Cajun

20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection

Recording information: 1987 - 1994.
This concise 12-track collection cherry-picks from the vast catalogue of Louisiana accordion/keyboard legend Buckwheat Zydeco (born Stanley Dural). Zydeco took the sound of his adopted surname to new heights by following in the footsteps of the genre's biggest star, Clifton Chenier, and then carrying his legacy into the 21st century. Among the many party-ready songs here are the rollicking "Hot Tamale Baby" and "Ma 'Tit Fille," along with bold covers (the Rolling Stones' "Beast of Burden"), making this a short-but-sweet introduction to the wonders of this bayou superstar.

Zydeco Party (EasyDisc)

Personnel: Fernest Arceneaux, John Delafose, Lynn August, Nathan Williams, Stanley Dural, Beau Jocque, Boozoo Chavis (vocals, accordion); Patrick Terry, Dennis Paul Williams, Guitar Thomas, Gabriel Pandy Perrodin, Jr., Chester Chevalier, Russell Dorion, Charles Prud'homme, Jimmy Reed , Lee Allen Zeno, Ray Johnson, Selwyn Cooper (guitar); Michael Doucet (fiddle); Geno Delafose (accordion, drums); Chris Ardoin, Brian Terry (accordion); Allen Broussard (alto saxophone); Calvin Landry (trumpet); Elijah Cudges, Jermaine Jack (drums, rub-board); Carmen Jacob (drums, percussion); Steve "Skeeta" Charlot (drums, background vocals); Rellis Chavis, Gerard St. Julien, Jr., Clarence "Jockey" Etinne, Charles LaMark II, Sean Ardoin (drums); Anthony Chenevert (rub-board, percussion); Charles Chavis, Mark "Chuckie" Williams, Tammy Ledet, Paul Delafose, Wilfred Pierre, Rodney Bernard (rub-board).
Recording information: Blue Jay Recording Studio, Carlisle, MA; BTW Stud; Dockside Recording Studio, Maurice; Ultrasonic Studios, New Orleans, LA.
Arrangers: Chris Ardoin; Fernest Arceneaux; Lynn August; Sean Ardoin; Stanley Dural.
Boozoo Chavis, John Delafose and Beau Jocque are just a few of the performers found on the ingratiating Zydeco Party. ~ Jason Ankeny

The Tribute Sessions *

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Features tributes by Terrance Simien to Canray Fontenot, Rockin' Sidney Simien, Sam Cooke, Clifton Chenier, A.P. Carter, The Band, John DeLafose, Alton "Rockin'" Dopsie, Rubin With Paul Simon, Bob Marley and Andrus "Beau Jocque" Espre.
Personnel: Terrance Simien (vocals, accordian); Danny Williams (vocals, keyboards); Glenn Le Blanc (guitar); Nick Lewis (bass); Danny Devillier (drums, percussion); Djalma Fgarnier (fiddle); Ralph Fontenot (rubboard-frottoir).

Hand Me Down

Personnel includes: Dirk Powell (various instruments); Ginny Hawker, Tracy Schwarz (vocals); Jim Miller (guitar); John Herrmann (banjo); Meredith McIntosh (bass). Recorded at Max/Trax Studios, Crowley, Louisiana from February-March 1999. Includes liner notes by Tom Piazza and Dirk Powell.

Classics *

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Personnel includes: Buckwheat Zydeco (vocals, accordion, piano, organ);
Selwyn Cooper (guitar); Calvin Landry (trumpet); Lee Allen Zeno (bass);
Nathaniel Jolivette (drums); Elijah Cudges (rubboard).
Recorded in 1983 & 1985.

I'm A Zydeco Hog: Live...

Couldn't make it out to New Orleans' massive Mardi Gras street festival this year? Well, throw some strings of beads around your neck, grab a drink and prepare to get down with the swampy Cajun bounce of Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas. Favourites like "Grand Prix (What a Price I Had to Pay)" and "Slow Horse and Fast Women" get the royal treatment on his steaming I'm a Zydeco Hog: Live. Recorded at the World Famous Mid City Lanes in the heart of the Big Easy, Nathan and the boys take the energy of the greatest party in the world and shove it right into your living room.

 

Drawers Trouble

Personnel: Chuck Carbo (vocals); Dr. John (guitar, piano, organ); Eugene Ross (guitar); Ralph Johnson (tenor saxophone); Leroy Jones (trumpet); Craig Klein (trombone); Edward Frank (piano); Walter Payton (bass); Shannon Powell (drums, tambourine); Matt Perkins, James Andrews (congas, percussion).
Recorded in 1993.

Louisiana Cajun French Music... Vol. 2

Full title: Louisiana Cajun French Music From The Southwest Prairies, Volume 2. These recording cover the period 1964-1967.

Gon' Be Jus' Fine

Although only a mere 15 years old at the time of this 1997 release, Chris Ardoin was already somewhat of a veteran of zydeco music with two previous albums for local Louisiana labels to his credit. He's also a member of one of zydeco's most established musical families: he's the grandnephew of Amad‚ Ardoin -- the first Cajun or Creole musician to record in the 1920s -- and the grandson of Alphonse "Bois Sec" Ardoin. With his brother Sean on drums and vocals and Gabriel "Pandy" Perrodin, Jr. on guitar (son of bayou guitarist Gabriel "Fats" Perrodin, aka Guitar Gable, who played the buzzing riff on Slim Harpo's "I'm a King Bee"), Tammy Ledet on rubboard and Derek "Dee" Greenwood on bass, they forge a new chapter in zydeco with a sound that mines new beats and grooves from reggae to hip-hop while keeping all firmly grounded in their Creole roots. The Ardoin brothers' harmony vocals add a fresh twist to the sound as well, sounding especially fine on the title track, "I Don't Want What I Can't Keep" and the blues-rocker "I Believe In You." There are traditional numbers here, including the frantic workout of "Ardoin Two Step" (a version of the family's "Amede Two Step") and the old-time waltz "Dimanche apres midi (Sunday Afternoon Waltz)," which Sean sings in the original French. But the true highlights are the more forward-looking pieces, like the college chant stomp of "We Are the Boys" (which appears in a special "Bad Boys Dance Mix" version at the end as a bonus track), "Lake Charles Connection" (sporting a wild guitar solo from Perrodin) and "When I'm Dead and Gone," perhaps zydeco's first song about the apocalypse. This is dance music of the highest order, wedding modern funk grooves to the basic fun core of the music's roots. If the Ardoin brothers and their band are truly the future of zydeco, then the future is in very good hands and the dance floor was never fuller. ~ Cub Koda