[Dixielandjazz] Basin Street

[Steve Barbone]

There is a photograph of Basin Street from the Corner of Iberville Street,
Showing several whore houses. It shows Tom Anderson's annex in the
foreground. Page 27 in the companion book "Jazz" to the Ken Burns Special.

The caption says:

"Tom Anderson's Annex at the corner of Basis and Iberville Streets was the
most lavish establishment in Storyville. One hundred electric bulbs in the
ceiling of the bar cast a blinding light. The gleaming bar itself was a half
block long and manned by a dozen bartenders. There were private rooms for
the "Fair Sex" upstairs., and Anderson's was one of the few places in the
district big enough to emp[loy a full sized dance band. Every single
building on the block was a brothel, all of them conveniently located right
across the street from the terminus of the Southern Pacific Railroad that
hauled hundreds of potential customers into town at all hours of the day or
night."

Sounds like my kind of place. Did light and dark folks meet? Yes indeed. JRM
played piano in bordellos for whites, as well as at LuLu White's (The
Octoroon Queen's) joint. And even though the John's might all have been
white, the girls at different Bordello's were White, Black and in-between.
He also talked about jamming with piano players of all colors and races at a
joint called the Frenchman's.

Cheers,
Steve Barbone