Cajun Zydeco Music Festival 2017 live from WWOZ-FM

On Saturday, June 24, 2017, radio station WWOZ-FM will broadcast live and pre-recorded performances by artists at the day’s Cajun Zydeco Festival.  If you’re not in New Orleans, listen via the World Wide Web at http://wwoz.org/.  The schedule is:

2pm- Broadcast will be begin with Jim Hobbs from the station.

2:05- 2:45pm Airing of Les Freres Michot set (recorded earlier)

2:50- 3:40pm Geno Delafose and French Rockin Boogie (Live)

3:45- 4:30pm Airing of Corey Ledet & His Zydeco Band (recorded earlier)

4:35- 5:30pm Lost Bayou Ramblers (Live)

5:45-7:00pm D.L. Menard with the Jambalaya Cajun Band (Live)

Sunday will not be broadcast.

 

Zachary Richard & Todd Mouton Live at Louisiana Music Factory 2015

Todd Mouton’s new book Way Down in Louisiana is all about Clifton Chenier and the musical universe in which he shines so very brightly.  About half the book is about Chenier and half about other musicians: Sonny Landreth, Michael Doucet, Steve Riley, and Zachary Richard.  Zachary Richard’s new children’s book is The Legend of Lil Red.  It’s an enchanting picaresque story rather like the Brementown Musicians or the Wizard of Oz.  This video starts with Mouton talking about his book, then moving to Richard, who got the entire packed house at the Louisiana Music Factory to sing with him.

 

 

Clifton Chenier, Eddie Shuler, Moise Robin interviews online

The Arhoolie Foundation has posted audio and transcripts of three interviews with Clifton Chenier, Eddie Shuler, and Moise Robin.  Chenier is the towering giant of zydeco music.  Shuler is the mastermind behind Lake Charles, La.-based Goldband Records, and Robin recorded several important tracks before the Cajun renaissance of the 1960s.

 

Zachary Richard on American Routes week of March 11-17, 2015

Nick Spitzer will talk to Cajun poet and musician Zachary Richard and to Richard Thompson on his radio show American Routes this week.  That’s two hours of mostly music with some talk.

 

Treasure trove of Lomax film on Cajun music

Alan Lomax traveled the world in search of folk music.  He recorded many individuals and groups in Louisiana in the 1930’s.  Many of these recording have been commercially released and make fascinating listening.  Lomax also founded the Association for Cultural Equity, a non-profit whose mission is “to explore and preserve the world’s expressive traditions with humanistic commitment and scientific engagement.”  They have posted Lomax’s lesser-known videos, including many taken of Cajun musicians in the 1980’s.  Musicians include Michael Doucet and BeauSoleil, aged Dennis McGee, Octa Clark and Hector Duhon, Dewey Balfa, and many others.  Makes fascinating listening!

 

Friday video: Slippery Sneakers Zydeco Band

Here’s the Slippery Sneakers Zydeco Band with about 40 minutes of club playing and 35 minutes of zydeco dance lessons.  They’re out of Rhode Island, but have a good solid sound.  Never seen a mandolin in zydeco before!

 

Friday video: Dewey Balfa ‘Parlez-nous a boire’

Here’s the classic Cajun song Parlez-nous a boire (Let’s talk about drinking) played by Dewey Balfa and Marc Savoy in the otherwise awful film Southern Comfort.  Love that it shows young and old together, enjoying music and dancing.  The movie uses the stereotype that Cajuns are stupid and violent, don’t understand English and are violent.  And there’s a boucherie going on.  And there is an intro with dialogue. 

 

Friday video: Ray Abshire with Balfa Toujours

Here is the great Cajun accordionist and singer, Ray Abshire, performing with Balfa Toujours at the 2011 Festivals Acadiens et Créoles in Lafayette, LA.  From left: Courtney Granger (violin), Kevin Wimmer (violin), Ray Abshire (accordion), Christine Balfa (guitar) and Yvette Landry (bass).  And sorry, but don’t know the drummer.  Also don’t recognize the song, and it’s one of the smaller performance spaces, not the main stage or the heritage stage. 

 

Friday video: Tintamarre in Caraquet

August 15th is the Acadian National Day, and here are three videos from the town of Carquet, New Brunswick, Canada.  They celebrate the day with a tintamarre, a noisy parade through the city.  The first video uses Zachary Richard’s song Reveille (Bayou des mysteres. Arzed Records. RZ-CD-1017. 1976. CD).  It opens with the Canadian Acadian flag, a French flag with a yellow star in the upper left.  There is also a Louisiana Acadian flag, which uses red, blue and white but has a very different design (top right here).

 

Lomax recordings free from Library of Congress

The Library of Congress (U.S. default national library) has announced that they have made available to the public the 1934 Louisiana recordings made by John and Alan Lomax.  The song index page lists title and performer by parish of origin; parish is what we call counties in Louisiana.  Within each parish are the performer’s name and the song.  These are not downloads; there is an embedded player for listening. There’s also am image of the index card used to record and track the recording.  And there are way more recordings here than what we’ve heard in the two commercial releases, so this is very exciting news for fans and musicians. Go and be inspired!