Here are a few pictures from the trip.

The Jazz Fest Experience began for C-Hut when he arrived in New Orleans on April 28, 2010. C-Hut ventured to the legendary India House Hostel for accommodations. One of the best parts of going to New Orleans is staying in the India House and getting reacquainted with old friends and meeting new ones. As usual familiar faces were abound and most of Wednesday Night into Thursday morning were spent enjoying some adult beverages and sharing Nice Little Life Stories.

Thursday, April 29, was a day to remember as C-Hut traveled to the New Orleans Fair Grounds to vendor for a little bit and then go in for some incredible music. Surprisingly, Nice Little Life apparel was well received especially the neoprene koozies as Festgoers grabbed them before heading into to the shows. Once inside the fairgrounds it was off to find some of the best food around. C-Hut sampled a shrimp po boy and fried pork chop sandwich before heading over to the Acura Stage to see Dumpstaphunk and meet up with an old college friend.

Dumpstaphunk rocked the Acura Stage and then came the legendary Govt. Mule. Warren Haynes ripped some sick guitar licks as C-Hut enjoyed some live music with some buddies from college. Then it was off to the Gentily Stage to see Steve Martin and Steep Canyon Rangers. On the way C-Hut stopped and saw Dr. Klaw which features Eric Krazno on guitar from C-Hut’s favorite band Soulive. After a quick stop to see Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers it was back to the Acura Stage for some Widespread Panic. Widespread performed for over 2 hours and delighted the Panic Followers.

The night was just beginning. Later on Thursday it was off to see Trombone Shorty at the Blue Nile. This is a small club located on Frenchman Street in New Orleans. The show was sold out and quickly got packed after the 1st act finished their set. Trombone Shorty and his band Orleans Avenue performed until about 1:30 a.m. During the set Trombone Shorty jumped off stage and was singing and dancing about 5 feet away from C-Hut. A picture would have been taken but the camera decided to malfunction at this point. After the set, C-Hut grabbed a quick bite on Frenchman (Authentic Mexican Burrito! Nice Little Life) before heading to the legendary Tiptina’s Uptown to see Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe aka KDTU. This was a late night set that went into the morning as it didn’t get over until 6:30 a.m. Whew!!

Back to the India House for a few hours a sleep before heading down to the Fairgrounds to vendor Nice Little Life merchandise all day. Once C-Hut got down to the fairgrounds he met up with another vendor from the day before and they worked together that afternoon. Several items were sold with the help of this other vendor. Later on Friday Night into Saturday Morning C-Hut got ready to see Soulive for a late night set. Part of C-Hut’s Original Lifestyle is sometimes dressing up in crazy outfits and going and doing things. New Orleans is the perfect place for cool outfit and C-Hut did not disappoint with the “Biggest Afro Ever Made”, Sequence Jacket, Pink Feather Boa, and shades. The outfit was the talk of Frenchman street as several people stopped and asked for pictures.

Getting into the Soulive show late night was a bear but worth it. Another Sold Out show and another awesome performance. Soulive performed only as a trio this night and C-Hut had never seen that arrangement of the band so it was a treat. Especially, the new beatles songs from the album “Rubber Soulive.” C-Hut’s Fro was swaying to “Elenor Rigby,” and “She So Heavy.” The show ended around 4:30 a.m. Back to the India House before a crazy Saturday at the Fairgrounds.

Saturday at the Fairgrounds ended up being insane due to the arrival of Pearl Jam to Jazz Fest. Lines were long and most places were crowded throughout the fairgrounds. After a quick bite C-Hut made it back over to the Acura stage to camp out for Pearl Jam. Once he got there it was already packed but he was able to get a pretty good spot to the left hand of the stage. Fortunate enough, Galactic, another of C-Hut’s top bands was performing right before Pearl Jam. Galactic brought the funk and really got the crowd going. Several Guests performed during set including Cyril Neville, Irma Thomas, and Trombone Shorty. C-Hut really digged the two songs with Trombone Shorty and felt he stole the show as usual.

After a little vendoring after the show it was back to the India House before another Soulive and Trombone Shorty show. As you can C-Hut really likes these bands and will go to multiple shows even in two day span. At the Soulive show the band had some horns perform along with Nigel Hall on vocals for some of the song. Nigel always energizes the crowd and one of the favorite songs of the night was “Too Much.” After the Soulive Show it was off to see Trombone Shorty again for a late night set at Tiptina’s. This was supposed to be the last show for C-Hut of the Jazz Fest trip so a little partying was in store for the night. Trombone Shorty and his band were awesome as usual. He is fast becoming the top dog in New Orleans as well as picking up national attention in such TV Shows as “Treme,” and being featured on PBS. Once the show ended it was off to India House for a quick rest and then time to catch a flight home in the early afternoon.

C-Hut got up in time for his flight but for some reason took forever to pack his things. Also, it was a rainy Sunday in New Orleans and the cab drivers were nowhere to be found to get a ride to the airport. So, he missed his flight and had to reschedule for the next day with a different airline which cost a penny but it all worked out. C-Hut got to go back to the fairgrounds and vendor on the last day of Jazz Fest and sold more shirts and other merchandise on that day than any other. Also, he was able to attend the Royal Family Ball which ended up being and epic adventure with some new found friends that had never seen Soulive or Lettuce. They were blown away by the experience and were very thankful to be introduced to this type of music. The night never ended as the group stayed out until 7:30 in the morning. C-Hut grabbed his things and was off to the airport for the trip home dog tired with feet swollen like canoes. As he was about to fly out of New Orleans, C-Hut ran into Neal Evans, Soulive Organ, Clavinet, and Bass Key player and they chatted for a minute. The trip was over but every minute was a Nice Little Life for C-Hut. He can’t wait to do it again next year and he knows it will be even better. Thank you for reading this blog and if you would like to find out more about C-Hut”s adventures check out the blog or Happenings page. Hopefully you will be inspired to find your Nice Little Life wherever you may be.