Florida Cajun Zydeco Update! #65 June 2018

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

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Photo by David Simpson

â„– 65 JUNE 2018

Chris Ardoin

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Gonna C Chris today

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

N o 65 | JUNE 2018

4 Cajun Zydeco Dances in St. Pete June 5 & 19 @ Caddy’s on Central

6 Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown Visits Louisiana Tune in on Father’s Day, June 17, 2018 on CNN.

7 Added to DJ’s Library: Willis Prudhomme Living Legend We will have a little taste of Willis Prudhomme on June 5

FEATURE STORY 8 Chris Ardoin: Storied Past. Bright Future

For Stroughmatt, having an audience think that the band consists of native Louisianans goes with the territory.

CAJUN ZYDECO COMMUNITY 30 Festival-O-Rama

Some listings from the FloridaCajunZydeco.com/festivals page.

36 Gumbo Boogie in Orlando

Late nights on June 1 and June 2 in the Restaurant and Bar.

36 Atlanta events

Atlanta presents Jeffery Broussard in May.

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com First and Third Tuesday in St. Pete, FL

Cajun & Zydeco

DANCE at Caddy’s on Central

217 Central Ave., 33701 Tuesday, June 5 — “Steve’s Choice: Chris Ardoin”

Tuesday, June 19 — “50/50” 6 P. M . TO 9:30 P.M. Twice monthly Cajun and zydeco dance at Caddy’s on Central in downtown St. Pete. Good mix of danceable music by Cajun and zydeco artists singing about death, divorce, drinking and dancing. No cover charge.

Caddy’s is at 217 Central Ave., St. Pete 33701.

Go to www.FloridaCajunZydeco.com for more information.

5 Photo by Jim Hance

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

TUESDAY JUNE 5 TUESDAY JUNE 19

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Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown Sunday, June 17 (Father’s Day) Cajun Mardi Gras, a feature on the food, music and culture of Lafayette, Opelousas and surrounding area, is part of the new season of the CNN original series Anthony Bourdain Parts Unknown. It is scheduled to air June 17 on CNN. The hour-long episode will feature a local courir de Mardi Gras, a crawfish boil and zydeco music. Bourdain, a veteran chef and best-selling author, stopped in Grand Coteau for a home-cooked meal prepared by chefs Toby Rodriguez and Jolie Meaux. Rodriguez and Bourdain visited Billy’s in Opelousas for boudin and cracklins. Bourdain had a Sunday lunch at Laura’s 2 in Lafayette, which included a conversation with Dave Lemelle of the Step-N-Strut trail ride, Sid Williams of El Sido’s Zydeco and Blues Club and Herman Fuselier, Daily Advertiser music and entertainment writer and host of Zydeco Stomp on KRVS 88.7 FM.

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

ADDED TO THE MUSIC LIBRARY

Willis Prudhomme Living Legend In 2007, Dan Willging wrote in Offbeat, “Zydeco practitioners are supposed to be semi-retired at age 75, not turning in one of the better records of their career. But Prudhomme has always been on the youthful side, mainly by avoiding all the hard living that takes a grueling toll on zydeco’s favorite sons. When it came time to record, Prudhomme thought youth again and let grandnephew Chris Ardoin helm the project. Needless to say, Ardoin turned out to be a package deal—producing, mixing, mastering and even jumping on bass to provide a tight, fat sound to ratchet down the bottom end. (Though uncredited, Ardoin also supplies some searing finishing touches on lead guitar). Prudhomme’s own guitar man Hubert Guillory muscles up some hard clanging rhythm action to help make the beat impossible to drop despite how many drinks you’ve knocked over.”

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Storied past. Bright future.

Chris Ardoin T

he Ardoin family is the most respected lineage in Creole music including seminal artists like Amédé Ardoin and Bois-Sec Ardoin. Chris’ father, Lawrence Ardoin, is a masterful Creole accordionist, known for his electrified Creole blues style. Lawrence Ardoin learned the older styles of Creole music, styles that are so close to Cajun music as to sometimes be indistinguishable, from his father, Bois-Sec Ardoin. Bois Sec was a well-known accordionist and singer who rose to fame in the 1960s and 70s with the folk revival. He was brought to the Newport Folk Festival back in 1966, and performed with famed Creole fiddler Canray Fontenot. Bois Sec came to be the voice and sound of traditional Creole music, standing apart from the newer sounds of zydeco, though both share the same roots. He

recorded with Cajun artists like Balfa Toujours and toured folk festivals across the US. Bois Sec’s music, in turn, came from his older cousin, the great Amédé Ardoin, the first Creole recording artist of the 78 r.p.m. era.

Bois Sec grew up playing triangle with Amédé and listening closely to his music to try and capture his mystique.

Bois Sec passed this knowledge along to his sons, one of whom, Lawrence, passed the music on to his sons, Chris Ardoin and his older brother Sean. It’s an unbroken chain of transmission that has kept the Ardoin family front and center Continued onpage 15

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rue to the Ardoin bloodline, a gregarious buttonaccordion remains king of this brave new world. And albeit reshaped, the familiar unrelenting shove of zydeco creates an instant dance floor wherever you are.

Chris Ardoin has a firm grip on doing what an Ardoin was legendarily born to do: bliss you out by dancing you up, without ever letting on that the status quo has just been majorly disturbed.”

— Dennis Rozanski

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Ardoin

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Chris Ardoin

ARDOIN FAMILY TREE If this were a documentary on the history of Creole, Cajun and zydeco music, here is a list of cast members in probable order of appearance who have the surname Ardoin:

Amédé Ardoin (1898-1942), innovative accordion virtuoso with a high singing voice, and first to record Cajun or Creole music with fiddler Denus McGee in 1929.

Amédé’s cousin, Alphonse “Bois Sec” Ardoin (1914-2007), played triangle with Amédé Ardoin, and formed the Duralde Ramblers playing accordion with Canray Fontenot for five decades, with whom he performed at 1966 Newport Folk Festival, recorded with Dewey Ardoin Family Tree continued on page 14

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Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

Not shown from list: Milton Ardoin and Russell Ardoin Amédé Ardoin

Bois Sec Ardoin

Lawrence Ardoin

Gustav Ardoin

Morris Ardoin

Sean Ardoin

Ronald Ardoin

Dexter

Marcus Ardoin

This represents the main branches of an Ardoin family tree growing expansively in the center of Louisiana’s Creole music and culture.

Most other Creole artists are either just outside the main branches of the tree, or are in the shade of that tree, deeply influenced by the generations of Ardoin musicians.

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com Balfa, and later Balfa Toujours in the 1990s.

Bois Sec’s son, Milton Ardoin, who advised his uncle Amédé to stop playing that music that always resulted in a brawl at the dances.

Milton played triangle with Bois Sec Ardoin from age 9.

Bois Sec’s son, Lawrence “Black” Ardoin (1946-), leader of the Ardoin Brothers Band when his dad retired, leader of Lawrence “Black” Ardoin and His French Zydeco Band, and manager for his son’s band, Chris Ardoin and Double Clutchin’.

Lawrence Ardoin’s older son, Sean Ardoin (1970-), leader of the band Sean Ardoin & Zydekool.

Lawrence Ardoin’s son, Chris Ardoin (1981-), leader of the band Chris Ardoin and NuStep Zydeko Bois Sec’s son, Morris Ardoin, owner of the Cowboy Club in Duralde, and founder of the Ardoin Family Band with brothers Lawrence and Russell with Canray Fontenot on fiddle.

Bois Sec’s son, Russell Ardoin, bass player in the Ardoin Brothers.

Bois Sec’s son, Ronald Ardoin, drummer in a latter version of the Ardoin Brothers.

Morris Ardoin’s son, Dexter Ardoin, leader of the band Dexter Ardoin & The Creole Ramblers, and accordion builder.

Marcus Ardoin, leader of the Houston band, Da Zydeco Legendz, presumably related to the Lake Charles Ardoins, recently performed on same stage prior to Chris Ardoin in Houston.

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Continued from page 9 both in the older world of Creole traditional music and in the newer world of Creole zydeco.

It’s easy to see Amédé Ardoin’s music as traditional, and the music of today’s zydeco and Creole artists, especially Chris Ardoin, as some kind of fusion or experiment. But Amédé was the original innovator.

He wasn’t singing old French ballads brought over by the Acadians, and he wasn’t playing old French fiddle tunes with his music. He wrote the majority of the songs he sang and was a deft and gifted songwriter.

He tapped into the country blues that was the day’s pop music, writing lyrics that lamented lost women and hard times. His accordion playing embellished the already innovative Cajun accordion traditions, at some

Photo by David Simpson

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com points adding virtuosity (his use of rapid-fire triplets on “Valse de Opelousas”), at some points taking it away (his one-chord song “Blues de Crowley” which clearly foreshadows zydeco accordion riffs). In every way, Amédé Ardoin was an innovative force in Creole and Cajun music, drawing briefly from earlier traditions, but overwhelming these influences with new musical ideas.

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hris Ardoin rides the same path as Amédé. His music too is overwhelmed by the influences of today. But don’t think for a second that Ardoin doesn’t have every right to rebuild zydeco to his modern tastes. He knows his family’s history inside and out, and respects his roots. The bottom line is that Ardoin is beholden to only one community: the Creole dance community. That’s the real legacy of being an Ardoin. Your job isn’t to preserve your heritage, or to play the way that folklorists think you should be playing; your only job is to keep the dance floor jumping. That was Amédé Ardoin’s great skill, and that’s Chris Ardoin’s great skill as well. The Ardoin legacy clearly continues, but with some new beats.

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Chris Ardoin’s Start in Music Chris Ardoin was born on April 7, 1981 in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

His family says he started to play accordion as early as age 2, and at age 4 he was hoisted to the stage and performed a song for his first live audience. “The only thing I really remember about that show," recalls Chris, “was that I had some red cowboy boots on and a red cowboy hat. They took my cowboy hat and put it on the front of the stage. I collected like $400 in tips.”

Chris Ardoin remembers the song he played at that first show. The tune was “Don’t Mess With My Toot Toot.”

When Chris was just ten, he and his brother Sean formed the band Chris Ardoin and Double Clutchin’. Sean played drums, composed most of their music and was lead singer, but they figured the band would get more attention if they promoted Sean’s little brother on accordion.

According to Sean, “The market wasn't there for the old style,” Sean recalls, “and my dad noticed the trend for the new music. That wasn’t his style and he didn’t want to learn the new style, so he just handed the band over to me and my brother Chris in 1991. I was 22 and Chris was 10, and I thought people would go crazy over a little black kid playing the accordion, so I renamed the group Chris Ardoin & Double Clutchin’. And I was right.”

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

‘Double clutchin’ is the term for the new drumbeat introduced by Beau Jocque’s band at that time.

Spurred on by double eighth notes from the kick drum on the one and three beats, it gave zydeco a new power and momentum.

In 1994, the band released their debut album That’s Da Lick on the Maison de Soul label. Chris came more into the center of the spotlight in the follow-up effort Lick It Up! released a year later, sharing vocals and songwriting duties with Sean. Their third effort really attracted the attention of the critics.

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lthough only a mere 15 years old at the time that Gon’ Be Jus’ Fine was released in 1997, Chris Ardoin was already somewhat of a veteran of zydeco music with two previous albums for local Louisiana labels to his credit. With his brother Sean on drums and vocals and Gabriel “Pandy” Perrodin, Jr. on guitar, Tammy Ledet on rubboard and Derek “Dee” Greenwood on bass, they forged 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

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com Want What I Can't Keep” and the blues-rocker “I Believe In You.” This is dance music of the highest order, wedding modern funk grooves to the basic fun core of the music’s roots. As one reviewer put it, “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.”

“They could absolutely break barriers,” says Michael Tisserand, author of The Kingdom of Zydeco.

“I think everyone in the band is incredible. The whole idea of zydeco being a family music comes to fruition with this band, and Chris is a great accordion player, not just a great young accordion player.”

If it all seems destined by fate or bloodline, Sean and Chris Ardoin seemed calmly anticipatory as they prepared to kick full-time into a career that should last for decades. As father Lawrence hovered protectively and proudly backstage in Rhode Island, the brothers shrugged when listeners register disbelief at the news that Double Clutchin’ rarely rehearses. “We just don’t,” both say together, then break into laughter.

Turn The Page was released in 1998. One reviewer commented, “Chris and his brother Sean are fourth-generation Ardoin musicians, and they do Amédé proud. One of the best young contemporary zydeco

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update! bands, they have a driving beat, a fresh sound (not just imitating Boozoo or Beau Jocque like so many others), and Chris’ playing gets better and better.”

Sean left the band after releasing the album Turn the Page to concentrate on his solo career.

Bending the Music Genre Eventually, Sean split off to form his own band, ZydeKool. Sean had a powerful onstage personality that would be gone from the band, as well as a couple of the bandmates: Tammy Ledet on frottoir and Derek Greenwood on bass. Cousin Dexter Ardoin will fill in on drums, Nat Fontenot on guitar, Curly Chapman on bass, and Charles Elam III on frottoir and backing vocals.

“Chris is shy, like me,” Geno Delafose told Rick Koster, author of Louisiana Music. “Part of the early credit for Double Clutchin’ goes to Sean because he’s a people person and he flat-out entertains people.

But Chris has stepped up. He’s a great accordion player and, though he grew up in the old school, he’s pushing it in new directions.”

Chris says, “We use a lot more guitar patterns, vocal harmonies, different rhythms. Some of the older folks say what we’re doing isn’t zydeco. And I say, ‘Yeah, it is.’ It’s time to change, and what we do is zydeco. We’ll play traditional stuff sometimes because we play to a lot of people and sometimes they wanna hear that stuff. But we have a lot of younger fans who didn’t care about zydeco until lately, and they wanna hear where we’re taking it.”

About this period of time, Sean Ardoin was asked about the intersection between zydeco and mainstream pop music. “Everyone

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com says you have to keep it traditional, but they forget that Clifton Chenier came back to Louisiana from California as a rock n’ roll artist playing ‘Choo-ChooCh-Boogie.’ The only difference between him and Little Richard or Ray Charles was that he played an accordion. And that should be the only difference between me and modern pop — the accordion.

When people ask me what kind of career I want, I say I'd like to be the next Dave Matthews Band. He uses a strange instrument and still gets over.”

Chris cites a number of influences on his musical life, including David Ruffin of the Temptations and Sam Cooke. “Part of my reasoning for adding the keyboard and all the vocals and stuff is because I’m trying to get zydeco into the mainstream.”

That’s not likely to happen any time soon. Even with the slowed down hip-hop-infused tempos of contemporary zydeco, the zydeco tempo is twice as fast as the tempos of contemporary pop music. Zydeco is outof-step with contemporary music for the very reason zydeco exists: to fill the dance floor. Zydeco can’t be played at 80 beats per minute.

Period. And that “push ahead” feel of zydeco is totally absent from top 40 music today. You have to conclude that even contemporary zydeco will not fit in mainstream music currently dominated by Drake, Shawn

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

Mendez, Ariana Grande, Zedd, and Maroon 5. Their music actually slows you down on the dance floor, like moving through molasses, presuming you are dancing west coast swing to it. People unfamiliar with zydeco, which is most of the world, say, “What is this? Some kind of polka music?” Zydeco is delightfully different from pop music, and that is why we love it, and we love to dance to it.

Chris was quoted as saying, “Keep pushing the limits as far as you know, trying to reinvent the music and learn the tradition.” He also hopes that young people will learn the history of their favorite music and let that history inspire them.

Chris says, “VIP was the album that really brought in the R&B influence, with the heavy keyboards and music, and that was the one that sparked zydeco.”

Chris Rebrands his Band as NuStep In 2005, Chris changed the band name from Double Clutchin' to NuStep, and released Sweat, the first album under the new name.

M.V.P. followed in 2006, V.I.P in 2008, Alter Ego in 2009, and Headliner in 2010.

Although pivotal in the new school of zydeco, Ardoin retains middle-

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com of-the-road sounds that make him a draw. Though R&B influences style Chris Ardoin’s music, the unmistakable and powerful sounds of Creole Southwest Louisiana fill his music. Ardoin’s innovative takes on the zydeco genre is an updated songbook.

His music is not about that sharecropper life, but topics of love, lust and longing relatable to a younger audience. Some Chris Ardoin tunes completely cross over to R&B: “Candy Man,” “Grown Folk Business,” “Party Til the Sunrise” and the remixes of “Sweat.” But those dalliances with pop music are not the Ardoin legacy. Those are not the numbers that fill the dance floor. When asked if Chris Ardoin is his favorite zydeco artist, one Florida dancer replied, “That depends on which Chris you're asking about.”

One reviewer commented on Alter Ego after its release in 2009.

“Ardoin’s new album, Alter Ego, features hip-hop beats, autotuned vocals, and supremely smooth R&B crooning. He reps a ‘persona’, called the Candyman, and he’s sharing vocal duties with local rappers now. Not really rapping like we’re used to in the Northwest, with our socially conscious lyricists, but rapping like the Dirty South. It’s a kind of party rap, with repetitive lyrics over strong dance beats.

It’s actually pretty similar to traditional zydeco. I don’t see too much difference between Boozoo Chavis’ “Dog Hill” (I’m goin’ to Dog Hill,

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

Where the pretty women at) and “Shawty Whoa” (Shawty got me like, Whoa-whoa-oh), the opening track on Ardoin’s album, which pretty successfully brings in Southern rapper Dru. Ardoin’s blend of Southern rap, R&B and zydeco seems almost like a gimmick at times, but Alter Ego was voted Best Zydeco Album of 2009 in Louisiana, so I’ll defer to the community here. What anchors Ardoin’s music on Alter Ego is his stellar accordion playing. Even running his accordion through filters and resigning it to fills between vocal lines, his playing stands out for its quick wit and strapped rhythm. Under the Chenier school of zydeco, blues and R&B keyboard lines ruled. Some zydeco piano accordionists, in fact, started off as R&B keyboardists before realizing there was more money in zydeco than in Southern R&B. But the John Delafose/ Boozoo Chavis school of zydeco brought back the old one-row button accordions and brought a much rougher, rural edge to the music. Chris Ardoin is currently bridging these two sounds. He can rip it up on the one-row, with that highly rhythmic chanky-chank sound (try “Walk Away”), but he’s so good he can make the one-row button accordion sound like a smooth piano accordion too (try “Make U Surrender”, one of the better tracks on Alter Ego). He should be this good on the accordion; after all, he grew up a member of the Ardoin lineage of Creole zydeco royalty.”

Chart Topping Successes A CD review of Chris Ardoin’s 2014 release, Back Home, says it is topping charts in its initial release.

“The 17-track album was launched at Mardi Gras 2014 and has been topping charts on iTunes, Amazon and Google play. This is

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com a rare but great achievement for a zydeco musician. Chris is pleasantly surprised. “That is amazing to me, for the culture.

It’s a big thing to get that kind of response to an album. The album started getting a lot of buzz when I dropped the album cover. The picture was taken in front of an old house on the back of my property.

I think it caught a lot of people’s attention. Shortly after Back Home was released it reached the Billboard music charts.

Then in 2015, Herman Fuselier in the Lafayette Advertiser announced that Zydeko Fever debuted at No. 1. “Chris Ardoin is a history maker again.

In March, 2013, Ardoin released his Back Home CD on Maison de Soul Records of Ville Platte. The CD landed at No. 1 on the iTunes Best-Selling World music chart and No. 1 on Amazon’s Best-Selling Blues Chart. The disc was the first zydeco or Cajun record to do so.”

After his second-straight No. 1 CD, Chris Ardoin celebrated with fans on social media.

“APPRECIATIVE & BLESSED!!!,” Ardoin wrote Oct. 1 on Facebook.

“Album don’t drop for another 3hrs & u guys & gals have helped me reach #1 for the second album in a row! Had never been before in the history of zydeco/cajun until Back Home was released & even if it’s changed by morning, it still happened again!!!! #WeBelieve.”

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Fuselier continued, “As of last week, Zydeko Fever was still in the top 10 at No. 5, ahead of discs by global performers such as Celtic Woman, the late Hawaiian music icon Israel Kamakawiwo’ole and a Disney collection called Relaxing Piano – BEST. Congrats to Ardoin on this major feat for Louisiana music. His second-straight chart buster treats the world to 17 original songs of zydeco with R&B and hip-hop flavors. The songs include a live version of ‘Breathe,’ a selection, which a few lyrics borrowed from the Temptations ‘I Wish It Would Rain,’ from his MVP CD of 2007.”

“Ardoin flexed his musical muscle on Fever with all songs written, arranged, produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by him at his own studio, Soul Rehab Music. He played accordion, bass, guitar, drums, rubboard and keyboards, along with lead and background vocals, on all songs. Desmond Joseph also helped out on bass. Abraham Oyelowo also played keys. Ardoin’s history-making CD continues a music heritage that few families can match — regardless of genre. An Ardoin has been recording Creole music and zydeco for close to 90 years.”

Fuselier mentioned that Ardoin was working on a tribute album to zydeco pioneers. He said Chris is enjoying having a foot in zydeco’s contemporary world, and another foot going “Back Home” to its roots.

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com Quoting Chris Ardoin, “Zydeco is at an all-time high. People are getting into it left and right. I also feel we kind of lost the zydeco in zydeco. We need to get people to realize where it came from.”

And that is the dilemma for Chris Ardoin seeking to merge this unique genre of music with contemporary mainstream music. “My family history rolls back over a century; my cousin Amédé Ardoin was the father of Creole-located music, so it was kind of my duty to continue the family legacy.”

I have no doubt Chris Ardoin has what it takes to make it as a superstar in the mainstream pop world stage. But he might have to leave that family legacy behind to do it.

Discography • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

1994 That's Da Lick (Maison de Soul) 1995 Lick It Up! (Maison de Soul) 1997 Gon' Be Jus' Fine (Rounder) 1998 Turn the Page (Rounder) 2000 Best Kept Secret (Rounder) 2003 Life (J&S) 2004 Save the Last Dance (J&S) 2005 Sweat (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2006 M.V.P. (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2008 Candyman's V.I.P. (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2009 Alter Ego (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2010 Headliner (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2012 Unleashed (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2014 Back Home (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2015 Zydeko Fever (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2016 Requested Live (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment) 2017 Legend (NuStep4Lyfe Entertainment)

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Blast From The Bayou Cajun-Zydeco Festival June 7–10

June 2018 Through June 3, 2018 — Orange Blossom Country Dance Festival (Orlando, FL) They are to their credit UCWDC Classic Masters World Champions, World Professional Smooth Finalists, Classic and Showcase Swing Champions, and U.S. Open Swing Cabaret Champions. There will be country, swing, hustle, and cabaret division competitions as well as dedicated ballrooms for just social dancing throughout the event. Event will be held at Orlando Airport Marriott.

Website: http://www.orangeblossomdance.net/

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

Michael Arnone's Crawfish Festival June 1-3

June 1-3, 2018 — Michael Arnone's Crawfish Festival (Augusta, NJ) Bands include Pine Leaf Boys, Jeffery Broussard and The Creole Cowboys, Jumpin' Johnny Sansone, Zydeco Revelators, Taj Mahal Trio, Tab Benoit, Jon Cleary (Trio), George Porter Jr. and The Runnin' Pardners, Samantha Fish, Stanton Moore, Marcia Ball, Bonerama, Big Sam's Funky Nation, Amanda Shaw and The Cute Guys, Mike Farris, Ryan Montbleau, Brandon “Taz” Niederauer, Honey Island Swamp Band, Katie Henry, Brother Joscephus and The Love Revolution, Terry and The Zydeco Bad Boys, The Matt Angus Thing, Jenny and The Felines, Anthony Morgan and The Harlem Spirit of Gospel. Website: http://www.crawfishfest.com

June 7-10, 2018 — Blast From The Bayou Cajun-Zydeco Festival (Preston, CT) Artists include Kevin Naquin, Steve Riley, Geno Delafose, Rusty Metoyer, Wayne Singleton, Jesse Lege, Magnolia, Zydegroove, Pine Leaf Boys, Dennis Stroughmatt, C'est Bon, Jimmy Jo. https://www. facebook.com/Strawberry-Park-Blast-from-the-Bayou-Cajun-ZydecoFestival-205474722813332/

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Long Beach Bayou Festival June 23–24

June 23-24, 2018 — Long Beach Bayou Zydeco, Blues, Creole & Cajun Festival (Long Beach) Bands from 2017 are listed on the website at time of this posting: T Broussard and the Zydeco High Steppers, Pine Leaf Boys, Brian Jack and the Zydeco Gamblers. Website: http://www.longbeachbayou.com

June 22-24, 2018 — Muddy Roots Europe Festival (Waardamme, Belgium) Labretta Suede and the Motel 6, A Band Called Twang + Slim, Cessna’s Auto Club, The Monsters, Reverend Beatman, Billy Harlan, James Hunnicutt.

Website: http://muddyrootsrecords.com/mr_events/mr_europe/

June 23-24, 2017 — Louisiana Cajun-Zydeco Festival (New Orleans) This listing will be updated with bands as they are announced. 11:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. both days. Louis Armstrong Park. 901 N. Rampart Street, New Orleans, Louisiana 70116. Admission: Free Website: https://www.jazzandheritage.org/cajun-zydeco/

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

July 4-8, 2018 — Waterfront Blues Festival (Portland) Artists include Chubby Carrier, Horace Trahan, Larkin Poe, Commander Cody, Curtis Salgado, Beth Hart, George Thorogood and the Destroyers, Marc Broussard, The Mavericks.

Website: http://www.waterfrontbluesfest.com

July 29-Aug. 3, 2018 — Cajun-Creole Week at Augusta Heritage Center (West Virginia) Artist instructors will include Kevin Wimmer, Joel Savoy, Randy Vidrine, Jeffery Broussard, Jason Frey, D'Jalma Garnier. "It's a great way to get out of the heat and head for some of the most scenic mountains in the East. Over the years a lot of Floridians have attended." Music and cooking workshops and dancing. See American Heritage Center YouTube Channel. https://augustaheritagecenter.org/augusta-schedule/cajuncreole/

July 19-22, 2018 — Finger Lakes Grassroots Festival of Music and Dance (Trumansburg, NY) This listing will be updated with bands as they are announced. https:// shakorihillsgrassroots.org/

July 27-29, 2018 — Long Beach Crawfish Festival This listing will be updated with bands as they are announced. Long Beach Crawfish Festival at Rainbow Lagoon in Long Beach. http://www. longbeachcrawfishfestival.com

Yes! You want to plan your trips to out-of-state festivals farther in advance. This is just a sampling. Many more festivals listed through end of 2018 at FloridaCajunZydeco.com/festivals.html

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com

August 3-5, 2018 — Buffalo By the Bayou (West Virginia) Cabins for couples and women sold out. Camping $150 per person. $50 per person admission without camping. All payments by check. Email promoters to make reservations. Nearest motel accommodations 30 min. drive. Capon Bridge, West Virginia. Information: buffalobythebayou@ gmail.com Website: http://www.dancingbythebayou.com/

Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!

Rhythm & Roots Festival Aug. 31 through Sept. 2, 2018

August 2-5, 2018 — Sailieu Cajun and Zydeco Nights Festival (France) Email: bayouprod@aol.com. Website: http://www.burgundy-tourism. com/discover/must-see/festivals-and-events/INCONBOU000V503M24/ detail/saulieu/cajun-and-zydeco-nights-festival-at-saulieu

August 18-19, 2018 — Cotati Accordion Festival (Cotati, CA) This listing will be updated with bands as they are announced. Cotati Accordion Festival in Cotati, California. Festival location is north of San Francisco. http://www.cotatifest.com

Aug. 31 - Sept. 2, 2018 — Ninigret Rhythm & Roots Festival (Rhode Island) This listing will be updated with bands as they are announced. Rhythm & Roots Festival at Ninigret Park, Charlestown, Rhode Island. http://www.rhythmandroots.com/ws/pages/home.php

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Visit FloridaCajunZydeco.com Gumbo Boogie Band June 1–2, 2017 — Gumbo Boogie (Orlando) 10:30 p.m. at House of Blues Restaurant and Bar, 1490 E Buena Vista Dr., Orlando. http://www.houseofblues.com/orlando

Outside Florida Atlanta Cajun Zydeco Association Dance Sat., June 16, 2018 — Roux du Bayou Cajun Band Advanced Cajun Jig Class and free Texas Two-Step lesson before the dance.

4:30 to 6 p.m. Cajun Jig class with Jim Bird and Bonnie Lunceford ($15) 7 to 8 p.m. Texas Two-Step lesson with Bill Robinson (free with admission to dance) 8 to 11 Dance — $18 Non-members Dorothy Benson Center, 6500 Vernon Woods Drive NE, Atlanta, GA 30328. Phone: 404613-4900. Check website for dance events in Atlanta area at http://aczadance.org/

NYC Cajun Zydeco Events http://www.letszydeco.com/

Philadelphia Cajun Zydeco Events http://www.allonsdanser.org

Houston Cajun Zydeco Events http://www.zydecoevents.com/texaszydecoevents.html

Southern California Events http://www.icajunzydeco.com