Thank Stanley "Buckwheat" Dural and his group Buckwheat Zydeco for the many contemporary zydeco releases now available. It was Buckwheat's major-label breakthrough record, On a Night Like This, that brought this rural Louisiana dance music into the mainstream, at least for a time, and his zesty repertoire that won new legions of fans. His accordion prowess also liberated the instrument from its polka-band image. This excellent collection traces Buckwheat's trajectory from 1979 to 1988, peaking with his rollicking accordion-powered party poppers "Ma 'Tit Fille" and "Zydeco Honky Tonk." His roots are covered, too, with zydeco pioneer Clifton Chenier's "Hot Tamale Baby" and rural-themed numbers like "I Bought a New Raccoon." There's also his collaboration with Eric Clapton--E.C. reprising the ripping solo of his "Why Does Love Got to Be So Sad." But with Buckwheat, love's rarely sad. His deliciously uptempo, two-stepping blend of swamp-funk, rock, and R&B is a tonic for misery of any kind. --Ted Drozdowski

Take a spicy Cajun tour through Louisiana's bayou country on Choo Choo Boogaloo! The musical scenery includes foot-stompin', two-steppin,' finger poppin' zydeco emblazoned with hot guitar licks, sassy accordion, and a dash of blues thrown in for good measure. Traditional titles, including "Get on Board," "Iko Iko," "Little Red Caboose," and "Cotton Fields," have been well adapted to zydeco style, while "Crawfish Song," "Mardi Gras Mambo," and "Give Me a Squeeze, Please" are right at home in this celebration of Cajun culture. Children will have a wonderful time moving with the new rhythms and exploring the sounds of various instruments used to create the unique zydeco style. --Deborah Moore

No Description Available.
Genre: Blues Music
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 5-MAY-2009

When Chris Blackwell signed Buckwheat Zydeco to Island Records in the mid-1980s, he may have been hoping that zydeco would break out internationally the way reggae did in the 1970s. It never happened, though Buck gave it his best shot with a series of crossover-friendly projects featuring high-profile guests. Where There's Smoke is as good as any of them. The album was produced by Los Lobos' David Hidalgo and featured Dwight Yoakam sitting in on a cover of Hank Williams's "Hey, Good Lookin'." There's also a cover of the Rolling Stones' "Beast of Burden" and a version of "Route 66" featuring Hidalgo on vocals and guitar. But the best tracks are the old-fashioned accordion rave-ups, like "Buck's Hot Rod" and "Pour Tout Quelqu'un." --Rick Mitchell

The Bayou's barnstorming bandleader Buckwheat Zydeco is back with his first studio disc in eight years, and he'll be on tour all over the country.

Jackpot! combines soulful original tunes, inspired playing and singing, and the trademark exuberance that's made him the world's best-loved zydeco artist, and has earned Buckwheat Zydeco the sobriquet "the world's greatest party band." There's plenty of Buckwheat's signature accordion, and for the first time ever Buck specifically features his soulful mastery of the horizontal keyboard on a three-song Hammond B3 "Encore featuring Organic Buckwheat."

Jackpot! opens with the strutting "I'm Gonna Love You Anyway" before swinging into "It Must Be Magic," a tune that leads into a string of great new songs. The sweetly funky title cut and the slinky guitar breaks of "Rock, Boogie, Shout!" are due for road tests at festivals, theaters and clubs across the U.S. and Canada during the months ahead. Zydeco fans can expect more of the rootsy boogie that fuels "Come And Get Yourself Some" and the Creole French "Old Times La La" on the album, two of nine accordion-led originals on the disc.

Jackpot! takes a surprising and very cool side trip as it goes home with a trio of tunes offering a 18-minute encore presentation of "Organic Buckwheat," reuniting Dural with his first love, the Hammond B3 organ.

Dural's venerable keyboard playing stands up to anyone playing the B3 today -- whether it's the wailing blues of "Buck Goes Downtown," the jazzy tour de force Jimmy Smith tribute "Buck Goes Uptown," or on the anthemic reggae of the finale, "Buck Goes To Trenchtown." The Hammond organ only brings Buck back closer to his roots - as he first gained renown playing the Hammond in zydeco king Clifton Chenier's legendary Red Hot Louisiana Band in the 1970s.

Buckwheat Zydeco is the leading practitioner of the southwest Louisiana dance music known as zydeco. He was the first zydeco artist to be signed to a major label, receiving two Grammy® nominations for his work on Island Records. But to connoisseurs of Cajun and zydeco, his earlier albums on Black Top and Rounder are his best. Shout! Factory is proud to release 100% Fortified Zydeco as part if its restoration of the Black Top Records catalog. Originally released in 1983, it has been named by All Music Guide as the essential first Buckwheat Zydeco purchase. Buckwheat Zydeco’s distinctive blend of Cajun, R&B, blues and even pop bears that out.

No Description Available.
Genre: Cajun & Zydeco
Media Format: Compact Disk
Rating:
Release Date: 28-FEB-1990