"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)