The city of New Orleans is famous for great food and good partying, but additionally, people in the Big Easy love music in all its forms and shapes. Rhythm and music are the ingredients for the lifestyle in New Orleans where jazz musicians, brass bands, Creole traditional and funky music artists fill the local music clubs all through the Crescent City.
All year round you can hear some of America’s greatest live music acts performing in the city’s bars and clubs for a small cover charge, and sometimes no fee at all.
New Orleans offers a big selection of musical possibilities and clubs to accommodate everybody’s taste. On virtually any night of the week, you are able to discover some rock or blues legends performing in one of the city’s numerous clubs. You can find promising acoustic performers, jazz to Cajun music everywhere and sometimes even music you never had the pleasure of hearing before.
No matter whether you prefer to sit in a fabled music hall, taking in the sounds of contemporary jazz, or want to dance to a brass band performing in the city’s streets, you will find a huge amount of locations where you can discover some of New Orleans’ best music.
In the Big Easy people celebrate life and death with jazz, and this could range from a jazz brunch on Sunday or a brass band in one of the many street parades, to a jazz funeral on Friday afternoon. At any location, and for every situation, you can always hear jazz all through New Orleans. A visit to the Big Easy cannot be complete if you don’t pay a visit to some of the great music and jazz clubs around the Crescent City.
Here are some favorites:
Bombay Club
830 Conti Street, New Orleans, LA 70112, Phone: 504-586-0972
The Bombay Club is precisely the kind of venue that countless men and women fantasize about when they visit New Orleans, but this kind of places seem so hard to find. The Bombay Club is, of course, a little decadent, but it is tasteful and the food is delicious. The club boasts great live music performances, but the music will never be deafening.
The Big Easy, so widely recognized for music, food, and spirits knows remarkably few locations that provide a superior quality selection of all these three elements. The Bombay Club is definitively one of these exceptional places and really is a charming candlelit venue hidden in the center of New Orleans’ French Quarter at 830 Conti Street. Despite the fact that the club is found less than a block from notorious Bourbon Street, Bombay Club’s atmosphere is definitely miles away from the noise. http://www.thebombayclub.com/
Tipitina’s
501 Napoleon Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70115, Phone: 504-895-8477
Tipitina’s first opened in 1977 and can quite easily be seen as New Orleans’ most fabled location for live music. Tipitina’s was established when several music fanatics, referred to as “The Fabulous Fo’teen” determined to create an establishment in honor of the legendary New Orleans musician Professor Longhair.
The Professor was regarded as among the most respected rhythm and blues musicians of his time, and the Fabulous Fo’teen wanted to set up a music cafe where the Professor could perform his music for the left duration of his life. Soon after they opened the place they named the location after one of his best-loved songs, Tipitina. Through the years, the most celebrated artists have appeared on Tipitina’s stage, such as the Neville Brothers, Johnny and Edgar Winter, Dr. John, Willie Nelson, and Pearl Jam.
In front of Tipitina’s, you can find the Walk of Fame, remembering NOLA music legends such as Irma Thomas also called the Soul Queen of New Orleans. Tipitina’s additionally includes a legendary music recording studio. If you can, visit Tipitina’s on a Sunday evening when they have their weekly ‘fais do-do’, a happening committed to Cajun music and dance. Tipitina’s Foundation presents Sunday youth music workshop, and you can enjoy Tipitina’s Foundation’s free Fridays concerts.
Sweet Lorraine’s Jazz Club
1931 St. Claude Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70116, Phone: 504-945-9654
Sweet Lorraine’s is one of New Orleans’ great places for modern jazz, and the short ride to 1931 St. Claude Avenue is absolutely worth it. Sweet Lorraine’s was not too long ago re-designed because of a terrible fire and at present has an elegant art deco feel.
Sweet Lorraine’s Jazz Club boasts generally local talented musicians but has had some fantastic triumphs in attracting some out-of-town great artists like Gato Barbieri and David “Fathead” Newman. The Club is widely recognized for live jazz on the weekends with outstanding players such as Michael Ward, Nicholas Payton and Clarence Johnson, III.
Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse
Royal Sonesta Hotel, 300 Bourbon Street, New Orleans, LA 70130, Phone: 504-553-2299
Grammy and Billboard Award-winning Jazz trumpeter Irvin Mayfield and Royal Sonesta Hotel offer Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse, one of the best jazz clubs in New Orleans. The Jazz Playhouse showcases New Orleans’ finest Jazz talent and serves cocktails and appetizers in a luxurious setting on the lobby level of the Royal Sonesta Hotel New Orleans.
Irvin Mayfield has been officially selected a cultural ambassador for the city of New Orleans, and even if you miss Irvin’s show, you’ll be able to enjoy other fantastic Jazz acts. For the third straight year, Irvin Mayfield’s Jazz Playhouse is honored to be called the Best Jazz Club in the Big Easy by readers of Where Y’at Magazine. There’s live music every night and no cover charge
Rock ‘n’ Bowl
3000 S Carrollton Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70118, Phone: 504-861-1700
Rock ‘n’ Bowl was established as a music and bowling location in 1988. Later the club survived the flooding of Katrina and subsequently moved to a location just 12 blocks away from the original place in 2009. It may be a little distracting, but you should pay no attention to the falling of pins and the rumbling of bowling balls that fill the air at New Orleans’ Rock ‘n’ Bowl. As the evening progresses, the atmosphere will be more influenced by the raging sounds of live music acts that perform most nights of the week.
Rock ‘n’ Bowl’s full bar and delicious bar food such as burgers and beignets offer an extra bonus to a place with a wonderfully fun ambiance. Themed music evenings, like Swing Wednesdays and Zydeco Thursdays, are cornerstones and attract a generally local crowd that wants to party on the dance floor and, occasionally, even on the bowling lanes. In case you would like to come here one night, call ahead to reserve a lane as Rock ‘n’ Bowl draws a considerable crowd most nights.
The Spotted Cat Music Club
623 Frenchmen Street, New Orleans, LA 70116, Phone: 504-337-3273
The Spotted Cat is one of a bunch of well-treasured locations on Frenchman Street, just northeast of the French Quarter. The club is a relaxing and enchanting venue showcasing regional jazz acts that play generally more mellow music than the great brass bands you’ll find in the larger places.
Staff members are known to be friendly and there’s usually no cover charge, and for that reason, drinks are priced up a little. Similar to most places on Frenchman, the Spotted Cat Music Club attracts a fascinating blend of old and young locals, and a handful of tourists smart enough to get away from the noise of Bourbon Street. In case your most desired jazz club adventure would be a darkish hole-in-the-wall where you take a seat really close to the band, the Spotted Cat Music Club could be your place. http://www.spottedcatmusicclub.com/
Preservation Hall
726 St Peter Street, New Orleans, LA 70130, Phone: 504-522-2841
The Preservation Hall is a location in New Orleans’ French Quarter established in 1961 to preserve and honor the city’s Jazz. Coming into Preservation Hall is, for dedicated jazz enthusiasts, comparable to arriving at the holy grail. Located in a modest 18th-century building with only a few wooden benches, and no air-conditioning,
Preservation Hall nevertheless always inspires the continuous crowds of people who strive for space and a view of the performing artists. Today this place additionally is also known for a famed band, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, a recording label and a non-profit educative program for young performers to understand more about jazz.
Every night there are three live music shows, at 8:15, 9:15, and 10:15 p.m. and enthusiastic visitors begin to line up outside Preservation Hall already as soon as 6 p.m. to make sure they can get in. Remember that Preservation Hall does not offer food or drinks and that visitors can bring their own beverages in plastic containers .http://www.preservationhall.com/
Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro
626 Frenchmen Street, New Orleans, LA 70116, Phone: 504-949-0696
In Marigny, you can find Snug Harbor Jazz Bistro. Be like a local and skip Bourbon Street for a night and hang out with Jazz greats at Snug Harbor. This venue offers clients a highly-respected restaurant as well as a flashy contemporary jazz club that features nightly live music shows.
You can first enjoy a delicious dish of Gulf shrimp or a nice steak in Snug Harbor’s dining room, and later you can go into the two-story music room to enjoy one of the two live music shows. This is the kind of food and music experience that nowadays is hard to find anywhere else in the U.S. If you are lucky you just can walk in without a reservation, pay a very affordable cover charge, and have the night of your life, but if you want to be sure, make reservations.
Maple Leaf Bar
8316 Oak Street, New Orleans, LA 70118, Phone: 504-866-9359
When you are tired of all that jazz, just head uptown to the Maple Leaf Bar to mix things up with funk, zydeco, blues. and brass bands. The Maple Leaf Bar was established in 1974, and since then The Leaf, as the club is usually called, has been organizing live music shows every night of the week, and it was actually the first live music place to reopen again after Katrina ruined the city in 2005.
The Maple Leaf Club commonly draws in local music icons like Rebirth Brass Band, Papa Grows Funk, and Walter “Wolfman” Washington, and is also noted to attract surprising guest gigs by famous artists such as Bruce Springsteen and Bonnie Raitt. Obviously, with artists such as these, the rather modest club gets loaded and the crowds outside on the sidewalk will be having a party nearly as good as the one inside the club.
House of Blues
225 Decatur Street, New Orleans, LA 70130, Phone: 504-310-4999
The location of New Orleans’ House of Blues may only be just above standard, but when it comes to performances, House of Blues New Orleans could very well be the greatest place in town for rock, alt-rock, and alt-country. House of Blues is a company that holds 13 live music concert halls and restaurants in major cities all through the U.S., and the names of Aykroyd and Belushi continue to be linked to the business and can be found for most openings.
A complete calendar of headliner performances, from the most popular regional talent to leading touring music bands, makes the House of Blues a success story practically each and every night and all through the year. On Sunday morning you can find gospel brunch at the House of Blues and this meeting is known to strengthen your soul. A couple of doors down the street, a smaller additional blues club, the Parish, showcases mainly local music acts.
Howlin’ Wolf
907 S Peters Street, New Orleans, LA, Phone: 504-522-9653
Howlin’ Wolf belongs to New Orleans’ finest places to enjoy live blues, jazz, and alt-rock and has always attracted a vibrant crowd. When the club was established, they initially were presenting regional rock and blues bands, but later they became a frequent concert stage for big-name touring music acts like the Smithereens and Hank Williams III. The Wolf has developed into one of New Orleans’ leading live music destinations, and the club presents a fine blend of regional and nationwide rock, blues, jazz, and roots music bands.