We’re seeking out hope in a cold, dark season with warm conversation and music. We check in on the places in New Orleans that keep us connected, even in these isolating times, from Li’l Dizzy’s Cafe in Treme to Pete’s Out in the Cold Lounge in the Irish Channel to see how they’re faring. Then a round with Joe Krown at the 88s…on wheels, the Piano on a Truck. Plus songs by Bob Dylan, Bessie Smith, Otis Redding, and Dolly Parton.

We’re hitting the streets this week to celebrate – what else? – Mardi Gras! We’ll meet parade float builders, visit the Backstreet Cultural Museum in Treme, discover a skull and bone gang and baby dolls, follow Mardi Gras Indians and learn why flamingos flock to Baton Rouge this time of year.

Blues: it’s a universal solvent in music. There’s blues in jazz, R & B, roots rock and soul, country, Cajun, Latin, funk, hip-hop, rock and pop… It’s everywhere! We’ll hear from all corners of the musical map including Bessie Smith, Buddy Guy, Freddy Fender and Clifton Chenier and more. Then an hour with Octogenarian electric country blues man Little Freddie King, live from Marigny Studios in New Orleans.