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PARKER: Jazz Fest a spit in Katrina's eye

By Penny Parker, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published May 6, 2008 at 9:30 p.m.

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Jim White

Jim White

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Volunteers of America honcho Jim White says his ears are still ringing with the sounds of the 38th annual New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, better known as Jazz Fest.

White and his buddies - including New Orleans VOA CEO Jim LeBlanc - attended the second weekend of the food and music orgy Thursday through Sunday, returning to Denver on Monday. He filed e-mail reports to me throughout the fest.

"Day one, perfect size crowd. Randy Newman was brilliant . . . but Tower of Power tore the place up with good ol' r & b. What Is Hip? and You're Still A Young Man never sounded better.

"Day two, John Prine put on a great show as did Michael Franti and Spearhead. I stayed (to watch) Stevie Wonder who came out with his daughter, Aisha Morris, and had a moment of silence for the Katrina victims. In front of us were Jimmy Buffet's band, and (actors) Blythe Danner and Jude Law.

"Recovery here is very slow. As my host LeBlanc says, 'We are into a marathon, not a sprint, and we are not even to the halfway point. Lots of homes are now scraped so neighborhoods have an eerie jack-o-lantern effect and the Louisana Road Home project has purchased thousands of homes, which doesn't give other homeowners much sense of security when a government entity owns every other house on your block, and you don't know what or when they are planning to do anything with them.

"Day three, when all was said and done, Jimmy Buffett at the end of the day was what the fest is all about. At one point he had his backup singers put on long floor-length dresses and called them the polygamy backup sisters/mothers/daughters - he couldn't be sure.

"Sunday, Denver's own Dianne Reeves played to a packed Jazz Tent (with people) spilling out onto the walkway. The Neville Brothers closed down the Acura stage - their first trip back since Katrina."

ROBB NOD: Denver's neighborhood noshery Table 6, 609 Corona St., was named one of the top 100 international restaurants in the May issue of the luxury mag The Robb Report.

Table 6 was included in such tony company as The Slanted Door in San Francisco, Thomas Keller's Per Se in New York City and Wolfgang Puck's Spago in Beverly Hills.

"It's a major honor," said T6 owner Aaron Foreman. "I guess the hard work paid off."

PORK PLEASER: Elway's executive chef Tyler Wiard brought home the bacon Monday by winning $5,000 and a cruise for two during Taste of Elegance, a cooking competition sponsored by America's Pork Producers at the Barona Valley Ranch Resort & Casino in Lakeside, Calif.

Wiard's cumin roasted pork loin, braised pork shoulder with green chile, posole cake and avocado with red chile took top prize over 21 other competitors from throughout the country.

EAVESDROPPING on a man at Windsor Gardens Golf Course: "I was going to write a book about sex after 60, but I am unfamiliar with the topic."

Penny Parker's column appears Tuesday through Saturday. Listen to her on the Caplis and Silverman radio show between 4 and 5 p.m. Fridays on KHOW-AM (630). Call her at 303-954-5224 or e-mail parkerp@RockyMountainNews.com.