“Sweeney’s Gumbo YaYa” is a radio program that aired weekly from September 8, 2014 to March 10, 2022. (Listen to past shows). Just about every show has an accompanying article outlining the wide range of music originating from New Orleans heard on the show.
This series of shows is for the rare breed of listener who enjoys a wide mix of music selected by a real person, not an algorithm. I try to tell the story of how this 300-year-old city became an essential source of our music culture. In the process you will hear blues, jazz, R&B, hip hop, folk, Cajun, Zydeco, Mardi Gras Indian, rock, and everything in between-new and old. It’s music from New Orleans, as well as Lafayette and Baton Rouge.
While I live in the Northwest, I was born in New Orleans and attended Our Lady of Lourdes Elementary School at the corner of Freret and Napoleon from kindergarten to fourth grade in the 60’s. I wore the uniform required of Catholic students — khaki shorts, black tie and saddle oxford shoes. Lourdes is no longer a school but I still wear the khaki shorts.
To get a flavor of the show, here’s a bit about the show’s patron saint, Ernie K-Doe!
Sweeney's Gumbo YaYa 
69 thoughts on “Indulge in Music from New Orleans”