BeauSoleil, Queen Elizabeth Hall | reviews, news & interviews
BeauSoleil, Queen Elizabeth Hall
BeauSoleil, Queen Elizabeth Hall
Cajun kings are joined on stage by Meltdown curator Richard Thompson
Thursday, 17 June 2010
Custodians of Cajun culture: BeauSoleil
Our story begins in the early 1970s, when a young fiddler from Louisiana named Michael Doucet was making rock music. Then one day he heard a song by Fairport Convention: “Cajun Woman” (from the band’s Unhalfbricking album). He was shocked and delighted that an English group should be taking an interest in a strand of music that seemed to be fading into obscurity. In a sort of Proustian moment, he inhaled the fragrance of “Cajun Woman”, his interest in the music of his native region was awakened, and Doucet began to immerse himself in the folk music of France and of his home state, where French music and culture have survived ever since the influx in the mid-18th century of Arcadian settlers (Cadiens; hence Cajun) from Nova Scotia.
Our story begins in the early 1970s, when a young fiddler from Louisiana named Michael Doucet was making rock music. Then one day he heard a song by Fairport Convention: “Cajun Woman” (from the band’s Unhalfbricking album). He was shocked and delighted that an English group should be taking an interest in a strand of music that seemed to be fading into obscurity. In a sort of Proustian moment, he inhaled the fragrance of “Cajun Woman”, his interest in the music of his native region was awakened, and Doucet began to immerse himself in the folk music of France and of his home state, where French music and culture have survived ever since the influx in the mid-18th century of Arcadian settlers (Cadiens; hence Cajun) from Nova Scotia.
Explore topics
Share this article
Add comment
The future of Arts Journalism
You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!
We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d
And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
more New music
Album: Ajukaja & Mart Avi - Death of Music
Estonian electronica duo enter a domain where nothing is explicit
Jesus & Mary Chain, O2 Institute, Birmingham - Reid Brothers refuse to join the heritage industry
Noise veterans deck the halls with feedback and dry ice
Album: Ben Folds - Sleigher
Folds’ nuanced originals are much better than the by-numbers seasonal covers
Vampire Weekend, OVO Hydro, Glasgow review - a mixture of brilliance and self-indulgence
The New Yorkers offered dancers, covers and great songs in a lengthy set
Julia Holter, Islington Assembly Hall review - shelter from the storm in experimental delight
A night of old and new from a leftfield virtuoso
Music Reissues Weekly: John Leyton - Lone Rider The Holloway Road Sessions 1960-1962
‘Johnny Remember Me’, Joe Meek and the evolution of British pop
Album: The Unthanks - In Winter
An atmospheric Northumbrian folkie Christmas
Album: Duster - In Dreams
Generic lo-fi, low-mood indie rock strikes a deep chord
Katy J Pearson, Saint Luke's and the Winged Ox, Glasgow review - warm-hearted songs to banish the cold
Despite being unwell the singer's voice was rich in character
Album: Lauren Mayberry - Vicious Creature
The CHVRCHES singer goes solo with a sally into pop that doesn't quite hit the target
Album: White Denim - 12
The sound of confusion
theartsdesk on Vinyl 87: Roots Manuva, Bogdan Raczynski, Songhoy Blues, The Special AKA, Jhelisa, Tina Turner and more
The wildest, most wide-ranging record reviews in the known universe
Comments
...