Cajun Spotlight
Cajun and Zydeco Music and Dance in the Upper
Midwest
May 2002
ZYDECO DANCE LESSONS
Maurine McCort regularly offers Cajun and zydeco dance lessons.
Coming up in late April and May is the third level zydeco series. Classes
are held on Saturday from 4:00 to 5:30 pm. Lessons resume in September
or October. The location is the Oddfellows Lodge at 2382 Hampden in Saint
Paul. For information and to confirm the dates and time contact Maurine
at 651-488-6269 or email her at
maurine@spacestar.com. The schedule:
-
Zydeco lll: April 27, May 4, 11
GUMBO YA YA (Mardi Gras in The District)
The Annual Gumbo Ya Ya Festival in Rock Island, Illinois, is Friday, June
7 and Saturday, June 8. Among the groups appearing are Rosie Ledet
and Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas. Music on Friday runs from
5 pm to 12:30am and on Saturday from noon to 12:30am. There will also be
New Orleans-style food, Barkus dog parade, crawfish eating contest, children's
activities, original artwork, and street performers. This is an all ages
event.
CAJUN FEST IN IOWA
The Fifth Annual Budweiser Taste Louisiana Cajun Fest in Amana, Iowa is
May 25-27. On stage are Hadley Castille & the Sharecroppers Cajun
Band, Chubby Carrier, Egan, Lormand & Garnier, Lisa Haley & the
Zydekats and the Dixie Power Trio. For more information check
out www.cajunfest.net .
NEW RIVERSIDE RAMBLERS AT THE CEDAR
The New Riverside Ramblers will be at the Cedar Cultural Center
in Minneapolis on Saturday, May 11. There will be a dance lesson at 8:00
pm followed by dancing at 8:30 pm. The Cedar is one of the most popular
venues for Cajun and zydeco dances, with plenty of room for dancing and
snacks and beverages. Come on down and pass a good time.
JUMBO YA YA
It's been a while since Jumbo Ya Ya was a staple on the Cajun and
zydeco music scene. They broke up about six years ago, with band members
going other ways and busy with other bands. Now they're back in a slightly
altered incarnation. The band, whose name means "big fun" in Louisiana-speak,
will be playing C/Z music, along with some Brazilian tunes, at the Half
Time Rec on June 16, with more gigs to follow. Band members are Dan
"Daddy Squeeze" Newton on accordion, Bob Ekstrand on guitar
and Joe Louma and Dick Danaher, of Dick & Jane's Big
Brass Band fame. Jumbo Ya Ya were favorites at the Cedar Cultural Center,
and have appeared at the Winnipeg Folk Festival and on A Prairie Home Companion.
As Dick said, "We're going back to our glory days." Let's welcome them
back to the dance community with our support.
CAJUN ZYDECO IN THE NETHERLANDS
The 10th Annual International Cajun and Zydeco Festival takes place June
7-9 in Raamsdonksveer, Holland. Besides bands from the England, Holland,
France and Denmark, appearing from the USA will be the Hackberry Ramblers,
Lisa Haley & the Zydecats and Keith Frank & the Soileau
Zydeco Band.
MIDWAY RAMBLERS PLAY MAY 3
The Midway Ramblers, a fine Cajun band from the Chicago area, will
perform in Chicago at the Irish-American Center on Friday, May 3. The center
is located at 4626 North Knox. Music starts at 8 pm and lasts until 11
pm. For more information call 773-282-7035 or 630-833-3515.
FORT LAUDERDALE CRAWFISH FESTIVAL
One of the major Cajun and zydeco festivals outside of Louisiana is the
Fort Lauderdale Crawfish Festival, held this year May 10-12. It attracts
about 100,000 people to five separate performance areas. The lineup this
year is impressive again; it would be easier to list the popular Louisiana
bands NOT appearing than to list those that are. Making the trip to Florida
for this event are Steve Riley, Geno Delafose, Roy Carrier, Bruce Daigrepont,
Chubby Carrier, Sean Ardoin, Andre Thierry, The Red Stick Ramblers, Leroy
Thomas, Lil' Brian, Hadley Castille, The Magnolia Sisters, The Savoy Family
and more. For details check out the festival Web site at www.ci.fort-lauderdale.fl.us/festivals/
ARTIST FLOYD SONNIER DIES OF HEART ATTACK
LAFAYETTE, La. -- Floyd Sonnier, an artist known for pen-and-ink
drawings of Cajun life and culture, died early Saturday, April 6 after
suffering a heart attack. He was 68. Sonnier was in Omaha, Nebraska for
a grandson's christening when he died, said his son, Tim Sonnier.
Sonnier, 68, drew more than 400 pen-and-ink drawings and exhibited his
work around the United States and held four major exhibits in Paris. He
also illustrated cookbooks, nonfiction books and an autobiography. "Everything
he did was to help promote Cajun culture," Tim Sonnier said. "He loved
his artwork." Sonnier was a native of an area called La Pointe Noire southwest
of Church Point, the oldest child of sharecroppers. He said his love of
art began when he was 3 and made sketches using chunks of charcoal taken
from the ashes his mother used to make soap. Sonnier attended at Our Lady
of the Sacred Heart Catholic School and Church Point High School and received
a bachelor of arts degree in commercial art from the University of Southwestern
Louisiana, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, in 1961. Sonnier
worked for a time as a commercial artist. He created the still-popular
Evangeline Maid bread girl and worked as the manager of a Catholic newspaper.
In November 1975, Sonnier introduced his pen-and-ink drawings at a Lafayette
exhibit. In 1980, he opened Floyd Sonnier's Beau Cajun Art Gallery and
Studio in Scott. Sonnier is survived by his wife, Verlie Gay Sonnier,
and four children, Gilbert, Mark, Tim and Annette. Tim Sonnier
asks that donations in the name of his father be made to the Lafayette
Association of Retarded Citizens.
FROM THE KREWE DE WALLEYE
Next item on the Krewe calendar is another Cajun Cruise out of Stillwater.
The date is Saturday, June 15 and the live band is The Bone Tones.
There will again be an hors d'oeuvres dinner. but the Krewe is working
to avoid the long lines experienced last year. Cost is $35 per person.
You can order tickets now by sending a check to Carroll Franco at
1455 Osceola Avenue, Saint Paul, MN 55105 (be sure to include your phone
number). You can also reserve tickets by emailing cafzydeco@yahoo.com.
All tickets must be paid for by May 15. For information on membership in
the Minnesota Cajun and Zydeco Music and Dance Association (The Krewe de
Walleye) and other news check out the web site at www.krewedewalleye.com.
UPCOMING CAJUN/ZYDECO EVENTS
-
May 03 - The Midway Ramblers: IRISH AMERICAN HERITAGE CENTER, CHICAGO
-
May 05 - Bayou Hazard: MAYDAY FESTIVAL, POWDERHORN PARK, MINNEAPOLIS (6
PM)
-
May 05 - Karl & Gary's Name This Band: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
May 08 - Cajun Jam: HOMESTEAD PICKIN' PARLOR, RICHFIELD (7-9 PM)
-
May 11 - The New Riverside Ramblers: CEDAR CULTURAL CENTER, MINNEAPOLIS
-
May 12 - Cajun Hot Soles: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
May 16 - Bayou Hazard: WASHINGTON SQUARE BAR & GRILLE, WHITE BEAR LAKE
(8 -11 PM)
-
May 18 - Buckwheat Zydeco: FIRST AVENUE, MINNEAPOLIS
-
May 19 - The New Riverside Ramblers: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
May 22 - Bayou Hazard: VIKING BAR, MINNEAPOLIS (6-8 PM)
-
May 24 - Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band: BUDDY GUY'S LEGENDS,
CHICAGO, IL
-
May 25-26 - The New Riverside Ramblers: WHEATLAND TRADITIONAL ARTS WEEKEND,
REMUS, MI
-
May 25-27 - Fifth Annual Budweiser Taste Louisiana Cajun Fest: AMANA, IA
-
May 26 - Bayou Hazard: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
June 01 - Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas: FESTIVAL PARK, PEORIA, IL
-
June 02 - JJ's Zydeco Paydirt: BY MGM HAIR, GRAND AVENUE, ST. PAUL (AFTERNOON)
-
June 02 - The New Riverside Ramblers: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
June 06,07 - Rosie Ledet, Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas: GUMBO YA YA,
ROCK ISLAND, IL
-
June 07 - Lil' Brian & the Zydeco Travelers: FAMOUS DAVE'S, MINNEAPOLIS
-
June 08 - Lil' Brian & the Zydeco Travelers: BLUES ON THE RANGE, CHISHOLM,
MN
-
June 09 - JJ's Zydeco Paydirt: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
June 12 - Cajun Jam: HOMESTEAD PICKIN' PARLOR, RICHFIELD (7-9 PM)
-
June 15 - Cajun Cruise w/ The Bone Tones: ON THE ST. CROIX OUT OF STILLWATER
-
June 16 - Jumbo Ya Ya: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
June 20 - The New Riverside Ramblers: MARKETFEST, DOWNTOWN WHITE BEAR LAKE
(6-9 PM)
-
June 23 - Karl & Gary's Name This Band: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
June 29 - The New Riverside Ramblers: TAPESTRY FOLKDANCE CENTER
-
June 28 - Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band: BLUES ON GRAND, DES
MOINES, IA
-
June 29 - Chubby Carrier & the Bayou Swamp Band: OKABOJI PARK, OKABOJI,
IA
-
June 30 - Bayou Hazard: HALF TIME REC, ST. PAUL
-
July 09 - Cajun Jam: HOMESTEAD PICKIN' PARLOR, RICHFIELD (7-9 PM)
-
July 11 - Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie: TBA, MADISON, WI
-
July 12 - Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie: BASTILLE DAYS, MILWAUKEE,
WI
-
July 13 - Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie: FOLK & ROOTS FESTIVAL,
CHICAGO, IL
-
July 21 - St. Paul Saints pregame w/ The Cajun Hot Soles: MIDWAY STADIUM
(11:30 AM)
-
July 26 - Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys: MUSIC AT HARRY'S PLACE,
BELOIT, WI
-
July 27 - Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys: SUMMERDANCE, CHICAGO, IL
-
August 01 - The New Riverside Ramblers: COON RAPIDS DAM REGIONAL PARK:
(7-8:30 PM)
-
August 20 - St. Paul Saints pregame w/ The Cajun Hot Soles: MIDWAY STADIUM
(5:30 PM)
-
August 23 - Rosie Ledet: BLUES FESTIVAL, MADISON, WI
-
August 24 - Rosie Ledet: NARROWS SALOON, NAVARRE, MN
NOTE: Please call to confirm events more than six weeks from first item
on calendar.
APRIL SHOWERS
One of the few things our staff remembers from their days in elementary
school is the silly songs and riddles that everyone that age found so delightful.
Looking out the window recently as the April snow accumulated on the ground
we recalled the old riddle, "If April showers bring May flowers, what do
may flowers bring?" The answer, of course, is pilgrims. Suddenly an idea
for a music quiz was born: songs titles with ship's names (real or imaginary)
in the title. Can you match the performers with the song?
| 01) SINK THE BISMARCK |
a) Gordon Lightfoot |
| 02) SLOOP JOHN B |
b) Judy Collins |
| 03) THE WRECK OF THE EDMUND FITZGERALD |
c) Jimmy Dean |
| 04) PT 109 |
d) Shirley Temple |
| 05) BATTLESHIP OF MAIN |
e) Johnny Horton |
| 06) GOOD SHIP LOLLIPOP |
f) Beach Boys |
| 07) THE SINKING OF THE REUBEN JAMES |
g) Red Patterson's Piedmont Log Rollers |
| 08) THE GOLDEN VANITY |
h) Woody Guthrie |
| 09) TITANIC |
i) The Almanac Singers |
| 10) BONNIE SHIP THE DIAMOND |
j) Leadbelly |
NOTES & STEPS/CAJUN SPOTLIGHT is an independent newsletter
about Cajun, zydeco and other traditional music & dance events and
news in the upper Midwest and beyond. A one year subscription is $10.00.
E-mail: Notessteps@aol.com
or NOTES & STEPS/CAJUN SPOTLIGHT, John Tallaksen, P.
O. Box 582192, Minneapolis, MN 55458-2192
|