The music spills out onto Frenchmen Street and attracts a packed room of passersby, locals and tourists alike.

Vocalist Meschiya Lake fronts the group with a hearty voice tinged with warm whiskey and old soul. Her song selections run the gamut of traditional jazz, swing and dixieland, including such tunes as Louis Jordan's "Knock Me a Kiss," Billy Strayhorn's "Lotus Blossom," or Hank Penny's "Catch 'Em Young, Treat 'Em Rough, Tell 'Em Nothin'."

For a little change in traditional color, sousaphonist Jason Jurzak bomp bomps the ensemble's bass lines in lieu of an upright; he rounds out a simple but indispensable guitar-drums rhythm section that keeps the beats light, bouncy and danceable.

Trombonist Charlie Halloran takes on some of the lower-pitched horn melodies and shreds through solos that had the crowd hollering his name nearly every other song. During the second set, he was joined by Evan Christopher, who sat in on clarinet, and the two engaged in a riff-swapping duo that featured celestially high notes from the adept woodwindest.

Ed Polcer on cornet is joined by his son Ben Polcer, who flipflopped between trumpet and piano throughout the evening, to accompany the vocals on melody lines and harmonies. They each ripped through fun and technically exquisite solos of their own, much to the enjoyment of the boogieing couples strutting and swaying about the dance space in front of the stage.