CHARLIE AND THE TROPICALES / CARNEY'S / FRIDAY, 8:00PM & 9:50PM / SATURDAY, 11:00AM & 1:10PM
The Story
One of the most infectiously upbeat bands to come out of New Orleans since The Iguanas, Charlie & The Tropicales bring a 1950s French Caribbean hotel party to life with torrid horns, tropical rhythms and infectious grooves. Be prepared for calypso, cumbias, biguines and boleros when this eight-piece retro-Tropicalia party band hits the stage. Regulars at the Spotted Cat on Frenchman Street in the Marigny and B.J.’s Lounge on Burgundy Street in the Bywater as well as the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival and the French Quarter Festival, The Tropicales, led by trombonist Charlie Halloran, spread joy from gig to gig with their buoyant melodies and jaunty grooves. Their scorching numbers from Trinidad, Martinique, Barbados and Guadeloupe are guaranteed to melt the ice in your mai tai.
The Sound
Performing tunes from their recently-released album, Jump Up, which follows on the heels of 2023’s Presents for Everyone! And 2022’s Shake the Rum, Charlie & The Tropicales will segue from Afro-Cuban dance music to a soul-styled cover of Willie Nelson’s “Funny How Time Slips Away” to a transcendent cover of New Orleans saxophone legend Alvin “Red” Tyler’s “Gee Baby” in the course of their set. The grooves will be relentless. And dancing is mandatory.
