Big Sam's Funky Nation photographed by Eliot Kamenitz
The New Orleans Jazz Museum and Jazz Foundation of America present a performance featuring Big Sam’s Funky Nation on Wednesday, October 19th at 2:00 PM CDT.
This program takes place inside our third-floor Performance Center, listening room. Admission is free and open to the public, seating is limited and offered first come, first serve. Learn more about our program admission policy.
Enjoy jazz music from home with the New Orleans Jazz Museum! Join the Jazz Museum online for our daily Live-Stream Concert Series, in which dynamic jazz musicians perform live from the Jazz Museum! Tune in at 2 pm on facebook.com/nolajazzmuseum/live to watch for free.
Big Sam’s Funky Nation
When you think of New Orleans, the city’s foremost flambeaux-lit traditions of Mardi Gras, Bourbon Street, voodoo, Po’ boys, beads, gumbo, and second line undoubtedly come to mind. You can also count Big Sam’s Funky Nation amongst those NOLA treasures. Known for a boisterous blend of funk, jazz, rock, and hip-hop, nothing short of seismic live “experiences,” and a whole lot of Southern charm, Big Sam’s Funky Nation might very well be The Big Easy’s best-kept secret. No other place could birth such an undeniable, unpredictable, and downright unique collective. Against the backdrop of Crescent City, the group released five fan favorite albums and quietly developed a devout following. Powered by jaw-dropping technical talent and uncontainable energy on stage, their performances have become the stuff of legend. Big Sam ensures you’re not just a part of the crowd, but “a part of the show dancing and singing along.”
Beyond standout sets at the likes of Voodoo Music + Experience and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, they have performed at Bonnaroo, SXSW, and Austin City Limits, to name a few. The frontman personally draws on over two decades in the game, spanning everything from 300 shows per year during his days in Dirty Dozen Brass Band and gigs backing up Widespread Panic and Dave Matthews Band to recording and touring with Allen Toussaint and Elvis Costello. Additionally, he would be sought out for a recurring role on the critically acclaimed HBO series Treme. Following the release of 2014’s rock-leaning Evolution (and yet another marathon of gigs), Big Sam wanted to “bring the funk like never before.
Big Sam (Trombone & Vox)
'Big Sam' Williams is a trombonist and bandleader from New Orleans, Louisiana. He has been a member of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and leads Big Sam's Funky Nation. In his youth, he studied with saxophonist Kidd Jordan and at New Orleans Center for Creative Arts. In his teens, Williams was a founding member of the Stooges Brass Band and joined the Dirty Dozen, allowing him to play with Karl Denson, Dave Matthews, Widespread Panic, and James Brown. After one year with the Dirty Dozen, he began a side project broadening his musical ambitions. In 2006, he played with Elvis Costello and Allen Toussaint on their album The River in Reverse and on tour. Big Sam's Funky Nation became his main band, which performed at Bonnaroo, Gathering of the Vibes, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Voodoo Music Experience, South By Southwest, and Austin City Limits.
Big Sam's Funky Nation is primarily a funk and rock band that has elements of traditional jazz, contemporary jazz, acid jazz, dance, hard rock, and punk. Williams had a recurring role in the HBO series Treme. The series followed residents of New Orleans as they tried to rebuild their lives after Hurricane Katrina. Williams proposed to his wife on stage at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on May 4, 2014. He learned in adulthood that he is the great-grandson of cornetist Buddy Bolden.
Big Sam Williams (Trombone & Vox), Drew Baham (Trumpet & Vox), Zahria Sims (Saxophone & Vox), Jerry Henderson (Bass & Vox), Alfred Jordan (Drums), Seizo Shibayama (Guitar), and Kendrick Marshall (Keys).