Yeah, The Jazz Fest! I'm talking about the eleven day New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival that is held every year at the end of April, and the beginning of May.

Back in 1988, before I started going to da fest, I thought society was on the verge of collapse. No looking back. No way to stop the insanity.

Now I realize that with the power of music, things like hate and bigotry are replaced by love and unity. So the next time there's a problem, here's what we do: Take these crazy world leaders and submerge them deep in the middle of Fest for a week or so.

Shortly after starting my annual treks to Jazz Fest, I met up with a great group of Fest goers known as the Pet De Kat Krewe. The main purpose of the PDKK is Support Live Music and Have Fun!

Members of The Krewe stretch from coast to coast and around the world. From Portland, Oregon down to The Florida Keys. From The UAE to Germany and back.

Several bands have written tunes inspired by the Pet de Kat Krewe! Cutting edge brass band out of New Orleans, the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, has written a tune Pet The Kat as a tribute to our krewe and is featured on their release BUCKJUMP. Zydeco super power, Chubby Carrier has a zydeco song based on the PdKK city of Dekattrois, Louisiana. Regional bands, Iko Iko and The Baboons have also written songs dedicated to The Krewe.

I've been asked hundreds of times just how one joins this krewe. If you've read this far, chances are you're already a member, and just didn't realize it. The next time you're at a live music event, look around for the easy-to-spot hard-to-resist Pet De Kat Krewe t-shirts and get ready for a wild time.

Just a a few of the Louisiana links that I've collected over the years...

• Louisiana Books and Music
• Ed Branley's Virtually New Orleans - original host site for the PDKK
• Gary Hayman's ZydE-Magic Cajun/Zydeco Page
• French Quarter Rats
• Gumbo Pages
• The Pet de Kat Krewe with many Louisiana links
• New Orleans Jazz Fest
• Michael P. Smith

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