days (Sunday April 29th & Saturday May 5th)  at the 2012 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival specifically the tunes we were lucky enough to catch, and let us just say now it was pure Boosh! 

Sazerwrap - Part 1: The Food

The Sazerwrap has been RtBE way of rounding up all the amazing things that happen down at our annual trip to Jazzfest in New Orleans.  This year we spent a week in town so we will breaking the review up into a few parts.  Only 11 Months until next years festival!

Our Favorite Sazerac in town at The Carousel Bar in The Montelone

New Orleans means a lot to a ton of people, the culture, the art, the various music scene's and yet the one thing that seems to tie it all together is the amazing food on display at every turn in town.

Friday Funday: Oysters NYPL Blogpost

I Love Oysters...

I know I just posted this last week...but what a pic!

I could eat them for every meal and some days do so when I saw Carmen's blog post over on NYPL.org I got hungry.  When she opens with this paragraph it is hard not too. 

Blue Points, Saddle Rocks, Rockaways, Lynnhavens, Cape Cods, Buzzard Bays, Cotuits, Shrewsburys -- raw on the half shell. Fried oysters, oyster pie, oyster patties, oyster box stew, Oysters Pompadour, Oysters Algonquin, Oysters a la Netherland, a la Newberg, a la Poulette, oysters roasted on toast, broiled in shell, served with cocktail sauce, stewed in milk or cream, fried with bacon, escalloped, fricasseed, and pickled.

Fantastic, my mouth is watering...Then I remembered this was a NYC library blog so I knew it wouldn't be long before she mentioned the excellent Mark Kurlansky book The Big Oyster: History On The Half Shell which is a fascinating look at the oysters history with a specific focus on NYC. 

I won't say much more...except I could really go for a couple of dozen of Phantom Creek's right about now...anyway go read Carmen's excellent blog post, play around in the menu world of NYPL and enjoy your weekend.

Friday Funday - Bowery Beef and Freegal Tunes

So last Friday I had the pleasure of checking out Mike and Ray's new venture Bowery Beef now that it is up and started slicing the meat.  I have talked about it a few times before, so I won't go over much except to say...wow, do the serve up a tasty sandwich!

The roast beef is skillfully sliced and I got everything on it... it is a touch messy, but for someone who rarely eats meat, I could not stop thinking about this savory combo of cheese sauce bun and roast beef all weekend.  I wanted to go back for more, it was really that good, and Mike is a big boy I would have told him if it was OK or good...this was Excellent!.  I am not sure what to compare it too, as my favorite foods have shells and are alive when I eat them, but there was some great flavor combination a'sparking in the old chomper as I bit in.   You may want to order two as you will be wanting another when you are done with the first.

Look they even brand their buns!

Classy Boy-o's! 

It was great to see the fellas kick it off and produce a high quality product and it was fun eating with them, even if we had to "shooosh" for the play going on in back, but without reservation I recommend you try one of these tasty concoctions. 

While being "shooshed", shouldn't happen on a Friday night, and it rarely happens in the library anymore, that will be my awkward transition to this weeks Freegal downloads from NYPL.  Again I have mentioned them in the past, but this is a great service and you should really check it out. Next Friday I will be posting all of the tracks I have downloaded (some I haven't told you about) so you can download them all together as my first Freegal Friday Shuffle.

This weeks downloads are from all over the map, I got one new jack as my favorite guitarist in LA has told me to check out Mumford and Sons, "Little Lion Man"


My sister has loved them for a while now, so I will give it a few whirls in the old ears as I haven't given them any time and those two are pretty good judges of taste...well sometimes.

Then I went to Machito and His Afro-Cuban Ochestra.  I picked for "Mambo Mucho Mambo"...here is "Ay Que Mate" to give you a taste of this fine fellow if you don't already know him...


Finally I grabbed from the immortal Sam Cooke a tune of his I don't know "I Ain't Gonna Cheat On You No More", can't wait to hear it.  Since it is almost the weekend, I will give you some joyful Cooke to help you kick off the party...

It IS almost Saturday Night, and I can't wait...will be party'in Nola Style with Galactic and Trombone Shorty, BOOSH!!!!  Enjoy y'all

The Sazer-Wrap of Jazzfest 2010

Prescription?  Perfect!

Trying to do a "Sazer-Wrap" up of the Jazzfest trip is next to impossible, even as I started typing this I got the perma-grin back a'glowin'.  I will try to sum it up, but I can' truly explain the glory of it all; how can you not love a town that has a protest parade regarding the new Arizona Immigration law with a full band, dancers and drinks?! For those who were there, you know...for those who haven't been all I can say is...go.  I will focus on a couple of things, and leave the rest out there to myths and legends.  My first 2 hours in town basically sums up the Voodoo Magic:

After Checking in, and having a great meal at EAT we trounced over towards The Louisiana Music Factory to see Kermit Ruffins blow his horn.

(Here's Kermit from 09 in the same spot, I couldn't get a video this year)
 
A block away, we saw a Rolls Royce on Decatur and who is driving? Allen Toussaint.  You can't walk five blocks in this town without bumping into a legend!   Things only got better from there....Sazerac's, Highlife's, Jager, Whiskey, those were the drinks...but the food really fueled the fire.  Again most of the thanks for eats goes to Jeff, and he found some great ones this year:

Coops had the best Jambalaya I have ever eaten, the Rabbit and Sausage was amazing, and we had a nice fancy meal at Patois uptown which saw me munching on some tasty octopus.  Mother's had been skipped the last couple of trips down, but we hit it up and it remains the perfect lunch Po'boy spot...and I have to mention the Sweet Potato Pie is the finest I ever had, but I don't claim to be an expert on pies:

 After a long day at the fairgrounds we netted some fantastic Charbroiled Oysters over at Drago's that may just be the best way to eat NOLA Oysters (well second best...):

While I was at the fairgrounds we tried a bunch of different things...The Fried Green Tomato's were probablly the best but I was super suprised by how good my Veggie Ya-Key-Mein was:

Yeah I asked the same question "What the hell is that egg doing there?" I am not sure, all I can say is that it works and is a nice spiced up option.  While all of these meals were fantastic, they pale in comparison to one...when I am now asked the question about my favorite meal/food/dinner experience of my life I have an answer...The Oyster Bacon Sandwich at Cochon's:

 This was simply a food orgasm...everything was boosh...the bacon, the oysters, the spices, the bread...everything.  I won't even mention the great cucumber salad, the eggplant and shrimp side, the Moonshine, Bourbon or Hi-Life's.  Simply exquisite.  Every year this is a MUST.

Onto the music side of things and the hits just kept on coming...
On Wed afternoon, after Kermit, the fabulous Lu Brow from Swizzle Stick Bar

 directed us to Wednesday in the Square over in Lafayette Sq to catch Marcia Ball twinkle the ivories.

 That night we cruised over to The Spotted Cat catching RTBE Favorite The Loose Marbles:

Ben and crew were in top form all weekend.

After seeing a couple (who I envy and hope to emulate someday) playing spoons and clarinet on a blacony in the French quarter

 we caught the ripping Ryan Scully on Thursday night...but I am hopefully saving something special regarding that, so stay tuned...

At the fair grounds and the fest itself we had a blast (even if we skipped Sunday because of the rain) catching Rebirth Brass Band blow it out:

 and my personal surprise of the fest, Band of Horse's making Patrick Swayze jokes and nailing every tune they played...really a great set.  (Warning: the video was not me and gets a bit dizzy, but the sound is worth listening too)


We caught some side acts and a carousel that went 60 miles an hour while a french jazz band played in the center (Wild!) and we managed to catch the headliners Pearl Jam with about 200,000+ of our closets friends

 (I have never seen that many people at the fest before...The stage is all the way up on the left, PJ brought the crowd)
 
PJ seemed just as excited to be there as us...and they sped their way through their set.  It was an average effort, I have seen much better outings from the boys.  "Even Flow" in particular was played so fast that Eddie couldn't even mumble out the lyrics...whatever they are; as my friend Knapp said "WhyGoHome?!WhyGoHome!?GOHOME!!!!"

While the set was rushed the, energy was certainly there Here's a highlight (and a tune I don't think I have seen them do before) filmed off the jumbotron, "Tremor Christ":

and here's a new tune that's tough to rush (Neither video by me)


Even if the wind and weather threatened to blow/wash us away...at least the rains held off until Sunday, then they fell with a vengeance. I am pissed I missed Trombone Shorty and The Dead Weather, but we will catch them in NYC (already got DW Tickets) so I am not too worried...and for the rest of the local bands...

THERE IS ALWAYS NEXT YEAR!!! (T-minus 11 and half months...I literally can. not. wait.  Extra special love to everyone I meet, hung out with, harassed and hugged down there Love you all)