"La Blues De Cajin" - Lee Sonnier

In the summer of 1946, J.D. Miller was in the electrical business in Crowley: M&S Electrical (Miller & Sonnier).  His eldest son Billy ran the record store.1 He had previously traveled with Happy Fats to Cosimo Matassa's studio in New Orleans to record Happy's band.  Upon returning, his first session at home was in October of that year when he recorded his father-in-law, Lee Sonnier and his Acadian All Stars.  Obviously inspired by the possibilities he had seen at the session at Cosimo's, Miller purchased a portable Magnarecorder tape-recorder, a speaker, high-level, four-input mixer, a couple of mikes and a used monitor amplifier.  He was in business and the first Jay Miller studio started immediately.1

Rayne Tribune
Mar 23, 1951

Dedans la porte de ma maison, après jongler,

J'sus après jongler si jamais tu va revenir,

Ouais, toi 'tit monde, tu voudrais pour toi-même,

Jolie, conseil t'écoute tes avec moi,

Oh, yé yaille, mon cœur me fais mal,

J'ai p'us personne dedans pays, ouais, pour m'soigner.

Ouais, toi 'tit monde, te connais pour toi-même,

Mérite pas ça, mais, t'après faire, avec ton nègre,

Ouais, te voudrais t'en 'venir d'la maison,

De faire ton nègre, pour tout ça, toi, t'après faire,

Eh, yé yaille, 'garde-donc pourquoi faire,

J'ai p'us personne dedans pays, ouais, pour m'soigner.

Lee Sonnier

According to some researchers, it would be the first accordion-led Cajun group since before WWII.  The song, sung by Blackie Broussard in 1948, would become one of Lawrence Walker's more well known later tunes, the "Evangeline Waltz".  Misspelled "Snownier", "Crawley" and "Cajin", the record "La Blues De Cajin" (#1010)  discretely displayed the word 'accordion' on the front label.    The labels showed the difficulty of getting Cajun spellings printed accurately at pressing facilities away from Cajun country.  The title "La Blues De Cajin" reflects it no less obviously than the artist credits to Lee Snownier.1 

In the doorway of my house, crying,

Wondering if you'll ever come back,

Yeah, you little everything, you wanted to yourself,

Pretty one, (my) advice, you listen to me,

Oh, yé yaille, my heart aches,

I have no one in the countryside, yeah, to take care of me.

Yes, you little everything, you know yourself,

Don't deserve that, well, what you've done to your man,

Yes, you'd like to return home,

What's done to your man, all that you're doing,

Oh, yé yaille, so, look at what's done,

I have no one in the countryside, yeah, to take care of me.

However, Lee never got the exposure he deserved.  He would be out shined by a more prominent and popular player named Iry Lejeune, who would make the accordion remain in the spotlight for good.

1. Fais Do Do Breakdown - Volume One - The Late 1940's.  Liner notes.
2. Lyrics by Stephane F

Release Info:
La Blues De Cajin | Fais-Do-Do F-1010-A
Chere Eci Et Chere Laba | Fais-Do-Do F-1010-B


Find:
Fais Do Do Breakdown - Volume One - The Late 1940's (Flyright, 1986)
Acadian All Star Special - The Pioneering Cajun Recordings Of J.D. Miller (Bear, 2011)

"Dixie Ramblers Waltz" - Dixie Ramblers

In 1928, the first Cajun recording has emerged on the market and area bands were quick to popularize the genre.  Hector Duhon and his long-time music partner Octa Clark began playing traditional Cajun music that year but their career would go through many changes and the band had to evolve with those changes.  According to Duhon,

When we first started playing, a girl wouldn't go to a dance by herself.  She had to have her mother along. So all along the wall you'd see the mothers sitting, along with their smaller children, who had to come along too.1  

In 1930, Duhon and Clark changed their style form Cajun to country, calling themselves the Dixie Ramblers. There were other notable differences in those days. For instance, many of the country dance halls didn't have electricity. 

Cajun music kind of went out of style for a while and country music was the big thing.  We used to rent a car for the night and put a 110-volt generator in it to run power to our equipment.  We'd have to take breaks just to go check on our car.1  

Dixie Ramblers, 1933
Jessie Duhon, Hector Duhon,
Hector Stutes, Willie Vincent

Duhon reformed his group and added Hector Stutes on fiddle, Jesse Duhon on guitar and Willie Vincent on guitar.  When KVOL became the first radio station in Lafayette, with studio in the old Evangeline Hotel, Duhon and his band were billed to play the first broadcast.   About that time, they were also in high demand for live radio programs in Port Arthur and Beaumont, Texas.1  Soon, they were discovered by RCA Bluebird's Eli Oberstein and were invited to travel to New Orleans in 1936 to record the "Dixie Rambler Waltz" (#6352).   Radio show host and record collector Brody Hunt explains:

I for one think it is a stunningly beautiful side. Regarding the tuning, I think the fiddle is in fine pitch, and the bass, as a fret-less instrument, is being played with a brilliant dissonance rarely heard in American Music!3  

When the recording made it's way to Bluebird's factory, Eli had decided to reuse the song in a marketing ploy down in south Texas. To appeal to his Spanish Mexican market, Oberstein re-titled the instrumental as "Vas Dixie" (#2500) and co-pressed it under the pseudonym El Violinista Campestre as well as the Dixie Ramblers.2   He neither understood nor cared about how the music would be received in ethnic communities.    He would do this with Mexican artists as well.   If there was a way to sell more records during the Depression Era, Eli and his Bluebird team found a way.

1. The Daily Advertiser (Lafayette, Louisiana) 21 Dec 1983
2. http://frontera.library.ucla.edu/recordings/vals-dixie
3. Discussions with Brody H.  

Release Info:
BS-99224-1 Dixie Ramblers Waltz | Bluebird B-6352-A
BS-99223-1 The Waltz You Saved For Me | Bluebird B-6352-B

"Hey, Mom!" - Amedie Breaux

The Breaux Brothers consisting of Amede Breaux, Ophy Breaux and Clifford Breaux had a short recording career between 1929 and 1934.   However, they recorded some of the earliest versions of Cajun music standards alongside their contemporaries such as Joe Falcon, Amede Ardoin and Mayuse Lafleur.

Oh mam, éyoù toi t'es?

Chère mam, j’aimerais te voir,

Une fois avant de mourir,

Chère mam, j'aimerais te voir yaille.

Oh mam, éyoù toi t'es?

Chère mam, j’aimerais te voir,

Une fois avant de mourir,

Chère mam, hé yé yaille. 

Oh mam, éyoù toi t'es?

Chère mam, j’aimerais voir,

Chere mam, éyoù toi t'es?

Chère mam, j'aimerais te voir yaille.

Amede Breaux and Ophy Breaux
Courtesy of Chris Strachwitz

In the late 1930s, record producer J.D. Miller had teamed up with the Breauxs as a string band.  There, he worked with Amede Breaux for a short time until he got married and went into the service.  After his recording label Feature Records had been established and the accordion had made a resurgence in independent Cajun recordings, Miller gathered Amede and his brother Ophy to record with his studio group in 1953.   The band recorded the iconic 1928 Mayuse Lafleur song "Mama Where You At?", re-titled as "Hey, Mom!" (#1056).  

Oh, mom, where are you?

Dear mom, I'd love to see you,

Once before dying,

Dear mom, I'd love to see you.

Oh, mom, where are you?

Dear mom, I'd love to see you,

Once before dying,

Oh, mom, oh ye yaille.

Oh, mom, where are you?

Dear mom, I'd love to see you,

Oh, mom, where are you?

Dear mom, I'd love to see you, yaille.

When Miller shipped off his master tapes along with his session notes to the production facility, either he or the pressing plant accidentally mis-associated the songs.  Apparently, due to a mix-up involving a future unknown Mire session, "Hey Mom" was accidentally titled "Bosco Waltz" by Cleveland Mire.  When the records arrived at his store, Miller had to painstakingly apply adhesive stickers to correct the mistake and blackout any vocal credits on each pressing.  Unfortunately, the Mire sides were never issued. By the 1960s, Huey Meaux of Crazy Cajun productions out of Conroe, TX re-released several recordings, including this one, on 45 RPM.  Miller and Chris Strachwitz teamed up in 1968 and had Amedie perform the song at field recording session at Miller's house.

1. Lyrics by Stephane F

Release Info:
Hey Mom | Feature 1056-A
Hard Luck Waltz | Feature 1056-B

Find:
Acadian All Star Special - The Pioneering Cajun Recordings Of J.D. Miller (Bear, 2011)

"La Valse A Moreau" - Moise Robin & Leo Soileau

The late twenties was a pivotal time for Cajun music recordings. In 1928, Joe Falcon and Cleoma Breaux waxed the first Cajun record with 'Allons a Lafayette.' Shortly thereafter, Amédé Ardoin, the Breaux Brothers, Douglas Bellard, Angelas LeJeune, Dennis McGee and others joined the ranks as 'recording stars.' In 1928, so did fiddler Leo Soileau, who is considered one of Cajun music's great innovators.1

Allons, donc, chez Moreau, malheureuse, chère,

S’en aller chez Moreau, nous-autres tout seul, mom.

Ça me revient comme un rêve, malheureuse, chère,

Moi, je t’avais dans mes bras hier au soir, chère.

Ton cœur était barré dedans l’armoire, chère,

Et la clé a été perdue dans ma cour, mom.

Allons, donc, s’en aller, nous-autres tout seul, mom,

C’est pour rejoindre grand Moreau, malheureuse, chère.

Oh, malheureuse, gardez-donc tous les jours,

Tous les soirs, je suis moi tout seul dans mon lit, mom.

Pourquoi-donc, tu viens pas me rejoindre, chère, yaille,

Gardez-donc comment c’est mal, malheureuse, chère.

Clarion News
Oct 10, 1929

Moise Robin

Leo lost his first accordion player, Mayuse Lafleur, in a baroom fight.  After Lefleur's death, Soileau hooked up with Moise Robin, a younger accordionist but stylistically very similar. After a recording sessions with Paramount and RCA Victor, the two men moved to Opelousas and with the aid of their new manager, Sheriff "Cat" Doucet's brother Elton, they continued to play dances. According to Robin,

W'ed play every night. On Monday was a special dance for colored people. Light colored people, mulattoes. Whitney Cropper had a store in Mallet where we'd play. We played dances every night.2 

Most of Soileau's early recorded output was done with Robin, who was known for his passionate, yet complicated, unpredictable playing. As vocalists, the two are similar, with Lafleur having an edgier tension about his singing compared to Robin.1  While in New Orleans for a Vocalion recording session, the duo covered a familar Cajun melody that inspired other tunes such as the Segura Brother's "My Sweetheart Run Away".  Robin's rendition was entitled "La Valse A Moreau" (#15845), although exactly who "Moreau" is has been lost to time.

Leo Soileau

Come on, to Moreau's house, oh my, dear,

Let's go to Moreau's, we're all alone, mom.

It came back to me like a dream, oh my, dear,

I had you in my arms last night, dear.

Your heart was locked in the cupboard, dear,

And the key was thrown in the yard, mom.

Come on, let's go, we're all alone, mom,

To meet at Big Moreau, oh my, dear.

Oh, oh my, looking at that every day,

Every night, I'm all alone in my bed, mom.

Why, then, don't you come to join me, dear, ye yaille,

Look at that how it hurts, oh my, dear.

In the 30s, as the accordion dropped out of favor, Soileau became an innovator of the string band craze. It's an intriguing examination of Soileau's early career that reveals his ingenuity and ability to record in a spectrum of styles.1  It wouldn't be until the 1960s in which Joe Bonsall would give the title new life as "Hack A Moreau".

1. http://www.rootsworld.com/rw/feature/cajun1.html.  Dan Willging
2. The Early Recordings of Leo Soileau.  Yazoo 2006.  Liner notes.
3. Lyrics by Jordy A

Release Info:
NO261 La Valse A Moreau | Vocalion 15845
NO262 Demain C'est Pas Dimanche | Vocalion 15845

Find:
The Early Recordings of Leo Soileau (Yazoo, 2006)

"La Valse De St. Marie" - Vin Bruce

Cajun music titan Ervin "Vin" Bruce was born in Cut Off, Louisiana. His father, Levy played fiddle at local dances; usually in someone's front room. Vin learned to play guitar at an early age, at 14 he began playing and singing in a local band, performing once a week on the radio in New Orleans. At the age of seventeen Vin was brought to the attention of Don Law, legendary producer/A&R man for Colombia Records. Vin signed a contract with Colombia and became the first Cajun artist on a major label since the 1930's. He was also the first to record Cajun music with such Nashville professionals as Chet Atkins, Grady Martin, Tommy Jackson, Jack Shook, and Harold and Owen Bradley.1  

C'est pas la peine tu dis que "non",

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

À l'eglise Sainte-Marie.

Tous les deux pour la même,

Ni une ni l'autre tu l'auras,

Tout le soleil pour la brune,

Et pis y'as rien pour la blonde.

Les habits son achetes,

Mais, ton idée est changer,

Les consentements 'mendait,

Les alliances sont achetés.

C'est pas la peine tu dis que "non",

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

À l'eglise Sainte-Marie.

Que c'est la cause de tout ça,

C'est ces grands conseilleurs,

Mais, ces grands conseilleurs,

Et pas le grand un payeur.

C'est pas la peine tu dis que "non",

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

À l'eglise Sainte-Marie.

Tous les deux pour la même,

Ni une ni l'autre tu l'auras,

Tout le soleil pour la brune,

Pis y'as rien pour la blonde.

C'est pas la peine tu dis que "non",

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

Faudra bien qu'tu t'maries,

À l'eglise Sainte-Marie.

Vin Bruce

A direct interpretation of the old traditional tune "Tous Les Deux Pour La Même", a song made famous by Lawrence Walker years earlier, Vin sung of a darling named Marie and re-titled the tune as "La Valse De St. Marie" (#21189) for Columbia Records in 1953.   Working alongside Nashville producer Don Law, at the Tulane Hotel he was backed by Grady Martin and Jack Shook on guitars, Bob Foster on steel guitar, Ernie Newton on bass, Tommy Jackson on fiddle, and Papa John Gordy on piano.

It's not worth you saying no,

You have to get married,

You have to get married,

At St. Mary's Church.

Either of them, it's all the same,

Neither me nor you will have them,

All the sunshine for the brunette,

And then there's nothing for the blonde.

The clothes are purchased,

But, your mind is changing,

The consents (papers) are requested,

The wedding rings are bought.

It's not worth you saying no,

You have to get married,

You have to get married,

At St. Mary's Church.

What's the cause of all of this?

It's these folks giving advice

Well, it's these folks giving advice,

And not the ones paying (for everything). 

It's not worth you saying no,

You have to get married,

You have to get married,

At St. Mary's Church.

Either of them, it's all the same,

Neither me nor you will have them,

All the sunshine for the brunette,

And then there's nothing for the blonde.

It's not worth you saying no,

You have to get married,

You have to get married,

At St. Mary's Church.

In 1973, he was honored with "Vin Bruce Day" by his hometown and in 1978 he was Lafourche Parish's "Citizen of the Year" and has been inducted into several Country and Cajun Music Halls of Fame.1  

1. http://www.ponderosastomp.com/music_more.php/259/Vin+Bruce
2. Lyrics by Martn Cortez, Smith S, Stephane F and Jerry M

Release Info:
CO 49042/NASH 1630 La Valse De St. Marie | Columbia 4-21189
CO 49043/NASH 1631 Oh Ma Belle | Columbia 4-21189

Find:
Vin Bruce: King of Cajun Music: Dans la Louisianne (Bear Family, 2011)
Vin Bruce: Vintage Cajun Classics of the 1950's (Vintage Masters, 2012)

"One Step De Morse" - Nathan Abshire & Rayne-Bo Ramblers

Happy Fats kicked off his first recording session with 12 songs for Bluebird records, including six lead with an accordion.  Afterwards, he maintained a busy schedule of produce sales and late-night music performances.  Following his marriage, Happy Fats was employed by a local produce company buying frogs, chickens and eggs from farmers in the area. On the weekends, he and his band traveled about Southern Louisiana playing for dances.

During the first session in 1935, he took his group along with Cajun accordion player Nathan Abshire to record an instrumental about a small town in south Louisiana called "One Step De Morse" (#2174).   Morse is a railroad town in Acadia Parish not far from Nathan's childhood home.  Happy recalled:

We were contacted by [RCA] Victor through a fellow here in Rayne by the name of Hillman Bailey.  This fellow, Hillman Bailey, he had a radio shop here and a music store, and he had contact with the Werleins of New Orleans.  And we were brought to New Orleans for the first time, and we recorded there in the old St. Charles Hotel.3

Nathan Abshire

Happy had Nathan backed up with himself and Warnes Schexnyder on guitars, and Norris Savoy on fiddle. However, during the mid-1930s, the interest in Cajun accordion-led bands was waning.  Happy dropped the accordion from his lineup and watched his Cajun string band sound take off.

We finally booked enough dances to permit me to quit working, so I enlarged the band and we did seven or eight engagements a week.2 

Nathan himself felt the affect of losing out during the string band craze.  Dance-halls and recording companies were no longer interested in the old accordion sound.

There was one time the accordion went away.  There was no more accordion here in Louisiana. I started to play the fiddle. I'd walk about 20 miles to go play a dance for $3.  No electricity, nothing.   A guitar, a fiddle and some triangles. Home brewed beer.  Home brewed whiskey in them days.4 

Overtime, the name of Happy and Nathan's melody would be forgotten. Lawrence Walker would re-work the tune, into the well known "Mamou Two Step", adding it's signature bridge section.  Nathan also reworked his song into what he called the "Musical Five Special". 

1. Negotiating Difference in French Louisiana Music: Categories, Stereotypes ... By Sara Le Menestrel
2. Interview by John Uhler. 1954.  CDS
3. South to Louisiana: The Music of the Cajun Bayous By John Broven
4. "The Good Times Are Killing Me".  PBS, 1975.

Release Info:
BS-94409-1 La Valse De Riceville | Bluebird B-2174-A
BS-94410-1 One Step De Morse | Bluebird B-2174-B

Find:

Cajun Country, Vol. 2, More Hits from the Swamp (JSP, 2005)