Second line music lifts hearts, leads bridal party to reception

By Christine Bordelon
Clarion Herald

When it comes to weddings in New Orleans, second line bands add a special touch that guests remember years after the event.

“With the second line, everybody can get out and enjoy themselves and have a wonderful time and just celebrate life,” said Dwayne Paulin of the Paulin Brothers Brass Band.


The Paulin Brothers Brass Band consists of siblings of local legendary musician Ernest Paulin, band leader of Ernest “Doc” Paulin’s Dixieland Jazz Band, who died in 2007 at age 100. Doc Paulin, who grew up in a Creole-French speaking family in Wallace, Louisiana, was an early witness to the development of jazz music in his uncle Edgar “Squeezebox” Peter’s band and played with Papa Celestine and other pioneers of the traditional jazz sound.

All in the family
“We come from a large family of 13,” said Dwayne Paulin, who started playing with his father’s band at 12 and also plays trombone for BRW New Orleans Band. “He nurtured our family; he played music and supported his family with it. Six brothers played professionally with my dad and, after he passed, we continued doing what we do” in different combinations including a quartet, trio and  quintet.

Today, four brothers – Philip, who handles the contracts; Dwayne, who coordinates dates, costs, etc.; Aaron, the eldest; and Roderick, director of Southern University’s jazz program in Baton Rouge – perform, using their father’s strict standards. 


“Our dad had certain beliefs and values about being a musician that obviously included professionalism at all times and proficiency on your particular instrument, but most importantly, to maintain the integrity of the music just as the ‘old-timers’ had taught him,” said Dwayne Paulin, a music teacher who played bass guitar, piano and baritone horn in high school.

“In our formative years, he was always performing and going to some place,” he said. “Periodically, we would see his name in the paper. He played for a lot of the dignitaries in the city.”

Dignity of music
Paulin said the band not only plays at weddings “but at any type of event because of the reverence that the older guys had, taking the position that jazz was something special. They had pride and dignity in the way they played. It was mainly for a lot of funeral events to send a person off right and show respect to the family and respect for the person living, the person who had lived and the person dying and the family.”

He thinks the popularity of second line bands at local weddings started locally in the early to mid-1980s weddings.

“Everyone wanted to add the second line to the wedding ceremony so the people could enjoy the streets. For local people getting married, it was to show the visitors how we do it and how we celebrate.”

Second line costs vary, depending on how long you want the band and the quality of the musicians.

“The Paulin Brothers are not cheap, but I promise you, you will have a quality performance, everybody will be on time and dressed correctly and play some outstanding traditional jazz. We have played Jazz Fest every year since it started. … You pay for quality. A lot of people just want noise. I respect that, but don’t call me.”

 Some popular songs
“The new wave type bands of younger musicians play the street beat, but we keep it traditional New Orleans jazz like ‘When You’re Smiling,’ ‘Dark Town Strutters Ball,’ ‘Joe Avery’s Blues,’ Louie Armstrong’s ‘Cabaret’ and sometimes ‘Hello Dolly,’ Fats Waller’s ‘Sit Right Down and Write Myself a Letter.’ We can do all the other street, funk stuff, depending on the location,” Paulin said. “We keep it traditional, because we’re losing it. The younger generation doesn’t have a clue about the songs I mentioned.”

Paulin said having a second line band at a wedding is a “feather in your cap” because it is something different. “Guests wouldn’t think they were going to a parade; they think they are going to a wedding,” he said. “So, it takes it to another level by incorporating it into a wedding.”

The bride and groom generally obtain the parade permit and escort from the police department, but Paulin can assist in how to do it. It is best to call at least a month or two in advance for availability and the best price, but he can try to squeeze a bridal party in closer to a wedding if the band isn’t already booked.

They have a CD with his dad before he passed, “Doc Paulin and Sons Brass Band,”  and another titled “The Paulin Brothers” CD. The band is working on another CD after Mardi Gras.

The Paulin Brothers have played for Serena Williams’ wedding in New Orleans and performed for two weeks at a state department trip to Croatia before the pandemic “to bring some joy.”

To book them, call (504) 281-3919 or https://www.thepaulinbrothers.com


Many other bands
Another much-requested, local second line band with musicians who have a legacy in the culture is the Kinfolk Brass Band.

This band has been featured in Jazz Fest several times, the Super Bowl Experience, as a top pick in The Knot, and has been in local commercials such as Folgers Coffee and in motion pictures, said band founder and leader Richard Anderson, a trombonist.

He said the band has been around since 2009, but “most of us have been doing this since we were kids 12 years old. We grew up in this culture. More than 95% of the band members are from New Orleans.”

A cultural experience
Anderson said if you get married in New Orleans, a second line band adds to the wedding experience.

“You can’t catch this culture anywhere else in the world,” Anderson said. “It’s the only place that this exists. You get the whole New Orleans culture experience with the N.O. Jazz Band dressed in a hat, bow tie and suspenders. You are being showcased coming up the street. Everybody watches and interacts. It’s a must-have thing for your wedding.”

Anderson said his band has anywhere from five to eight musicians who play trumpet, drums, tuba, trombone and sousaphone.

Approximately 75% of gigs played by the Kinfolk Band accompany wedding parties from the ceremony locale (a church) to a reception location.


Kinfolk Band also does wedding cocktail hours performing traditional New Orleans music spiced up with a little Pop Rock music “to get people engaged and having fun,” Anderson said.

The music most requested for second line parades include: “Iko Iko,” “Little Liza Jane” and the popular “Hey Baby” and “Dance with Somebody” by Whitney House, although Kinfolk can play a variety of music ranging from New Orleans jazz, pop and R&B, Anderson said.

Price range
To hire Kinfolk Brass Band, price ranges from $850-$1,000 for the band only. Other services that the band can provide for an additional fee include the parade fee, police escort, umbrella rentals and the addition of Mardi Gras Indians or a grand marshal with an umbrella to lead the band.

“We get you from one destination to another one that’s fun, and people like it,” Anderson said. “You don’t have to worry about getting in your car or bus. We can parade you to another destination location that makes it even more fun for the bride, wedding party and everybody.”

It is recommended that bookings be made a year in advance during peak spring (March-June) and fall (September-December) seasons, Anderson said. Book the Kinfolk Band at http://neworleanskinfolk.com; or [email protected].

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