Monday, December 7, 2020

"La Valse A Thomas Ardoin" - Amede Ardoin & Dennis McGee

Amede Ardoin became the most influential Creole singer and accordionist, whose music provided roots for modern Cajun and Zydeco music.  In his earliest years his family played a large part of the influence.  According to Amede's nephew Milton Ardoin,
My daddy [Beaudoin Ardoin] bought an accordion to start.  He was not able to learn. Amede, you know, he was the baby one, and he gave the accordion to him.  When Amede started to play, he was on a chair and he was so small his foot was not touching to the floor.  But he learned that over and over and over, until he caught it.2  

Ardoin couldn't read and write and spoke no English.  Amede's parents, Thomas and Aurelia, were brought up during Reconstruction and became one of many land holding former slaves in south Louisiana.  Thomas Ardoin's mother, Marie Tom, was a slave, and Thomas was also born into slavery. Yet, by the time Amede was born, Thomas had acquired 157 acres of land on Bayou Nezpique.2   However, Milton recalled the tragedy that struck him as a child, 
St. Landry Clarion
Feb 4, 1899


My grandfather [Thomas Ardoin] got killed when Amede was small.  He was on the road. They reached a bridge, and they had some beef to haul.  It was old wood, and it broke, and my grandfather had his neck broken.2  


Oh, ye yaie, moi, j'ai pas de femme,

Oui, ses parents ça veut pas je se vois, malheureuse.


Oh, ye yaie, mes parents, eou je vas aller?
Moi, j'suis tout seul, mon j'ai pas de place d'aller,
Oh, ye yaie, mon j'ai pas d'argent, moi, j'ai pas de maison,
Mes parents veulent pas me voir.

Oh, 'tite fille, mais, eou toi, tu vas,
Toi, t'es pas la seule qui est contraire à ta maman,
Oh, catin, ton coeur fait du mal,
Mon, je m'ai aperçu pour Ia maniere tu fais avec moi.
Daily Advertiser
May 1, 1931

In 1930, alongside fiddler Dennis McGee, Ardoin recorded the tune "La Valse A Thomas Ardoin" (#531) in New Orleans as an ode to his late father. According to author and poet laureate Darrell Bourque,

One of the things I find fascinating is the variety of stories that circulate about Amédé, and the way they reflect the culture of the time. So when I began to run across all this information, that was exactly the kind of story that I wanted to tell, because I didn’t want to tell a story that was an interesting pocket of information, but one that connected in many ways with what we continue to have to deal with in terms of race, migration and the meaning of home.1  


Oh, ye yaille, I don't have a wife,

Yes, her parents don't want to see me, oh my.


Oh, ye yaille, my parents, where can I go?
I'm all alone, I don't have a place to go,
Oh, ye yaille, I don't have money, I don't have a home,
My parents don't want to see me.

Oh, little girl, well, where are you, you went away,
You're not the only one who is contrary to your mother,
Oh, pretty doll, your heart hurts,
I noticed that by the way you've done (treated) me.

In 1957, accordion player Lawrence Walker re-worked Ardoin's tune into the "Midnite Waltz" for Swallow Records. 









  1. https://kreolmagazine.com/culture/features/amede-ardoin-and-his-legacy-a-discussion-with-darrell-bourque/#.XH_u-8BKhhE
  2. The Kingdom of Zydeco By Michael Tisserand
  3. NOTE: Cajun Country, Vol. 2 has song mis-titled

Release Info:
NO-6719 Blues De Basile | Brunswick 531
NO-6720 La Valse A Thomas Ardoin | Brunswick 531

Find:
I'm Never Comin' Back: The Roots of Zydeco (Arhoolie, 1995)
Cajun Country, Vol. 2, More Hits from the Swamp (JSP, 2005)
Mama, I'll Be Long Gone : The Complete Recordings of Amede Ardoin, 1929-1934 (Tompkins Square, 2011)

No comments:

Post a Comment

Got info? Pics? Feel free to submit.