Photo Credit: Stephen Bloch
An influx of talent surged the Fair Grounds Race Course in New Orleans during the sixth day and final Friday of the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. The schedule for May 3 entertainment kept with the Big Easy’s vast display of hometown pride and featured favorites like North Mississippi Allstars’ Anders Osborne, Galactic featuring Anjelika “Jelly” Joseph, eight-piece brass ensemble The Soul Rebels, Preservation Hall’s Charlie Gabriel & Friends, Cyril Neville and many others steeped in the spirit of the bayou.
Relix cover artist Allison Russell brought a special guest to her set, inviting Hozier to duet a single song in the Blue Tent. Later, during his frame on the Shell Gentilly Stage, Russell turned up, contributing to “Work Song.” Notably, the pair have been on tour together, making for a passionate convergence of talent given an opportune billing for both. Amassing an extensive crowd, 25-year-old Christone “Kingfish” Ingram displayed his unwavering blues guitar skills, covering “Smokestack Lightning” and dedicated his performance to the late Nick Daniels.
Holding down the final slot on the Congo Square Stage, Steel Pulse accentuated the reggae side of the festival bill. The British band proved their power, getting the crowd to stay on their feet as they worked through material such as 1984’s “Wild Goose Chase,” Grateful Dead’s “Franklin’s Tower” and other coveted live plays that evoked the intertwined spirit of jubilance–that of artist and attendee.
Serving as the evening’s headliner, Foo Fighters made up for lost time after their hoped-for stands at Jazz Fest in 2020 and 2021 (canceled as a result of the global pandemic) and for a third time in 2022, following the tragic passing of drummer Taylor Hawkins. All things considered, the Dave Grohl-fronted rock troupe scraped the depths of their discography, hitting ten albums from 1997’s The Colour and the Shape to their latest, 2023’s But Here We Are.
Toward the end of Foo Fighters’ frame, Grohl spoke of Hawkins, “We had a lot of fun in [New Orleans]. We had a lot of fun everywhere.” As a follow-up, they dedicated “Aurora” to their late bandmate and brother. While the band’s set was relatively straightforward, sans guests or bust-outs, keyboardist Rami Jaffe picked on the NOLA spirit, adding a taste of The Meters’ “Cissy Strut” but not performing the revered cover in full.
Scroll down to view photos from Friday, May 3, courtesy of Dino Perucci.
