Preservation Hall Jazz Band photographed by Danny Clinch.
This week marks the public unveiling of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Fueled by events leading up to its eventual general public opening, the NMAAHC has been a must-see adventure since the top of this year. Experiences such as witnessing President Barack Obama speak in front of the National Mall, or seeing the legendary hip-hop group Public Enemy perform a live concert are just two of the many things that we’ll be looking forward to enjoying while we are in Washington, D.C. this weekend. Adding on to our itinerary of cool-things-you-wish-you-could-do-too is seeing the Preservation Hall Jazz Band perform at the Freedom Sounds festival.
Led by Benjamin Jaffe, the PHJB is one of the most legendary brass bands below the Mason-Dixon line. Born. bred and created for that southern-fried, gumbo-flavored music known as jazz — the PHJB earned their reputation through performing traditional New Orleans-style jazz with the likes of Allen Toussaint, the Blind Boys of Alabama and a young Harry Connick Jr. Back in the early ’60s, Benjamin’s parents — Allan and Sandra Jaffe — evolved the 726 venue into Preservation Hall, and made it a point to integrate the spot while highlighting jazz musicians through nightly performances.
Now, as a touring band who have had players such as Lester Santiago, Kid Sheik Colar, Alcide “Slow Drag” Pavageau and De De Pierce on their roster, the PHJB tour around the world for more than 150 days a year, bringing joy and music to all those who attend—which brings us to the Freedom Sounds festival. A community celebration of sorts to enjoy the public opening of the NMAAHC, the schedule and line-up is wholly for audiophiles with a refined and defined taste in music. The three night concert extravaganza begins with the Preservation Hall Jazz Band playing at the storied Lincoln Theatre will also feature the DuPont Brass Band and Jimmy Carter and Joey Williams of The Blind Boys of Alabama as special guests.
As we count down the moments on this Friday, Sept. 23, before we engorge ourselves on sweet notes and soul food, we were able to sit down with bandleader Benjamin Jaffe (thanks Timothy Anne!) to talk about the PHJB’s history, how they linked up with the NMAAHC for Freedom Sounds and how a chance meeting with Yasiin Bey turned into a jam session inspired by Silkk the Shocker and an oil spill. Enjoy!
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Okayplayer: How did the Preservation Hall Jazz Band link up with the NMAAHC for the “Freedom Sounds” celebration? Also, can you talk about what performing for the unveiling of the NMAAHC means to the bandleader and its members?
Preservation Hall Jazz Band: Years ago, through a mutual friend, I met Timothy Anne Burnside, one of the musical/pop culture curators of the NMAAHC. She traveled to New Orleans and we spent a day at Preservation Hall discussing our history. Later, when she asked us to contribute an item to the museum, I settled on the iconic image of the first Preservation Hall Jazz Band with Ms. Sweet Emma Barret posing in front of Preservation Hall in the early 1960’s. Considering the time, the segregated South, makes the image that much more important and poignant. The image ended up becoming the cover for the very first Preservation Hall recording.
OKP: For Mr. Benjamin Jaffe, jazz is still his and the band’s great love, yet they recorded an album of all-new material in 2013, which shocked longtime listeners. What was the process like of writing and performing music you all created yourselves instead of the standards that PJHB might’ve been known for?
PHJB: Much of the New Orleans repertoire we perform we inherited from the greats who came before us: Jelly Roll Morton, King Oliver, George Lewis, the Eureka and Tuxedo Brass Bands, Louis Armstrong, Mahalia Jackson and so on. We feel it’s our responsibly to not only honor the past but to also ensure that the tradition stays relevant to this generation and us! So we embarked on a new journey for Preservation Hall and began writing our own original material. I had to remind myself: all music was once new and original!
OKP: The PHJB, which was started by Mr. Jaffe’s parents, has a deep-rooted history in New Orleans and across the South. Was there any moment in the band’s history when James Booker played with them? Also, can you talk about his legacy in New Orleans and what he might’ve meant to players within the PJHB?
PHJB: He was a genius. He was a misfit. I only got to hear him on one occasion at JazzFest. I was a kid in the 70’s and besides Preservation Hall, church and street parades, JazzFest was where I got to hear many artists I otherwise would have missed. James Booker, Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint, Fats Domino… I heard them all for the first time at the JazzFest. James Booker used to perform in a little bar around the corner from Preservation Hall called the Toulouse Theatre. Today, the Theater is a great music venue called One Eyed Jacks.
OKP: What has been one of the most honorable moments in the life + legacy of the PJHB?
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