On January 20, decent, loyal Americans lost control of our country to the Russians and a handful of…read morehomegrown oligarchs, but maybe we'll make it through the darkness; the good guys won Super Bowl LIX, and New Orleans' Mardi Gras went off (mostly) without a hitch.
How do I know that Mardi Gras was a success? I followed the celebration on WWOZ, New Orleans' "Guardian of the Groove."
Throughout the 2025 Carnival season, as I have in past years, I listened to live performances and music played from WWOZ's vast archive, and viewed video and photos from the city's parades and other celebrations.
And I'm able to enjoy the New Orleans vibe year round, because, since 1980, WWOZ has hosted and presented the city's music, from classic to current, and the station streams its daily programming on its website, providing the world a handy connection to the place.
And wwoz.org hosts a two-week archive of shows, calendars of musical and other community events, and its Flickr archive of photos from Jazz Fest, the Satchmo SummerFest, and more.
How valuable is WWOZ?
In their book, "Up From the Cradle of Jazz: New Orleans Music Since World War II", authors Jason Berry, Jonathan Foose and Tad Jones refer to the station as "...a kaleidoscope of voices, rich in oral imagery -- jazzmen, composers, Cajun fiddlers, parades, grand marshals, gospel artists and R&B bluesmen, writers, occasional filmmakers, historians, Mardi Gras Indians, fathers and sons and mothers and daughters of musical families." WWOZ, they say, provides "...intimacy between the musicians and listeners, immeasurably broadening the sense of place."
If you miss New Orleans, or you've never been, and wonder what you're missing about the place, tune in WWOZ. And don't forget to make a donation; listener support keeps the bon temps rolling!