Preservation Hall Jazz Band Give Away Ice Cream at ACL

Posted on Oct 5th 2009 11:45AM by Mike Ayers
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With soaring costs of tickets, food and beverages, it's rare to get anything for free at a concert, so it was a rare treat when the Preservation Hall Jazz Band made sure their Austin City Limits audience didn't go away empty handed. During the classic song 'Ice Cream,' where the New Orleans band sings the "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream," line, a cooler on the side stage was opened and the horn section broke out several boxes of ice cream sandwiches, cones and fruit bars and tossed them out into the crowd. And it was a simple but popular gesture, as people were literally screaming for these handouts.

The Preservation Hall Jazz Band proved to be a big draw for those who wanted to dance to some of the finest traditional Dixieland jazz ever written. Opening with their timeless classic 'Bourbon Street Parade,' the group set the tone for their hour-long set by playing upbeat and energetic numbers, making for a Mardi Gras feel in the mud of Zilker Park. And the group was pretty excited to play, as trumpet player Mark Braud explained "our [New Orleans] Saints gave the Jets a good old fashioned butt-whooping today."

Other highlights included the soulful ballad 'My Sweet Substitute' and a playful version of 'I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate.' The Preservation Hall Jazz Band are touring the US and Europe now through January 2010.