Cajun Spotlight 

Cajun and Zydeco Music and Dance in the Upper Midwest 
 June 2002 

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 Cajun and zydeco music, along with some Brazilian tunes, at the Half Time Rec on June 16. 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.
 

NEW RIVERSIDE RAMBLERS AT TAPESTRY

The New Riverside Ramblers make a rare appearance at Tapestry Folkdance Center in Minneapolis on Saturday, June 29. The dance starts at 7:30 pm and goes until 11:30 pm. 
 

ZYDECO ON THE RANGE

The 7th Annual Blues on the Range Festival at Ironworld in Chisholm, Minnesota is June 7-9. Appearing will be Sue Foley, Lil' Brian & the Zydeco Travelers, Percy Strother, Roomful of Blues, Debbie Davies and more. Lil' Brian will be at the festival on Saturday, the 8th. Friday night he will be at Famous Dave's in Calhoun Square in Minneapolis. You can find more information on the Web at www.bayfrontblues.com 
 

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 12:30 am and on Saturday from noon to 12:30 am. 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. 
 

DANCE VORTEX 2002

Dance Vortex 2002 will be October 4-6 at Camp Riverview in Mentone, Alabama. This weekend of music and dance features Cajun, zydeco, swing and blues dancing. Musicians scheduled include The Basin Brothers, Geno Delafose & French Rockin' Boogie, Lil' Malcolm & the Houserockers, B & the Buzz, Phantoms of the Opera and Laura Light & Dave Wiesler. Dance instructors include Joel Domoe & Melanie Myers and Michael Seider & Patsy Hebert (who will teach zydeco and the new Whiskey River Jitterbug). Information is available on the Web at dance_vortex.home.mindspring.com. You can also call (352) 472-7762 for a brochure. 
 

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.
 

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'oeuvres dinner, but the Krewe is working to avoid the long lines experienced last year. Cost is $35 per person. You may reserve tickets from Carroll Franco at (651) 699-0376 or you can email her at cafzydeco@yahoo.com. 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.
 

OSHKOSH SAWDUST DAYS

Sawdust Days in Oshkosh, Wisconsin will be celebrated July 3-7. Coming up from Louisiana this year for 7 shows over the first 4 days of the festival is La Bande Feufollet. This hot young band perform traditional Cajun music and have two CD's out, both produced by Steve Riley. Members of the band, astoundingly enough, are all in high school! Also appearing in Oshkosh are Big Nick & the Cydecos (on Saturday, July 6) and Western swing favorites The Hot Club of Cowtown (on Thursday, July 4). www.oshkoshcvb.org/sawdust.htm
 

HIAWATHA TRADITIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL

You can also see see La Bande Feufollet at the Hiawatha Traditional Music Festival in Marquette, Michigan July 19-21. Other performers appearing include Rhythm in Shoes, Myrallit, Cathy Fink & Marcy Marxer, True Blue and more. On the Web go to www.portup.com/~hiawatha/festival.html.
 

UPCOMING CAJUN AND ZYDECO EVENTS

  • June 01 - The Cajun Hot Soles: MBOTMA FESTIVAL, EL RANCHO MANANA, RICHMOND, MN
  • 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 - Nathan & the Zydeco Cha Chas: DIXIE'S ON GRAND, 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 08 - The Buffalo Gals (Concert): STAGE NORTH, WASHBURN, WI (7:30 PM)
  • June 08 - The Chicago Cajun Aces: ANDERSONVILLE SOMMERFEST, CHICAGO, IL
  • June 08 - Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys: ARTSFEST, IOWA CITY, IA
  • June 09 - The Midway Ramblers: ANDERSONVILLE STREET FAIR, CHICAGO, IL
  • 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 23 - The Midway Ramblers: CONCERT IN THE PARK, PALOS PARK, IL
  • 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 03-06 - La Bande Feufollet: SAWDUST DAYS, OSHKOSH, WI
  • July 06 - Big Nick & The Cydecos: SAWDUST DAYS, OSHKOSH, WI
  • 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 18 - Terrance Simien & the Mallet Playboys: RIVERSIDE PARK, OSHKOSH, WI
  • July 19 - C. J. Chenier: DUBUQUE...AND ALL THAT JAZZ, DUBUQUE, IA
  • July 19-21 - La Bande Feufollet: HIAWATHA MUSIC FESTIVAL, MARQUETTE , MI
  • July 21 - St. Paul Saints pregame w/ The Cajun Hot Soles: MIDWAY STADIUM (11:30 AM)
  • July 21 - Sean Ardoin & Zydecool: SHEFFIELD GERDEN WALK, CHICAGO, IL
  • July 26 - Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys: MUSIC AT HARRY'S PLACE, BELOIT, WI
  • July 26-28 - Bayou Hazard: SUMMER IN THE NORTHWOODS FESTIVAL, MANITOWISH WATERS, 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. 
 

TRAINS

Trains have a particular place in America's history and mythology that airplanes are never going to have. Railroads opened up the vast western part of the country in the century before the last, and later became a symbol of freedom and escape for the disaffected. Engineers, particular routes and even the engines themselves became the stuff of legend. There are stories of ghost trains, silently highballing late at night toward the sites of great wrecks. In some songs, the engineer would prefer to die with his engine in the same way a captain would go down with his ship. Airplanes have little romance; the routes are unnamed and anonymous. In this quiz we look at train songs connected to history: real routes and real engines. Can you match the performer with the song?
 
01) THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS a) Leadbelly
02) ATLANTIC COASTAL LINE b) Jimmie Rodgers
03) GOLDEN ROCKET c) Roy Acuff
04) PANAMA LIMITED d) Steve Goodman
05) THE WRECK OF THE OLD '97 e) Charlie Pride
06) ROCK ISLAND LINE f) Willie Brown
07)  WABASH CANNONBALL g) Bukka White
08)  M AND 0 BLUES h) Hank Snow
09) TEXAS EAGLE i) Carter Family
10) SOUTHERN CANNONBALL j) Steve Earle/ Del McCoury

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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