The Latest: All sing with Guthrie: 'Alice's Restaurant'

The Latest: All sing with Guthrie: 'Alice's Restaurant'


9 photos
Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 5-6 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The Latest on the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival (all times local):

7 p.m.

A standing-room-only crowd filled the Blues Tent when Arlo Guthrie began playing "Alice's Restaurant" as the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival wound to a close Sunday.

Some of the crowd was old enough to have heard the first performance of that hit 50 years ago. Others appeared to be in their 20s.

They sang along with the choruses of "Alice's Restaurant" and with "This Land is Your Land" by Guthrie's father, folk singer Woodie Guthrie.

The rain had lessened, but outside the tent the wind was gusting, turning some umbrellas inside-out.

Neither wind nor rain nor heavy rubber boots kept Margo Carey of Bethany Beach, Delaware, and Joe Robert of Baton Rouge from energetic twirls as they danced to Rockin' Dopsie Jr. and his Zyedeo Twisters at the Fais Do Do stage.

Do the pair often go mud-dancing? "Just when Jazz Fest happens to be muddy," Robert said.

___

4:30 p.m.

Lightning hit a metal scaffolding holding up a giant TV screen showing the audience close-ups of Bonnie Raitt singing "Keep Your Mouth Shut" at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, but it didn't affect either the picture or the performance.

People near the screen jumped backward at the bright flash followed immediately by a non-reverberating thunderclap. Raitt kept singing and her band kept playing.

Chrissy Gross of New Orleans said she wondered why the facility manager didn't get the band off stage.

The resident physician at the medical tent says nobody was hit by lightning. A few people were brought to the tent after slipping and falling in mud at the Fair Grounds Race Course. But the physician says that, overall, the weather's biggest effect was to reduce the number of dehydration cases.

___

4:30 p.m.

Lisa Seaward was sitting in a food booth calling out, "One dollar! Big brownie!"

She'd sold out of the $5 eclairs and cream puffs made by Angelo's Bakery and Catering. But she still had quite a few of her $4 items — brownies almost 4 inches square and pairs of coconut macaroons three inches across.

She was selling the macaroons for $2.50 the pair.

Seaward said she just didn't want to take them all home.

___

3:30 p.m.

Thousands of people in raincoats, ponchos, boots or old shoes came out for a tribute to the late Allen Toussaint at Jazz Fest. A light rain continued with occasional flashes of lighting as a variety of musicians played his work during the 70-minute presentation.

Leslie Goldberg, who is from Chicago and now lives in New Orleans, danced alone to Dr. John. She was in black boots with a pattern of bright flowers and a gray plastic poncho.

Goldberg says the tribute was one of her must-see presentations. She said Toussaint was a legend, and she likes to see how all the musicians at Jazz Fest interpret his music.

___

2:45 p.m.

Two New Orleans residents wore wetsuits to the soggy last day of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival.

Joe Thompson says he hadn't really planned to go. But he says he changed his mind when fellow scuba diver Sebastian Boegershausen (BOH-gerz-how-zen) told him he was going to wear his wetsuit.

Thompson says the other factor that changed his mind was remembering that Saturday's ticket would be accepted on Sunday. New tickets were $75 at the door. But thunderstorms canceled Saturday's headliners, so festival organizers said the stubs would be valid.

As well as wetsuits, the two both wore rubber boots. Thompson also wore a bright red plastic sou'wester, its long back brim keeping rain off the back of his neck.

___

1:40 p.m.

A day after thunderstorms forced the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival to close early, another downpour turned parts of the Fair Grounds Race Track into a swimming pool for geese and forced opening acts on main stages to end their sets early.

Festival spokesman Matthew Goldman said The New Leviathan Oriental Fox-Trot Orchestra, the Young Guardians of the Flame Mardi Gras Indians and other acts under big tents were able to keep performing Sunday.

Ketha Page waded across calf-high water to help her husband pack up their folding chairs and get under the blues tent, to be sure the chairs didn't blow away.

She says the water was up to her knees on Saturday. Page said she stayed Saturday until 4:45 p.m. in hopes of hearing Stevie Wonder. On Sunday, she hoped to hear Bonnie Raitt and Neil Young.

Festival officials let people who came Saturday use their tickets again on Sunday.

___

10:30 a.m.

The last day of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival kicks off under grey skies again.

The festival's closing acts were rained out on Saturday after a deluge whipped through the area.

Organizers are honoring tickets on Sunday for those who were rained out Saturday.

Stevie Wonder, who was supposed to close the Acura Stage, gave an impromptu performance in a New Orleans nightclub instead.

One of the acts Sunday will be singer Lena Prima.

She has an interview on one of the festival's 12 stages and a performance 2 ½ hours later on another, with the Lena Prima Band.

Other acts Sunday include jazz patriarch Ellis Marsalis; the Isley Brothers; gospel singer Mavis Staples; and Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue, who close out the day.

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Photos

Most recent Entertainment stories

The Associated Press

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast