The Dirty Dozen Brass Band

Celebrated New Orleans brass ensemble the Dirty Dozen Brass Band helped to revitalize the Crescent City's brass band tradition, contemporizing the repertoire by delving into funk, R&B, and jazz. Emerging in the 1970s, DDBB grabbed fans with their dynamic live shows and exuberant funeral parade performances. They took a boundary-pushing approach to their albums, like 1989's Voodoo, showcasing arrangements built around sousaphonist Kirk Joseph's agile bass grooves and applying their dynamic group sound to jazz standards, funk classics, and their own buoyant originals. They have also sought out fertile collaborators, working with artists like Dr. John, Norah Jones, Elvis Costello, and (as on 1999's Buck Jump) Hammond B-3 expert John Medeski. In 2012, they guested on Malian Tuareg group Tinariwen's Grammy-winning Tassili. They also earned their own Grammy for Best American Roots Performance, joining Aaron Neville for 2022's "Stompin' Ground" off the documentary Take Me to the River: New Orleans.