Big Sam Williams is a bona fide Jazz innovator from the heart of flavor country.

By Andrew Firestone

It is five years since Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, and the music has not died. As Johnny D’s Uptown welcomes Jazz Trombonist Sam Williams, also known as Big Sam of Big Sam’s Funky Nation, on Saturday – the radical flavor of New Orleans arrives in Somerville.

Born  and raised in New Orleans, Williams looks back on his experience with some bitterness.

“Katrina happened, we saw how long it took for us to get a response from the government, and get people come down and save our city. It took forever,” says Williams. “For the oil spill, it took two or three months before we got any kind of real attention on it. It was taken lightly but it shouldn’t have been.”

As the cost of living rises, and New Orleans continues to strive for full recovery and prosperity, Williams says the people have learned to face their lot, and find strength from it. “Down here in New Orleans, we feel like we’re our own country. We’re our own universe. We just feel like we have to look after ourselves.”

But fear not, fellow groovers to the beat. As a citizen of a city that has faced its fair share of tragedy, Williams says his music is about something larger than that. It’s about sharing the unique and lavish culture of New Orleans with the world, and making it clear once and for all that the Jazz will never die.

“[If] you had a bad day, we want you to come to our show and forget about your worries,” said Williams. “Enjoy yourself, let loose, be free. Hopefully you’ll come home feeling good about yourself and you’ll be able to move on with your life.”

Big Sam Williams is a bona fide Jazz innovator from the heart of flavor country, having earned his stripes by playing with musical idols such as James Brown, and learning from contemporary jam-masters, like Dave Matthews. A former member of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Williams struck out on his own to lead the “Funky Nation.” A strapping man, Williams now leads his band on the slide-trombone while kicking it hardcore on stage, with dance moves that might have given the Godfather of Soul himself a run for his money.

But, fresh off of his supporting stint on HBO’s Treme, which he praised as an emotionally poignant and brilliantly tasteful show, Williams is coming to Somerville to do what he does best: bring the flavor of New Orleans to the world.

“You can’t get the sound of New Orleans anywhere else in the world unless we come to you,” he says. “We’re going to bring that unique flavor that Somerville don’t get on a regular basis.”

An active youth, Williams’ own claim to fame goes beyond merely his illustrious gigs on stage. Far along into his career it was revealed to him by his grandmother that his great-grandfather was actually Buddy “King” Bolden, the legendary inventor of modern jazz. While Williams says he feels only a tenuous connection with his royal forebearer, he said he continues to evolve jazz his way. “I don’t want to keep it where it is and where its been for the past hundred years,” he said.

Weaving together his own brass band roots with the shades of hip hop, a twinge of dancehall, and a smattering of psychedelic funk into what he calls  “one hell of a musical combo” Big Sam’s Funky Nation produces music real fast, real loud and real proud.  “It’s kind of like what Jimi Hendrix had been, but with horns,” says Williams.

Williams says that, while progress has been made, the city of New Orleans does not have its status quo back. “We still have a lot of neighborhoods that are still to be rebuilt. We still have a lot of people that are still looking to move back, but there’s nowhere for them to move back because they don’t have enough houses for everybody,” he said.

“We love our city, we love our culture. We can’t let this die. We know how special and unique it is. We’re going to do everything we can do to keep it alive and keep it going.”

Bringing the party September 4, Williams reiterated his old-school mentality towards classic New Orleans jazz. “Whatever I feel, I’m gonna just put it out there. I’m just going to be myself. I’m not going to force it to happen. If I feel it and it comes to me, I’m going to do it. I’m not going to give a damn if this might not be what people want to hear,” he said. “I expect it to be mad crazy.”