Andrews brings taste of New Orleans to New Year’s Eve
Ring in the new year with Glen David Andrews at Helsinki Hudson.
Ring in the new year with Glen David Andrews at Helsinki Hudson, 405 Columbia St., Hudson, on Sunday, Dec. 31, at 9 p.m. Doors open at 6 p.m. With his group’s jazzy, horn-laced New Orleans funk and soul, singer-trombonist-bandleader Andrews always turns Helsinki Hudson into Mardi Gras. He combines a voice and stage presence worthy of Louis Armstrong, updated for the hip-hop era.
A typical Andrews set offers a mix of traditional jazz, rock, gospel, funk and even a little zydeco. And with a menu already steeped in Louisiana flavors courtesy of Chef Hugh Horner, who grew up on the bayou, Helsinki Hudson will take on the aspect of the legendary Preservation Hall — where Andrews performs on a regular basis.
Andrews comes from a storied extended family of musicians. He was born in New Orelans’ historic Tremé neighborhood — which many consider to be the oldest black community in the United States — where the struggle to survive is older than the mighty oak trees in the Crescent City. According to family folklore, Anthony “Tuba Fats” Lacen, a patriarch of modern New Orleans music, directed the bell of his horn toward Andrews’s mother’s belly as a way to induce labor. Andrews was born the following day.
Transfixed by the magic and mystery of the city’s second-line parades, Andrews and his older brother, Derrick Tabb of the Rebirth Brass Band, along with their younger cousin Troy “Trombone Shorty,” soaked up life’s musical lessons by learning the history of the brass band tradition firsthand from iconic figures like Tuba Fats. They also learned the power of the city’s Mardi Gras Indian culture.
Starting on the bass drum as a child, Andrews soon picked up the trombone; he was blowing a joyful noise by the time he was 12. He practiced his musicianship and showmanship with the city’s most energetic brass bands, from New Birth and L’il Rascals to ReBirth and Treme.
Andrews’ presence and sweetness have long endeared him to audiences at his regular gigs at such New Orleans clubs as dba and Three Muses. In recent years, he began making waves as a headliner at the world’s biggest block party — the annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival — where he has ripped it up in the gospel tent, the blues tent and the jazz tent.
Tickets range from $35 to $65. Admission is restricted to adults ages 21 and older.