New Orleans music is for dancing. From King Oliver’s hot jazz to Big Freedia’s frantic bounce, whether the sounds are made for quick-stepping in a parade or swaying slow in your sweetheart’s arms, the common thread running through nearly all of it is that it’s made to move to; wiggle, shimmy, shake your hip and let your backbone slip.
For more than two decades, over the course of a career that took her around the world and back again, singer-songwriter Dayna Kurtz circled back to New Orleans constantly, building a musical community and a fan base until finally, in 2013 she was able to put down roots in the city and make it her home base. And what blossomed from those roots is one of New Orleans – and maybe the world’s – best kept secrets. “There is no logical reason why singer-songwriter Dayna Kurtz is not a full-blown star,” wrote the Boston Globe.) For decades, to those in the know, she’s been admired as a writers’ writer and a singers’ singer, and with the Broadsides she is backed by what can only be called a supergroup of New Orleans aces – James Singleton on bass (Dr. John, Tori Amos), Glenn Hartman (New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars) on keys, and Robert Maché (Continental Drifters, Steve Wynn) on guitar.
In the new album to be released in 2022 “Lulu and the Broadsides,” Dayna decides to sizzle, singing made-for-dancing sets of vintage rhythm and blues with the emphasis on rhythm. Formed in part to respond to demand from New Orleans’ hip, thriving underground dance scene, the band has already been invited to slots at both the French Quarter Festival and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, plus club residencies that dependably pack the dance floor.
With a wide-mouthed, window-rattling sound that stacks up solidly alongside the great blues shouters – Big Maybelle, Big Mama Thornton – Lulu and the Broadsides double-dog dare you not to get out there and move what the good Lord gave you.
Tickets: $20
Seating/ Bar: 6:00 PM
COVID-19 Guidelines: All guests must wear a mask when not actively eating and drinking/ provide proof of vaccination at-the-door.
This event is indoors.
Sponsored by Canna Provisions.
