It’s Irish and Indians in the daytime and hot tunes at night. Here’s a look at where you’ll be at the end of this fine March week.
With St. Patrick’s Day falling on a Saturday, the two best parades are on the same day. So, you’ll need to pace in a big way. The Irish Channel parade takes over Magazine Street all day and ends whenever the last float of cabbage-tossing faux leprechauns passes.
Immediately head downtown because the Downtown Irish Club’s annual parade, which, for those keeping track, always happens on St. Patrick’s, leaves the Bywater neighborhood at 6 PM. I remarked last year that the adjustment of Daylights Savings Time to earlier in the year makes the parade just a bit less surreal since it now starts while the sun is still ostensibly in the sky.
Of course, you don’t have to wait until Saturday to get your parade on. Jim Monahan’s St. Patrick’s parade leaves from Molly’s on Decatur Street at 6 PM tonight. Tell the Kazoozie Floozies I said hello.
Even if you didn’t win tickets to the New Orleans Suspects show at Tipitina’s tonight, I still recommend checking the band out. They have been on fire at gigs all over the country, so it’s time for the hometown crowd to show them some love.
If you need further incentive, Cha Wa, the newest band that mines the ancient Mardi Gras Indian traditions, is the opening act. I have not heard them yet, so look for me up front and center.
Speaking of Mardi Gras Indians, Monday is St. Joseph’s Day, the only other day on the Indian calendar when they traditionally hit the streets in their splendid costumes besides Fat Tuesday. But since they love to show off their handiwork, a new tradition was born several decades back—Super Sunday.
Head over to the intersection of Lasalle and Washington around 1 PM Sunday to check out the annual uptown Super Sunday parade. It will be plenty crowded there, chock-a-block with people with cameras. But if you really want to see the fantastic suits up close and personal, roll with the parade through the Central City neighborhood. By the time it gets to Martin Luther King and Claiborne Avenue, you’ll find yourself alone with some Injuns. See you there!
