Chris Bickford

Last Wednesday I was hanging out at Café Negril watching a pretty blonde lass with a wicked right hand playing bouzouki and singing some great celtic songs, taking the wind out of my previous rant about there being no Irish music in New Orleans.  I hung around for a few tunes, hoping to hit her up at the end of the set for some information about whether there are any sessions around town, as, judging by her tight syncopated rhythm chops, there must be some fiddlers or flute players or pipers around that she jams with….but I got a phone call from Fede that she was across the street at the Spotted Cat and there was some killer swing dancing going on there.   Figuring the Irish singer had at least another ten minutes left in her set, I hopped across the street to check it out…

Well, my ADD kicked in and I got caught up in the music and the dance that was going on at the Spotted Cat and I forgot all about the Irish singer.  The dance was being supplied by members of the NOLA Jitterbugs, a dance group that has been instrumental in the burgeoning swing dancing scene that has been going on in New Orleans over the past few years.   I’m a little short on info beyond that, but maybe I’ll update this post the next time I run into them.   Until then, if you haven’t read my Mad for the Dance post, you can at least read a little more about the dancing scene here in New Orleans.   And, of course, you can head on down to the Spotted Cat on Wednesdays and check ‘em out yourself, or check their schedule for other appearances.  Enjoy.