Out on the eastern edge of the Bywater, way past the French Quarter (and just about any other signs of civilization) sits Vaughn's Lounge: a low-slung shack where you can buy po boys for $5, or bottles of wine for $14. For the past sixteen years, Vaughn's has also been home to Kermit Ruffins, a local trumpet legend who performs there every Thursday night with his band, the Barbecue Swingers. And, even though this past Thursday happened to be New Year's Eve, Ruffins and the Swingers were there, same as always.
Ruffins half-played, half-sang his way though a countdown of his 10 favorite pop and R&B songs of the decade, in the classic New Orleans style of Louis Armstrong, of whom he is today's only true descendant. (Armstrong's other would-be heir from NOLA, Wynton Marsalis, long ago gave up the pursuit for more Ellingtonian ambitions.) And, like Armstrong, Ruffins refuses to take himself too seriously, enjoying beers and "reefer breaks" throughout the night. At some point after midnight, he even lit a massive canister of fireworks out on the street corner, much like all the other neighborhood kids.
Some people might find it strange that an artist of Ruffins' caliber wouldn't have made his way to the big city by now, or at least to a club not quite so far off the grid. Others might call that Loyalty, of which we have far too little these days. (More pics below.)