Hope you enjoy the recap!

We’ll be out there all weekend, soaking up the sights, the sounds, the aroma of delicious local dishes and dishing up some fantastic shrimp po-boys and crawfish pies at the Krewe of Choctaw food booth.  And don’t worry about missing the Tigers or the Saints – both games will be shown on the big screens on the festival grounds.

Here’s a taste of past festivals, just to get you in the mood….

This will be a whirlwind weekend and I hope to see you there!

Music Schedule

Map, Directions and Parking Info

Here’s the 2011 schedule of shows:

Friday July 15 – 7pm – 10pm: Brad Sapia & Creole Soul
Friday, July 22 – 7pm -10pm: Soul Express (Motown)
Friday, July 29 – 7pm -10pm: Brandon Foret
Friday, Aug 5 – 7pm -10pm: Red River Band
Friday, Aug 19 – 7pm -10pm: Don Rich
Friday, Aug 26 – 7pm -10pm: Aaron Foret
Friday, Sept 9 Salute to 1st Responders/9-11 Tribute – 7pm -10pm

Don’t forget that on Saturday, September 17th the Shrimp & Cajun Festival will be from 11am -6pm with entertainment by Brandon Foret, Red River Band and Foret Tradition.

The market is located at 428 Sala Avenue on the corner of Fourth Street.  See you there!

The silver lining for those of us who attended was it turned out to be almost a private event with the concert band, jazz band and brass band all performing out on the ball field on a beautiful weekend afternoon.

If you’d like to keep up with the group and their upcoming schedule, you can find them on Facebook here.

Click any image to see larger photo or to view as a gallery:

Saturday afternoon, we have a chance to attend a free Armed Forces Day Concert in Brechtel Park in Algiers.  If this is even half as much fun as when the Navy band played in the park, it will be a fantastic way to end your day.

Pack an ice chest, grab your mama ‘n nem and we’ll see you at the park!

Directions to Brechtel Park

If you haven’t made your plans yet, here is the schedule of music, a food menu and a map of the festival.

Need a little nudge?  Listen to the opening band of the 2010 festival, our friends The Jimmy Thibodeaux Band. If it doesn’t make you want to grab an Abita and a dance partner, then I don’t know what will. Have a wonderful weekend!

With a crowd that ranged from school kids to senior citizens, there had to be at least a couple of hundred folks in the park.  Girl Scouts were selling Fleur d’Bricks to raise funds for their upcoming trip to Savannah, GA.  The Friends of Brechtel Park were out in force as well, selling refreshments and raffling off a print of St. Louis Cathedral to raise funds for continued improvements to a space that is slowly recovering from the damage caused during Katrina.

I’ve written before about the need for clean up and repairs in the park and I have to say that, while there is still a lot of work to be done, there were also some very obvious improvements that have been made.  The buzz in the crowd was that the Army Corps of Engineers will be dredging and restocking the lagoon in 2011, bringing back the chance for the little ones to once again fish from the banks.

In the meantime, I was pleased to see the results of the work that has already been done.

I know that the lagoon still looks a mess, but the vegetation that was covering the surface before was smothering life in it.  It might be muddy and still need work, but at least the ducks and the geese are able to swim around now.

I also noticed replaced or repaired picnic tables and an overall improvement in the cleanliness of the park.  I hope that it won’t be long before it’s restored and filled with families once again – not just when there is a big event, but every day.

Once again, I missed the opening of the 2010 summer concerts at the farmer’s market in Westwego.  One day, I’ll get it together and be there for the first one, but in the meantime there is a great line up of fun and music scheduled all the way into July.

My favorite moment of the 2009 series was when Waylon Thibodeaux performed Matilda.  Old school, but so much fun.

Can’t see the video? Click here

Each Friday evening, you can bring your lawn chair or blanket and your dancing shoes out to the market for the free concerts.  Food and drink are being sold on site, so leave the ice chest at home.  Family friendly and a fun way to kick off the weekend, here’s the music line up:

May 21   Michael Carballo and Esplanade
May 28   Aaron Foret
June 4   Skeeter and the Swamp Pop Band
June 11  Crescent City Hitmen
June 18  Treater
June 25  Empire Blues Band
July 2     Jr. & Sumptin Sneaky

Concerts last from 7-10 pm, but you can get there early to grab the best spots.  Don’t you love living on the West Bank?  Have fun!

The Farmer and Fisheries Market is located at 484 Sala Avenue, Westwego, LA

We got there early on Friday night, before the stands filled up and all of the good spots were taken.  The seating is so impressive and can seat hundreds without the need for them to drag their folding chairs down to the site (as a matter of fact, chairs are not even allowed in the seating area).  Then there is the grassy area for additional seating and a sandy section in front of the stage…plenty of room for everyone who wants to enjoy a Friday night by the river with the breeze blowing.

No sooner were our chairs set up, the fire boat began cruising up and down the river behind the stage, spraying huge plumes of water up towards the sky against the backdrop of the city of New Orleans skyline and the Crescent City Connection bridge.  What a spectacular view!

Before the Bucktown Allstars took the stage all of the Gretna officials were on hand for the ribbon cutting ceremony.  Mayor Ronnie Harris gave a wonderful speech, welcoming everyone to the concert series and encouraging people to support Gretna businesses.  It was also announced that the change in route for the Gretna Ferry has been approved (thanks to much work from city council member Belinda Constant) and the ferry will begin traveling between Gretna and Canal Street permanently.

After the ceremonies, the Bucktown Allstars performed to a packed house.  Even an hour into the show, people were still streaming into the amphitheater. 

There were a few clouds, but no rain and what better sign of things to come than the rainbow that made a guest appearance before the sun went down.

The concerts started early this year (they don’t usually begin until after Gretna Fest), so we have a couple of extra weeks to enjoy music, food, drinks and friends – all right here on the West Bank.  Here’s the schedule of performers for the rest of the series.  They didn’t forget about the first Friday in October…that’s the kick off day of the Heritage Festival and we’ll be out there for the entire weekend!

I have to say how impressed I am with the quality of events and entertainment put on by the City of Gretna.  My hat is off to them for putting the residents tax dollars to work in such a positive way and making it a great place to live and play.  See you next week at the river!

City of Gretna
Gretna Heritage Festival
Find Gretna LA homes for sale

Starting on June 24, 2009, the free summer concerts return to Algiers Point each Wednesday evening until August 12th.

I love Wednesdays on the Point, since it means that we have something fun to do early in the evening before the mosquitoes start biting and we are guaranteed to run into several old friends along the way.

Kicking things off for week 1 (6:00 pm in the Holy Name of Mary Church yard) are Terrance Simien & the Zydeco Experience. Click here for a complete list of scheduled performers.

Moving to a different location each week in the historic district, there will be music, wine and fun all over the Point through the summer.  Beat the heat and come on out to pass a good time!