To Be Continued Brass Band, playing for the crowd at their long-standing gig on the street at Bourbon and Canal. For many tourists, the TBC Brass Band playing on that corner is their first exposure to authentic New Orleans brass band music. With no cover charge or drink minimum, it is also one of the best live music deals in the city, and all donations go straight to the young people providing the music.
When I checked into my room at the Holiday Inn on Royal at Canal in New Orleans, I could hear a brass band playing in the distance, so before driving out to the Hi-Ho Lounge, I walked up to Bourbon Street at Canal, where the music was coming from. The band proved to be the To Be Continued Brass Band, a famous young band that I had first encountered last year when they challenged the Stooges at the latter band’s regular weekly gig at the Hi-Ho Lounge. The resulting battle in the street corner was one of those serendipities that make me love New Orleans. On this particular night I met Edward Jackson, a trombonist who also handles the business affairs for TBC, and we arranged to have a business meeting about music distribution before I left the city.
