It's Mardi Gras in New Orleans. The unsuspecting tourists stumble into a bar on Decatur Street where a skinny man picks a banjo and everybody, including the bartender, is dancing. A woman wearing thimbles on her fingers bangs on a washboard, while the bass player finishes his beer without missing a note.

The Mike West Band plays hillbilly music, New Orleans hillbilly music. With mandolin, acoustic guitar, banjo and spoons, they recreate an old-time sound and give it new life. West tells stories with a mischievous smile, drawing the listener into a world of riverboats, gamblers, thieves and yardsales.

Most of his songs chronicle life in the ninthward of New Orleans, the neighborhood where he lives, a stone's throw from the Mississippi and a short walk from Fats Domino's house. In a few words, he describes well rounded characters in all-too-believable situations. "A lot of my lyrics come from stories told to me by my neighbors," he says, "I couldn't make this stuff up."

"Although (the songs) sound as if they came from long ago, their up-to-the-minute insights reveal their modernity." - No Depression

An Australian who was raised in England, West made his start in music fronting British cult band, "The Man From Delmonte." After a decade of touring in the U.K.,he moved to Louisiana and traded his electric guitar for a banjo. He has never looked back. Voted Best Country/Folk Artist by Off Beat Magazine for three years running, many consider West to be one of Louisiana's finest writers and instrumentalists. He picks anything with strings. "I made an instrument out of a popcorn popper, one time," he boasts, "It sounded pretty good, for a kitchen utensil." West has recorded with a number of national and international artists, including Shawn Mulins ("Soul's Core" Columbia Records).

"West's Delta guitar, banjo and lyrics rattle and shake with an unmistakable energy that's simply outrageously good music, under any flag." - Crossroads

In six years, he has released eight CDs of his own material on the Baton Rouge label, Binky Records. Backed by the extraordinary talent of Myshkin, who sings harmony while playing mandolin, washboard and anything she can lay her hands on, West tours throughout America, Europe and Australia. Playing close to three hundred shows and driving 50,000 miles every year, he may be the hardest working man in folk music.

For more about Mike West, visit his website at www,mikewest.net.