Cars Make Way for Dancing at Glen Echo

Glen Echo has always been a cool place to hang out. Back in 1881 the Chautauqua movement came to stay. Clara Barton built a house as a Red Cross head quarters in 1891 and lived there until her death. In 1899 much of the land was rented and became an amusement park which lasted well into the sixties. After this enterprise was abandoned, the National Park Service started managing the land, and artists soon drifted back again building yurts for their studios and hosting music festivals. Now Glen Echo Park has had a full face lift. The Denzel carousel and the Spanish ballroom are restored, and the Bumper Car Pavilion may not have cars anymore, but there's lots of action when dances are held there.


This Friday night band members of The Grandsons and Little Red and the Renegades will combine forces with Dancing by the Bayou. Zydeco dance lessons start at 8, and the music goes from 9-12. $15 will get you in for a lot of fun-plus you can be a part of local history.

Some Don't Like It Hot

It was 78 degrees in Washington when I went to bed last night which is just plain wrong in my book. Record breaking heat here where, not too long ago, it seemed like it would never stop snowing.
I am not ready for August in April, and neither are my lettuce seedlings, but at least by the weekend things should be back to our regular spring weather programming. Wade with me if you will through the pollen and catch Little Red and the Renegades this Friday night at Haydee's in a city where spring really is an amazing thing. Little Red brings you the sound of New Orleans without the plane fare, no baggage fee and no cover. 9 p.m.

Sometimes You Do Get A Second Chance

(pic by Beth Rado)

Mardi Gras has come and gone, but the Maritime Republic of Eastport has a fine reputation for doing things their own way which in the past has included a sock burning ceremony and celebrating Mardi Gras whenever they get the notion. This week they are throwing a hellatious party called The Ambassador’s (Other) Ball which will happen at 7 p.m. Saturday, March 6.

Little Red & The Renegades with Alan & Chris of The Grandsons will be playing the event and special guest ‘Texas Fred’ Carter, the Zydeco Cowboy, of WPFW-FM (89.3) will be there as well. The $25 admission includes a buffet serving Cajun and other food specialties, plus draft beer, soft drinks-door prizes, costume & dance judging.
( Mardi Gras or Key West attire encouraged)

Best of all - the proceeds will benefit the Annapolis Musicians Funding Musicians & the New Orleans Musicians’ Clinic.

The party happens at :
Eastport Democratic Club
515 State Street
Eastport, MD

Catch Carnival Fever

Mardi Gras is coming up this year on February 16, and even as Washington DC gets slugged with one snowstorm after another, there are a lot of musicians gearing up for a counter attack to bring on that Mardi Gras Mambo spirit. Don't forget Fat Tuesday is the LAST day of the carnival season, and if you haven't had a King cake yet, or donned a few beads, it's time to catch up.

Little Red And The Renegades will kick off the party this Friday night at Haydees in Mt Pleasant. Think of it as a chance to trade in your snow boots for dancing shoes. 9 p.m.

Out With Aulde and In with the Gras

photo by Jeff Shrier

Yesterday was Epiphany or King's Day- the official end of the Twelve Days of Christmas and the beginning of Carnival Season. The people of Louisiana never have to suffer the dysphoria of taking down the Christmas lights because they are already onto the next thing- breaking out the King Cake and starting a round of parties that will last until, you guessed it, Fat Tuesday- this year on February 16th.

King cakes contain a baby figurine baked inside; whomever gets the piece with the baby customarily provides the next cake and party. This goes on with celebrations and parades building until everything comes to an abrupt halt at midnight on Mardi Gras Day- then all bets are off. It's back to church, and Ash Wednesday ushers in the season of deprivation- Lent. (Last year I explained all this to my Catholic nieces which could be the closest I ever come to religious training.)

(photo by Beth Rado)

Here in the frozen North we have Little Red and the Renegades to save us from missing out on all the fun, and they'll be playing Friday night at Haydee's In Mt Pleasant.

Here's the scoop from band member Harry Rado:

"Little Red will lay down his booty shakin’ versions of all the classic New Orleans Carnival tunes by Professor Longhair, Earl King, and other Crescent City greats, and then rock the club with his swampy Zydeco.

Haydee’s is the perfect place to party in these tough economic times—they serve great Salvadorian/Mexican food in huge portions at pocketbook friendly prices.

The cordial crowd there will be a mix of people from Latin America, local Mt. Pleasant/Adams Morgan/Columbia Heights hipsters, swing dancers, roots music fans, and folks with New Orleans/Louisiana connections. Come on down and party!"

No cover! Laissez les bon temps roulez DC!

Little Red Goes Out to Virginia

If you couldn't make it to JVs last Thursday- try to head over this Saturday night for Little Red and The Renegades for a true taste of Louisiana all the way up here at the top of Dixie.

9 p.m.

Bayoupalooza, Cher

You may have heard of the Southern Crescent and the Bermuda Triangle, but there's also the Washington, DC- Austin- New Orleans Triumvirate to consider. For some reason this button-down town really goes for that Southern funk. And although we sometimes lose musicians to the scene down there, unlike the Bermuda thing, we often do get them back. This weekend you can celebrate that bayou connection at the Fall Dance Festival in Glen Echo Park. Look for lots of great Cajun and Zydeco bands both from here and down South. (Don't worry if you don't know the difference between Cajun and Zydeco; someone there will gladly fill you in, but let's just say the Cajuns know how to slow down once and awhile.)
Dances will be held in the Bumper Car Pavilion and the Spanish Ballroom pretty much all day starting at 11. Bands from our local triumvirate include Little Red and the Renegades at 2 and Natty Beaux starting at 9 p.m. on Saturday.
Sunday bands play from 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m.

Learn just what "laissez les bon temps roulez" is all about.

Hot Band @ A Cool Store

I never thought I'd grow up to regret a book store, and I have to say I used to like the big chains, before I realized how much they threaten the independents out there. I'm glad to report that we still have a selection of very good book stores in this town, and Politics and Prose is one of the best. This Sunday they will be celebrating their 25th anniversary with a cool party and a great local band that sounds and feels like New Orleans- Little Red and the Renegades.


(Little Red has a literary reference of its own - a mention in the George Pelecanos' novel Nick's Trip.)
The party starts at 4. Zydeco dance lessons begin at 5, and the band hits it around 5:30 in the parking lot. There will also be a picnic. See their store website for details.
Gotta love a dance in a parking lot.

Go See Live Music (or the Cable Company Wins)

Don't get me started. My eight year hooked up our digital converter box thingy on my dying TeeVee. I have to say I am proud of him- especially when he took one look at the instructions and dismissed then as "confusing." The only problem is that wind, rain, the flight path of National Airport or even the cat walking by - anything and everything seems to disturb our new and "improved" signal. Good thing my Tee Vee habit dropped off sometime around the time that Johnny Carson retired. And good thing there's more to do in Washington than sit at home fiddling with rabbit ears.

This weekend is jammed with music starting early with that crazy New Orleans zydeco thing that Little Red and The Renegades have going Thursday evening at Surf Club Live. And extending the New Orleans theme The Grandsons will have local sax player- now New Orleans transplant- Derek Huston sitting in twice on Sunday-once at the Alexandria Waterfront Festival (at 1) or later on at JVs in Falls Church at 5! Derek, always a busy guy, will also be hitting the stage Saturday evening when he plays with his friends The Rhodes Tavern Troubadours - a free concert put on by the City of Gaithersburg at 7 p.m.

But wait there's more! My raving favorite Greenland is at The Black Cat on Friday. And my ole pal, Alan Kresse recommends his pal, Cal Everett's band Four Out of Five Doctors- once a local favorite in the eighties-they're back and taking over Jammin' Java both Friday and Saturday nights.
(pic by Alan Kresse)

Not enough? See the sidebar at this site, and you'll see there's no excuse not to get out and about and see LOCAL music. Support it for less than basic cable! And DC ROCKS only covers a FRACTION of what's out there. Go find it. Maybe now more than ever it's time to follow John Prine's advice.

Two Rivers Run Through It

This Saturday night is fraught with choices besides watching the rain swollen waters of Washington's rivers. Close to the ever popular Potomac, David Kitchen will be opening for Eilen Jewel at IOTA in Arlington. If you can't make it be sure to check out his new stellar (and star studded) CD called "Underground."

And if you are more in the mood to kick up your heels at a dance party, then head over to the SURF CLUB nearer to the banks of the somewhat abused and under appreciated Anacostia. The Surf Club has a big dance floor and the ever reliable rhythms of The Grandsons and Little Red and The Renegades won't let you down.

Laissez les Bon Temps Roulez

I always get that "do you know what it means to miss New Orleans" feeling right around this time of year because I do. Down in New Orleans the parties and parades are happening now, and you'd be hard pressed not find a King Cake or gumbo hanging around wherever you go. The parades are created by clubs or "Krewes" with mythological names like Muses, Bacchus, Zulu and Rex, and this weekend they'll be rolling most of the day and into the evening. Fantastic floats tower overhead- sometimes double deckers - with costumed people flinging beads, doubloons, toys and cups into the melee. (Despite the prevailing fantasy that girls lift their shirts for beads- which I'm sure does happen near Bourbon Street - in real life the crowds are primarily families -parents with little ones on their shoulders, hands outstretched, and the atmosphere is not tawdry but magical. )

Now I'm getting misty so I will quit here, but if you know what it means or if you want to know- head over to the Surf Club this Sunday afternoon for our local answer to Mardi Gras angst- Little Red and The Renegades Mardi Gras Zydeco Dance Party. The fun starts at 3, and cover is just five bucks. What a deal for a great band and les bon temps.

Happy New Year DC!

(RMB Columbia Station-1978)
DC Rocks is slacking off this week in view of the holidays, but here are a few shows to check out if you are still alive and restless for GOOD music. Greenland is at the Red and The Black this Friday night- a good chance to check out a relatively new scene on H Street, and a relatively young band that has got it- good original songs and talent. 

Saturday night the DC household name band which rocked us in the '70s- The Rosslyn Mountain Boys- (not goats this time) will be At The State Theater along with another DC staples The Nighthawks AND The Charlottesville All Stars.(Anybody remember Durty Nelly's?) This will be a killer show that doesn't need promoting here!

Also on Saturday- get your dancing shoes and your Mardi Gras mood on early-The Grandsons and Little Red and The Renegades will take over Surf Club for all you swinging cats who know what it means to miss New Orleans.

Renegades Run Wild At The Zoo

(photo by Beth Rado)

Living in this city can give a person ample opportunity to complain. City services are riddled with ineptitude, if not down right corruption. When tax time comes, I wonder why I'm giving money to them. Shouldn't some of those people who lined their own pockets be kicking a little back this way by now? Even my children- though they love their DC public schools- are occasionally stunned at how shabby they are, or at the bad decisions made in running them. Still it is a beautiful city, and to make up for some of the down side we do have a boatload of free entertainment here including The National Zoo.
I like the Zoo, but I am way too lazy to walk the whole thing. I'll park near the elephant house-then I can hit the pachyderms, giraffes and pandas all in one cluster and go home. (By the by, pandas are okay, but it was even better when the prairie dogs were around.)
But the best lazy thing to do is to go visit the lions and tigers on a summer Thursday, and then literally drop down on Lion Hill for a free concert. This Thursday Little Red and The Renegades will be there, and they are a really fun band. Though listed as zydeco by the Zoo, their music is definitely not limited to that. I'd say it's more encompassing of the whole state of Louisiana and then some.

Concerts are early- 6:30-8. Picnic optional.