Roddie Romero and the Hub City All Stars, Lafayette, Louisiana. September 2017.
September 2017
A suburban lawn concert fronted by Roddie Romero and the Hub City All Stars opened the door into my September 2017 South Louisiana visit.
Roddie Romero and the Hub City All Stars, Lafayette, Louisiana. September 2017.
A high-energy, skilled band. Roddie's band played the classics and some contemporary pieces. Below is the traditional Joe Pitre a Deux Femmes (Joe Pitre Has Two Wives). The older couple, with the woman wearing the red blouse, is always a pleasure to watch; I've seen the two dance at other venues.
Sadly, I didn't dance.
Roddie Romero and the Hub City All Stars, Lafayette, Louisiana. September 2017.
This last in a summertime concert series took place at the new development called Couret Farms. A pretty enough suburban neighborhood, but the glorification of a plantation nostalgia in the developers' ad copy does not sit well with me. I wouldn't attend another event here unless the advertising approach changed.
Roddie Romero and the Hub City All Stars, Lafayette, Louisiana. September 2017.
The Band Courtbouillon, Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Lafayette, Louisiana.
At the Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Courtbouillon played on the lawn of the Hilliard Art Museum.
The Band Courtbouillon, Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Lafayette, Louisiana.
As their bands' leaders, the three musicians play the accordion. But as The Band Courtbouillon, Wilson Savoy often picks up the fiddle and Steve Riley the guitar.
The Band Courtbouillon, Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Lafayette, Louisiana.
The three men have distinct singing voices. This cubes the band's repertoire, as the band can present three songs with but one set of lyrics, with each lead singer able to offer a different translation of the same song.
The Band Courtbouillon, Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Lafayette, Louisiana.
The Band Courtbouillon, Festival Acadiens et Creoles 2015, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Here's a short interview the Courtbouillon members in 2013:
Mary Tweedel at Vermilionville, Lafayette, Louisiana. June 2015.
Mary Tweedel has been playing her accordion in the public eye for a long time. Since she was five, in fact. When she was only 10, she was a "Young Ace of Cajun Music," performing on stage with other talented young'ns, a protégé of Helen Boudreaux.
One of the reasons I chose Opelousas as my new South Louisiana base is because of its history, especially of the Creole culture and music. Lawtell, just outside of Opelousas, is (arguably) the home of Zydeco.
Blues a Bebe, below performed by Beausoleil. Immerse yourself:
"Bebe Carriere" referred to in the song is Joseph "Bebe" Carriere, a Lawtell Creole musician who popularized this song back in his own day in the 40s and 50s.
Blue Runner, also popularized by Bebe Carriere, performed below by D'Jalma Garnier:
In the documentary, you can watch John Delafose perform the song at Slim's Y-Ki-Ki in Opelousas. Speaking of John Delafose, he's interviewed in this movie and also in another, just-as-delightful film, The Kingdom of Zydeco. Mr. Delafose comes across as an unflappable guy who doesn't give a flip for what other folks might be doing; he's good with what he's doing. He says about his music: "I think about making everybody happy" when performing.
In both films, you see Mr. Delafose's son, Geno, as an adolescent. In Zydeco, you see Geno Delafose's famous smile, and you also see where he got it - from his mama, Jo-Ann Delafose.
Prominent names from the movie include:
Joseph "Bebe" Carriere and his brother Eraste Carriere
In the musical context, the filmmakers focus on what they're calling the Cajun-Creole cultural renaissance, which took place mid-century-ish.
The documentary also delves into the Creole cultural of Opelousas, Lawtell, and some points a little west of here. It addresses some of the layers of exclusiveness/inclusiveness based on how light or dark one's complexion was. Viewers also learn about the Inseparable Friends Benevolent Society (IFBS), still active today. My understanding is that this organization was largely for Creole men (i.e. Afro-French) who were practicing Catholics.
Here's a 1966 audio-video recording of Canray Fontenot and Bois Sec Ardoin performing the Eunice Two Step and then Bonsoir Moreau. Aiee, they can make you cry listening. If you go to youtube to watch it, read the comments, as well. Some family reunionizing going on in addition to what I see as a long-time cultural-identification-tension between Cajun-Creole and also the tension that exists in defining what it means to be Creole.
Look at Mr. Ardoin's foot go! Reminds me of another favorite foot-stomper, Wilson Savoy.
What comes shining through this documentary is the strong sense of family, community belonging, hard work, and that ol' joie de vivre that are intrinsic to the South Louisiana culture.
Not the usual mural in Acadiana. Elton, Louisiana, showing its Indian heritage. The hills must be an example of artistic license. June 2015.
A cultural informant told me about Elton.
A jailhouse, a train, a white picket fence, and a red something that holds something. Elton, Louisiana. June 2015.
Elton is a village on 190 between Eunice and Kinder. Which may not help most people much in visualizing its location. So let's say it's about two hours west of Baton Rouge. And it's east of ........well, hell, you'd have to go a really long way west to make it east of something most of us would recognize. So let's come at it from another direction - it's about an hour northwest of Lafayette.
Elton, Louisiana. June 2015.
Population about 1200.
Elton, Louisiana. June 2015.
My cultural informant told me that, at one time, Elton was a tiny confluence of Indian, Creole, and Cajun tribes. Even today, he said, you might find it difficult to completely follow a conversation amongst old-timey locals because of the rich, intermingled dialects.
Elton, Louisiana. June 2015.
So when I decided to go to the Coushatta Powwow, it was a happy surprise to see that Elton was on my way there. I'd already stopped to visit the Savoy Music Jam and gawk at roseate spoonbills. The wet drizzle kept me in my car, but I saw enough to make me want to go back for a drier look-see in the future.
A train blew through while I pondered the meaning of the jailhouse and the red storage structure in the city park. Surrounded by a white picket fence.
Very nice.
Here is a bit of history on the Coushatta Tribe, which has a base on the edge of Elton. There are a couple of stories at this website, but for me, anyway, the recordings were too choppy to listen to. Don't know if the issue is on my end or the server end. There is more historical information about the Coushattas at KnowLA (Encyclopedia of Louisiana).
Cajun jam and Savoy Music Center, Eunice, Louisiana.
I like how it's in a prosaic space, surrounded by inventory on shelves, in boxes, kind of dusty, like places with lots of shelves and boxes often are. On the sales counter, visitors place boxes of donuts, cracklins, etc. to share. There's a pot of coffee with the usual cups and fixin's, and a donation jar for said goods.
The morning I went, there were locals plus two women from Paris and a
family from Atlanta, Georgia. I'm sure there were folks of other
provenence as well.
Below is one of the videos I took. The man seated on my left, in the audience, played the triangle. The woman in blue in the jam circle is from Atlanta.
I like the respect shown both Cajun and Creole music here, as evidenced by t-shirts and CDs for sale.
There's a sign on a wall that says, basically, "Hey! Let the elders get the performance time first and then you yowwens can have a turn."
Cajun jam and Savoy Music Center, Eunice, Louisiana.
Vehicles park alongside the busy 190 and walk into the Music Center driveway to enter the building.
Many songs are in French; the triangle-playing man next to me chatted in French with the Parisians.
I listened to Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys play. Watched the dancers. Tapped my toes. Slapped my hand on my thigh.
But then all of a sudden I heard the transcendent quality of the fiddle playing. Magnificent.
Here's a 2006 video of Kevin Wimmer (the fiddler in my video above) playing Fiddlesticks with another musician at a Roots festival in Tennesee:
And here he is with his other band, Red Stick Ramblers, in a 2008 performance in Connecticut:
Speaking of Connecticut, I met an accordionist at the festival, Bill, who lives in Connecticut - who loves Cajun and Zydeco music, and who has been coming to the festival for eight years. He comes on the train.
Jamming at the Festivals Acadiens et Creoles 2014, Lafayette, Louisiana.
Jams are an important part of sustaining the regional culture and, frankly, part of the tourist market. People come from all over the world to jam with local musicians. I say local musicians, but these same musicians have carried the musical message of South Louisiana to all points of the globe, creating new fans, who then make pilgrimages here.
Red accordion and Brazos Huval, Steve Riley and Mamou Playboys, Festivals Acadiens et Creoles 2014, Lafayette, Louisiana.
To show what a cliched small world it is, Brazos Huval featured prominently in this story about Ned the Dog back here, some three years ago, along with its follow-up here.
Based on my observations this year in Louisiana, I think Brazos plays an important role in bringing up young musicians to the traditional music of the region. He is a member in a number of bands, teaches music, and makes sure his students participate in jam venues.
Before I tell you what a "Yankee chank" is, I have to tell you what chank is, or more specifically, "chanky chank."
Chanky chank
Back in the day, chanky chank was a derogatory term used to describe Cajun/Creole (and early zydeco) music. Go here for a thorough explanation in an article, From Chanky-Chank to Yankee Chanks: The Cajun Accordion as Identity Symbol, by Louisiana music ethnomusicologist, Dr. Mark DeWitt. The article is from the book, The Accordion in the Americas: Klezmer, Polka, Tango, Zydeco, and More! edited by Helena Simonette.
In 1964 [Dewey] Balfa and his band were asked to perform as last-minute
replacements at the Newport Folk Festival in Rhode Island, a premier
event in the world of folk music and a top outdoor venue. Friends in
Louisiana knew that he would be playing the old-fashioned Cajun music
they called "chanky-chank," and suggested that the group would be
laughed off the stage. Instead, Balfa received a standing ovation.
I'd never heard of chanky chank until I attended the last in a series of discussions about how documentaries have portrayed Cajuns, beginning with The Louisiana Story. Dr. Barry Ancelet, a folklorist, facilitated the series. Don't remember how we got on the subject, but we talked about how sometimes transplants to Acadiana are stern arbiters of the right way to dance Cajun or zydeco. (These are referred to generally as dance nazis, who are by no means exclusive to the Cajun and zydeco genres.)
Dr. Ancelet immediately said, "Yankee chanks."
I love this.
Yankee chank refers to people from outside southern Louisiana who play the Cajun and zydeco music, especially accordions. Meant somewhat derisively at first, perhaps, it looks like at least some of the targets of this label have now embraced it with pride. Also, I should note that at the Saturday Cajun jam at Vermilionville, the emcee always introduces and expresses appreciation for visiting musicians from outside Louisiana.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
It's always the first weekend of May, and in 2014, the town celebrated its 54th festival.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
Bags checked at gate - not even a bottle of water alllowed in.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
Fabulous music. Fabulous. Six months ago, I didn't know these people existed, but today, I can tell you it is very satisfying to see venerable musicians such as Ray Abshire and D.L. Menard in person.
Ray Abshire and company, Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
I filmed Mr. Menard's performance (with the band Jambalaya) of his famous song, Back Door, here. How I love this song! I'm not wild about the quality of my video, though, so I invite you to watch the superior video below, which someone filmed at the 2009 Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival:
It was also fun to see people I "knew" from having watched videos before I went to the festival.
Like this good-lookin', good-dancin' couple below:
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
I first "met" them in the much-viewed video below from the 2009 festival:
Now look at that still photo again (above the video). See the slender guy on the right? In the flappy-eared hat? Well, that's Leon of Cafe des Amis renown, and you can watch him dance in the video here, taken by a visitor to that cafe:
Note: Leon's dance partner is doing a damn fine job herself.
It's pretty hot and sunny in BB, Louisiana, and as I have learned from watching southern Louisianans with parades, they know how to attend a festival. It's first come-first serve at the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival, but you can bring your own shade tent and set it up in permissible areas. This is a life-saver when you're at the festival for the long haul.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
Of course, everyone has a chair.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
If I were staying longer, I'd definitely invest in one of those folding chairs with its own awning. Below, you can see one or two of these awning-chairs, but otherwise, you'll see a variety of umbrellas:
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
I never tire of watching people dance, especially zydeco. It's fun to see the same people at the different venues. You get to know their styles, their signature moves.
Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
(Between you and me, though, I've learned that a lot of people dance whatever the hell they want to zydeco music, especially the jitterbug, the two-step, some form of swing, or just whatever the spirit moves them to do.)
As my dance teacher said, as long as you're moving to the beat, it really doesn't matter.
DL Menard with Jambalaya, Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival 2014, Breaux Bridge, Louisiana
