In New Orleans for a massive marine industry convention, Sue Hilger and her son were dining at Felix’s Restaurant & Oyster Bar on Bourbon Street in early December when they were offered free tickets to the new, all-ages music venue upstairs.

They accepted even though they'd never heard of the venue, Mayfield’s 208, or its proprietor, Irvin Mayfield.

Perched on barstools not far from the small corner stage, they were blown away as Mayfield alternated guitar, trumpet, piano and banjo while bantering with his band and audience. For two hours, he played and sang jazz standards, original compositions, Steely Dan and Santana covers, and Jimi Hendrix’s “Little Wing.”

“You can feel the emotion in his music,” gushed Sue Hilger, who started posting about Mayfield’s performance even before it was

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