May 3^rd – Day Thirty-One

Begin at once to live, and count each separate day as a separate life. Seneca

I had to renew my phone plan to cover my few remaining days. Brian Wise has told me that he pays a $3 monthly fee so as to keep his U.S. cell number. Might explore that option.

Overcast and humid, the weather for tomorrow (Saturday) is not looking good.

Breakfast this morning at Jazz Fest was Vietnamese Egg Rolls and a BBQ Shrimp Skewer.

Stopped in at the Blues Tent for the last twenty minutes of *John Mooney & Bluesiana. Wicked slide-guitar.

Real enough to record for Ruf and Blind Pig and to sit in with Snooks Eglin and Fess himself, Mooney more or less invented welding Delta Blues to New Orleans funk. – Offbeat Jazz Fest Bible

Then over to the Lagniappe Stage for some of Susan Cowsill of the famous Cowsill Family group from the sixties.

The humidity is bad today. Sitting in the Blues tent becomes sauna like after ten minutes or so.

At 3pm I sat on the track at Gentilly and listened in to a full set of the * North Mississippi Allstars with special guest Anders Osborne. These younger guys sure know how to channel the old-time Hill Country blues. Love it.

*Southern rock and blues band from Mississippi, starring brothers Luther Dickinson (guitar) and Cody Dickinson (drums.) – Offbeat Jazz Bible

By four o’clock I was back in the Blues Tent for *Sonny Landreth. What a slide guitarist this man is. Totally unique. To think that a few years back we nearly had him play at WOW, sadly, the tour was canceled due to Sonny being ill at the time.

*’A thoughtful songwriter and scorching slide guitarist. Landreth can claim the likes of Clapton, Buffett, Hiatt and John Mayall as collaborators and fans’. – Offbeat Jazz fest Bible*’

My last gig for the day (again in the Blues Tent), was the legendary *Los Lobos. For me one of the highlight gigs of Jazz Fest. I enjoyed every minute of it. I sat next to WOW member Geoff and his lovely wife.

*They’re best known for two 80’s Richie Valens covers in ‘La Bamba’ and Come On, Let’s Go,’ but this five-piece band has been holding down the tradition of Mexican-American music since they changed all the rules of Latin rock with ‘Will the Wolf Survive.’ Too ahead of their time, they stuck around through sheer tenacity (like the wolf) and now serve as gatekeepers of border music from the Pacific to Port Arthur.’ – Offbeat Jazz Fest Bible