The Michigan Daily
! Let the bon ton roulet!
ARTS
Friday, October 12, 1990
Page 5
by Andrew J. Cahn
C. J. Chenier always knew that his
father, Clifton, was known by all in
-New Orleans as the King of Zydeco
music, but he had no desire to one
IIday step into his father's shoes. He
was too busy playing saxaphone for
a Texas R&B band. That all changed
one fateful day not too long ago,
when his dad called home from the
road, telling him to be at the next
.. show; the old man wanted him to
join the band.
In the years preceding his death in
December 1987, Clifton trained his
r " son in the ins and outs of zydeco
music, eventually leading C.J. to
put his sax away and pick up the in-
strument which made his father fa-
mous: the accordion. Tonight az the
Blind Pig, C.J., now the front man
for his father's old group, The Red
Hot Louisiana Band, is more than
ready to let everyone know just how
j zydeco music makes everyone want
.' to party.
- The word "zydeco" comes from a
bastardization of a creole slang
phrase, "les haricots sont pas sale,"
which means the beans are not salty,
and the music features an accordian
and a washboard in front of an R&B
band. On how this came about, C.J.
says, is that in the old days they
didn't have electric gutars, so bands
would just play the house parties
with these instruments and others
which were portable and did not need
amplification.
The lyrics to the songs consist of
other French-slang sayings mixed
with English, which is symbolic of
the mixed nature of the cajun cul-
ture. In the '50s and '60s, when
R&B became popular, the two styles
meshed to produce what is known as
zydeco today. In addition to C.J.,
artists like Queen Ida and Buckwheat
Zydeco have been carrying on the
tradition began by Clifton Chenier.
Elements of zydeco are also present
in songs by Little Feat, the Neville
Brothers and the Raditors and
throughout the Dennis Quaid film,
The Big Easy,
Although it has always been big
in the bars around New Orleans, zy-
deco had not broken nationally until
recently. "It's spreading.. but it
won't be big until someone makes a
song that everyone will like," C.J.
says.
Nevertheless, he sees no differ-
ence between his shows down on the
bayou and elsewhere, because regard-
less of where people are from, they
all know how to have a good time to
zydeco music. Actually, it's not too
hard. The first thing you have to do
is come to the Blind Pig- tonight.
Once you're there, make sure you're
on the dance floor, and not sitting at
the bar or a table. That way, you
will not be able to stop moving
once the music starts. Let the good
times roll, or as they say in New Or-
leans, let the bon ton roulet !
C.J. CHENIER parties tonight.
Doors at the Blind Pig open at 9.30,
and tickets are $8 at Ticketmaster
'(p.e.s.c.) and $10 at the door.
C.J. Chenier is from New Orleans, but he doesn't like crawfish. You have a mountain of shells with "not enough
meat" to show for it. He prefers a thick steak.
I1
HE DOESN'T WRITE FOR
ARTS.
You can. Call 763-0379.
-III
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