Anatomy of a Parade: Down by the Riverside 2nd line, 11/26/05 New Orleans, USA BACK TO START SCREEN the down by the riverside 2nd line 11/26/05 The Down By the Riverside Parade was the first big second line, (five hours long beginning to end) after the horror of Hurricane Katrina – immediate steps towards recovery played out in rhythm and song. It was also an homage to the Mardi Gras Indian Chief of Chiefs Tootie Montana (pictured here). Tootie passed away in June of 2005, about a month before Katrina. BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN the sounds of the parade: Stop 2 This soundscape starts off by Fred Johnson paying homage to Tootie Montana. It features the Hot 8 Brass Band in the foreground and a singing crowd trying remember, let go and be free along the way.
BACK TO START SCREEN Brass Bands of the Parade: Hot 8 The members of the Hot 8 were all born and raised in New Orleans; many of them began playing together in high school. In 1995 they came together and began playing traditional New Orleans brass band music professionally.

Founded by Bennie Pete, Jerome Jones, and Harry Cook in 1995, the band has played in traditional Second Line parades hosted each Sunday by a Social Aid and Pleasure Club ever since. The Hot 8 are famous for playing all day in the sun, then hopping to a club gig and playing through the night. But even more than their boundless energy, what makes the Hot 8 special are the sounds they coax from their well-loved, well-worn horns. BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN remember his sound Bennie Pete Bennie was a co-founder, band leader and sousaphone player for the Hot 8 Brass Band. He was a powerful driving force within his band and community at large. He passed in 2021 of complications from sarcoidosis and Covid-19. Hot 8 live at Cafe Brasil, 1/1/06 In this rendition of Play that Funky Music, the recording hones in on Bennie Pete's sousaphone BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN remember his sound Dinerral Shavers Dinerral Shavers was the snare drummer for the Hot 8 Brass Band. The Down By the Riverside second line was one his last big parades, as he was shot and killed about a year later. Dinerral talking about how he makes music: Interview at University of Michigan, 1/25/2006 More about Dinerral Shavers BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN remember his sound Joe Williams “Shotgun” Joe Williams, the virtuoso trombone player for the Hot 8 was shot dead by police, gunned down in his truck while his hands were out the windows.

When the first big gathering of the 12 Mardi Gras Indian tribes came around St. Joseph’s night 2005, the police let loose again but this time on the Mardi Gras Indians, fly bots and big chiefs in full plume regalia, billy club beat down, folks weren’t so surprised, but people can only take so much.

In this ancient town of music that means heavy sound which you can hear when you listen to this Super Sunday parade: a great gathering of the Mardi Gras and brass band tribes. Flag Gang Super Sunday Parade, 2005 BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN Brass Bands of the Parade: TBC To Be Continued Brass Band, or TBC Brass Band is a jazz band formed in 2002 by young men who grew up in the 7th and 9th Wards in New Orleans. They started at Carver Senior High School, seeking to avoid the life that befell many of their friends and classmates involving drugs and violence. Listen to TBC: BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN a brief history of Mardi Gras Indians The Mardi Gras Indian tradition dates back to around 1718. Runaway slaves from the transatlantic slave trade were taken in, protected, and hidden by the indigenous people of the continent in the Louisiana area. Throughout the years, the African and Native American cultures began to mix, creating a new masking culture.
More about Mardi Gras Indians BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN remembering a legend Tootie Montana Chief Allison "Tootie" Montana (December 16, 1922 – June 27, 2005), was the Mardi Gras Indian "chief of chiefs" for over 50 years. Tootie is revered in the Mardi Gras Indian culture as the Big Chief who is responsible for changing the violent way of the Indians' culture. Tootie was Big Chief of the Yellow Pocahontas Tribe and made the culture of the Mardi Gras Indians about pageantry rather than violence.
More about Tootie BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN griot interview Jerome Smith Jerome Smith, a stalwart of the Civil Rights Movement, has been an integral part of New Orleans' 2nd line culture since childhood. Melodius Thunk interviewed him in the fall of 2021. He gives us a deep dive into the history and spirit embodied in this unique culture. BACK TO START SCREEN a brief history of Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs Social Aid & Pleasure Clubs (SAPCs) in New Orleans are a distinctive culture that reaches back to the earliest days of Africans in America. The clubs were created for fellowship and as a financial support system to properly bury deceased African slaves and free people of color. SAPCs represent a strong symbol of “home memory,” and serves as a direct cultural link to Africa and the Caribbean. It is the only place in America where an organized ritual promulgated by African-Americans has a formal, ceremonial mirror in countries and tribes throughout the continent of Africa. SAPCs and their annual parades are indigenous to New Orleans. The nature of the celebratory second lines – both somber and joyous – are indicative of the ancestor-worship and life-affirming rituals associated with African-American society in the United States.
More about Social Aide & Pleasure Clubs BACK TO START SCREEN Photo: Black Men of Labor Social Aide & Pleasure Club during a 2nd Line Interview with Fred Johnson of BMOL BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN griot interview Fred Johnson Fred Johnson is a founder of the Black Men of Labor social aide & pleasure club. Melodius Thunk interviewed him in the fall of 2021 and he gave us a deep dive into the roots of social aide & pleasure clubs, 2nd line culture and much more. BACK TO START SCREEN a brief history of the 2nd Line Parade Second lining has been called “the quintessential New Orleans art form – a jazz funeral without a body.” Historically, the African-American community began second lines as neighborhood celebrations. The neighborhood organizations offered social aid to freed slaves, such as loans and insurance, and used the second-lines as a form of advertising. Second lines were also used to honor members who died in their community, which launched the idea of second lines at funerals. Often, Mardi Gras Indians were and still are included in the procession. More about 2nd Lines BACK TO START SCREEN There's something special about 2nd Line parades that's hard to put into words. We interviewed Jerome Smith and he explained it to us about as good as we've heard yet. Interview with Jerome Smith BACK TO START SCREEN BACK TO START SCREEN Anatomy of the Parade Down by the Riverside 2nd Line, 11/26/05 Back to Main Site