This site requires Javascript to be turned on. Please enable Javascript and reload the page.

Louisiana Sounds Across the Country Main Menu Introduction "You can find Louisiana in everything," Landreth once told me during an interview, after demonstrating how to play Jimi Hendrix's "Crosstown Traffic" as blistering Cajun blues. Here is more proof--a dozen dispatches from way down in the state, by a writer who has done the miles and vividly caught the people he's heard and met along the way. It is not the Louisiana in everything. But it's close."~ David Fricke -Rolling Stone July 14th 2015 Cajun Music The Founding Genre of Louisiana Music. Cajun and Creole music is responsible for the creation of Zydeco music. It is said that Cajun music owed a great deal of its style to Afro-Creole accordion and fiddle music. This music was extremely influential and because of the presence of the Afro-Creole style modern Cajun music and Zydeco was able to take form. Jazz Music Jazz was created in Louisiana and its impact across the country and even around the world is as great ever. Jazz music is so popular, an introduction is somewhat unnecessary~ Zydeco Music Zydeco music and Cajun music used to be mentioned together almost as one in the same, but as time went on Zydeco and Cajun music became their own genres. Today Zydeco has representative legends such Clifton Chenier and Mr. Buckwheat Zydeco, to name a few, grew a large fanbase that is spread all throughout the United States. Swamp Pop Swamp pop is definitely Louisiana born and is its own interpretation of rock 'n' roll. "It's a cousin to Zydeco and Cajun music, but is the red-headed stepchild that never got the recognition that the other two did." About and FAQs

D.L. Menard (Right) and Johnnie Allan (Left)

25630

This page is referenced by:

Cajun Music

"I had played in house dances, family gatherings, maybe a dance hall where you might have seen as many as 200 people at once. In fact, I doubt I had ever seen 200 people at once. And in Newport, there were 17,000. Seventeen thousand people who wouldn't let us get off stage." -Dewey Balfa

Dewey Balfa is considered to be an ambassador for Cajun music and culture. He was a fiddler and singer who lived from 1927-1992 who was credited with being a driving force in the revival of traditional Cajun music. In 1964 Balfa gained great publicity and performed at the prestigious Newport Folk Festival. Balfa was originally supposed to be a regular guitarist at the festival but he ended up being a last minute replacement playing with famous Cajun musicians. He and the musicians assumed that their urban audience would not accept their Cajun music, but the audience thoroughly enjoyed their performance and responded with wild cheers and applause.

D.L. Menard is sometimes called the "Cajun Hank Williams." He made multiple hits and he recorded with other greats like himself including Dewey Balfa. Mr. Menard is from Erath, LA representing Vermilion Parish. He attributes his style to Hank Williams for he grew up listening to a great deal of country music. The Rolling Stone's list of 100 Greatest Country Songs of All Time placed the Cajun musician at No. 72 in 2014. He recently passed away in July 2017 and nationally known media outlets such as the New York Times, The Guardian, and Rolling Stone paid tribute to the iconic Cajun artist.

Michael Doucet is another artist who is credited with being a Cajun music revivalist. He is both a showman and a scholar and performs with famous Cajun group Beausoleil. In 1997 Doucet and Beausoleil performed on national television for the the Super Bowl pregame show. Doucet and Beausoleil definitely spread their Louisiana sounds across the country many times. They opened for famous Rock band The Grateful Dead and played for the Clinton and Carter presidential inaugurations. They've even played around the world and have performed in every state of the U.S. Michael Doucet and Beausoleil have won two Grammys and a fun fact about Mr. Doucet is that he was an adjunct professor at the University of Southwestern Louisiana known today as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette.