My view of Bourbon Street is similar to my view of Beale Street. Seeing it during the day exposes its worse
characteristics.
In this case, smelling
it was also most disturbing, as the stench of the partying the previous night
was most obvious. There can be a lot of
people watching along Bourbon Street and some shopping. But, the Bourbon Street of today is not what
it used to be and the music has moved on, or so it seems.
The shopping seems to have moved to the other
streets of the French Quarter, Royal, St. Peter, even Decatur. And the music is now on Frenchman
Street.
We found a little bar, The
Spotted Cat. In any other city it would
be a dive bar. But, here in New Orleans
it is part of the center of live music.
We were able to hear a jazz/blues piano player that was quite good. And, for the first time, we listened to Gypsy
Jazz, a type of music that vacillates between jazz and Dixieland, with a
distinct style and beat. It was
great. So, the music is still in New
Orleans, it has just found a new home.
