This is a list of notable Cajun musicians, Cajun music instrument makers, Cajun music folklorists, Cajun music historians, and Cajun music activists.

List of Cajun musicians

This is a list of musicians who perform or performed

Cajun music Cajun music (french: Musique cadienne), an emblematic music of Louisiana played by the Cajuns, is rooted in the ballads of the French-speaking Acadians of Canada. Although they are two separate genres, Cajun music is often mentioned in tandem ...

. The musicians are not necessarily

Cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the U.S. state of Louisiana. While Cajuns are usually described as ...

s, nor necessarily limited to Louisiana musicians.

Traditional Cajun

Amédé Ardoin Amédé Ardoin (March 11, 1898 – November 3, 1942) was an American Creole musician, known for his high singing voice and virtuosity on the Cajun accordion. He is credited by Louisiana music scholars with laying the groundwork for both Creole a ...

, accordion * Bois Sec Ardoin *

Breaux Brothers Breaux Frères or Breaux Brothers (Amédé on accordion, Ophé on guitar, and Cléopha on the fiddle), were Cajun musicians. They were the earliest to record the song " Jolie Blonde", under the title of " Ma Blonde Est Partie". Amédé Breaux w ...

, accordion, fiddle, guitar trio * Cléoma Breaux, guitar www.cajunculture.com "Falcon, Joseph and Cléoma"
*

Sady Courville Sady D. Courville Savoy 1984, p. 50. (November 15, 1905, Chataignier, Louisiana – January 3, 1988, Eunice, Louisiana) was a Cajun fiddler noted for his extensive collaboration with Dennis McGee. Early life Courville was the son of Erast ...

, fiddle *

Joe Falcon Joseph Falcón (September 28, 1900 – November 19, 1965) was an accordion player from southwest Louisiana, best known for producing the first recording of a Cajun song, " Allons à Lafayette," in 1928. He and his wife Cléoma Breaux left f ...

, accordion *

Canray Fontenot Canray Fontenot (October 16, 1922 – July 29, 1995) was an American Creole fiddle player, who has been described as "the greatest Creole Louisiana French fiddler of our time." Early life Canray Fontenot was born in L'Anse aux Vaches, ne ...

, fiddle * Wade Fruge, fiddle *

Blind Uncle Gaspard Alcide "Blind Uncle" Gaspard was a Blindness, partially blind vocalist and guitarist from Louisiana who alternated between string-band music (in a band with his brothers) and traditional Cajun balladry on his recordings for Vocalion. Born in Avoye ...

* Mayeus Lafleur *

Dennis McGee Dennis (Denus) McGee (born January 26, 1893, Eunice, Louisiana, USA – October 3, 1989) was one of the earliest recorded Cajun musicians. A fiddle player, he recorded and performed with Louisiana Creole people, Creole accordionist and voca ...

, fiddle *

Segura Brothers Jean Duet "Dewey" Segura (February 12, 1902 – November 15, 1987) was an American folk musician. He and his brother Edier Segura (sometimes spelled "Eddie") formed the duo known as the "Segura Brothers" (also listed as "Segura Bros"). The duo cr ...

Leo Soileau Leo Soileau (January 19, 1904 – August 2, 1980) was one of the most prolific Cajun recording artists of the 1930s and 1940s, recording over 100 songs, which was a substantial amount considering the reluctance to record the music during its earl ...

Country/Texas swing Cajun

Hadley J. Castille Hadley J. Castille (March 3, 1933October 25, 2012) Yule 2009, p. 49. was a prominent Cajun fiddler. Early life Castille was born to a Cajun French speaking family. His father was named François Castille. He learned to play the fiddle from his ...

, fiddle *

Harry Choates Harry Henry Choates (December 26, 1922 – July 17, 1951) was an American Cajun music fiddler known as the "Fiddle King of Cajun Swing" and the "Godfather of Cajun music." The scholar Barry Jean Ancelet called Choates "undoubtedly the most popul ...

, fiddle *

Varise Conner Varise Conner (October 21, 1906 – June 19, 1994)#Yule09, Yule, p. 81. was a Cajun music, Cajun fiddler born in Lake Arthur, Louisiana.#ConnersLakeArthur77, Brasseaux, p. 6. His works and personality has inspired many prominent Cajun musici ...

* Luderin Darbone * Edwin Duhon * J. B. Fuselier *

Hackberry Ramblers The Hackberry Ramblers (also known as the Riverside Ramblers), a Grammy Award-nominated Cajun music band based in Hackberry, Louisiana, formed in 1933. Since its heyday in the late 1930s it has become one of the most recognized names and influenti ...

Leroy "Happy Fats" Leblanc Leroy "Happy Fats" Leblanc (January 30, 1915 – February 23, 1988) was a Cajun swing musician that recorded with RCA Records in the 1930s and 1940s. He is known for his recordings with Harry Choates and his broadcasts on KVOL. Next to the Hackbe ...

Dancehall Cajun

Nathan Abshire and the Pinegrove Boys Nathan Abshire (June 27, 1913 – May 13, 1981) was an American Cajun accordion player. His time in the U.S. Army inspired Abshire to write the crooner song "Service Blues", which the newspaper Daily World reported as "one of his most memorable ...

Cleveland Crochet This is a list of notable Cajun musicians, Cajun music instrument makers, Cajun music folklorists, Cajun music historians, and Cajun music activists. List of Cajun musicians This is a list of musicians who perform or performed Cajun music. Th ...

Camey Doucet Camey Joseph Doucet is a Cajun musician and disc jockey. Doucet has been twice honored by the Cajun French Music Association being inducted into the hall of fame in its inaugural year in 1997 and awarded for ''Continuing Contribution to Cajun Mu ...

Iry LeJeune Ira "Iry" LeJeune (October 27, 1928 Cajun Music a Reflection of the People – October 8, 1955) was one of the best selling and most popular Cajun musicians in the mid to late 1940s into the early 1950s. His recordings and repertoire remai ...

Phil Menard Phil Menard (September 6, 1923 – October 26, 2016) was an American musician who played the Cajun accordion. He lived in Lake Charles, Louisiana Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. stat ...

Austin Pitre Austin Pitre (February 23, 1918 - April 8, 1981) was born in Ville Platte, Louisiana. A Cajun music pioneer, Pitre claimed to be the first musician to play the accordion standing up, rather than sitting down. Along with his band, the Evangeline ...

Belton Richard Belton Richard (October 5, 1939 – June 21, 2017) was an American Cajun accordionist and vocalist known for his baritone vocal range. Biography Richard was born in Rayne, Louisiana, in 1939. He began to play the accordion when he was seven, an ...

, accordion *

Aldus Roger and the Lafayette Playboys Aldus Roger (February 10, 1915 – April 4, 1999) was an American Cajun accordion player in southwest Louisiana, best known for his accordion skills, and television music program. Early life Aldus Roger was born in Carencro, Louisiana and learned ...

Lawrence Walker Lawrence Walker (September 1, 1907 – August 15, 1968) was a Cajun accordionist. He is known for his original songs, including Reno Waltz, Evangeline Waltz, Bosco Stomp, and Mamou Two Step. Biography Lawrence Walker was born September 1, 1907 ...

and the Wandering Aces

Cajun "renaissance"

* Balfa Brothers, fiddlers and guitarists *

Dewey Balfa Dewey Balfa (March 20, 1927 – June 17, 1992) was an American Cajun fiddler and singer who contributed significantly to the popularity of Cajun music. Balfa was born near Mamou, Louisiana. He is perhaps best known for his 1964 performance at th ...

, fiddle *

BeauSoleil BeauSoleil (French, ''beautiful sun'') is a Cajun band from Louisiana, United States. Band history Founded in 1975, BeauSoleil (often billed as "BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet") released its first album in 1977 and became one of the most well ...

Charivari Charivari (, , , alternatively spelled shivaree or chivaree and also called a skimmington) was a European and North American folk custom in which a mock parade was staged through a community accompanied by a discordant mock serenade. Since the cro ...

* Octa Clark * Michael Doucet, fiddle * Harrison Fontenot * Alan LaFleur,

upright bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar ...

* The Lost Bayou Ramblers * D.L. Menard * Pine Leaf Boys *

The Red Stick Ramblers The Red Stick Ramblers were a Cajun Music and Western Swing band formed in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1999 while some of the members were attending Louisiana State University. Their name comes from a translation of Baton Rouge, which means "re ...

The Revelers The Revelers were an American quintet (four close harmony singers and a pianist) popular in the late 1920s and early 1930s. The Revelers' recordings of "Dinah (song), Dinah", "Ol' Man River, Old Man River", "Valencia (song), Valencia", "Baby Fa ...

Zachary Richard Ralph Zachary Richard (born September 8, 1950) is an American singer-songwriter and poet. His music is a combination of Cajun and Zydeco musical styles. Biography Zachary Richard began his musical career at the age of 8, as soprano in the Bish ...

, accordion * Ann Savoy, guitarist, singer, author *

Joel Savoy Joel Savoy (born in Eunice, Louisiana, USA) is a Cajun musician and music producer from Southwest Louisiana. His father Marc Savoy, famous accordion builder and musician, and his mother, Ann Savoy, author and music producer, are well known ambas ...

, fiddler, music producer * Marc Savoy, accordion *

Wilson Savoy Wilson Allen Savoy (born February 1, 1982 in Eunice, Louisiana) is a Grammy winning accordionist, keyboard player, fiddler and singer with the Cajun bands Pine Leaf Boys and The Band Courtbouillon, as well as a local filmmaker in Lafayette, LA. ...

, accordion *

Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys are an American Cajun band from southern Louisiana. The band formed in 1988 and has since recorded 10 albums, nine of which are on Rounder Records. The band includes Steve Riley (accordion, b. 1969), David Gre ...

* Feufollet

Contemporary Cajun music

* Barry Jean Ancelet * Christine Balfa * Lee Benoit *

Hunter Hayes Hunter Easton Hayes (born September 9, 1991) is an American multi-genre singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is proficient at more than 30 instruments. Hayes released his self-titled debut album in 2011. It reache ...

* Kevin Naquin *

Wayne Toups Wayne Toups (born October 2, 1958, in Crowley, Louisiana) is one of the most commercially successful American Cajun singers. He is also a songwriter. Wayne Toups has been granted numerous awards and honors throughout his career including 2010 Fes ...

and his legendary roadie Johnny Opelousas

Other Cajun musicians/groups

Solo artists

* Al Berard * Octa Clark *

* L. J. Foret * J. B. Fuselier *

* David Greely *

www.lsue.edu "Hunter Hayes in 2005"
* Doc Guidry *

Doug Kershaw Douglas James Kershaw (born January 24, 1936) is an American fiddle player, singer and songwriter from Louisiana. Active since 1948, he began his career as part of the duo Rusty and Doug, along with his brother, Rusty Kershaw. He had an exten ...

* Rusty Kershaw * Mayeus Lafleur *

Sonny Landreth Clide Vernon "Sonny" Landreth (born February 1, 1951) is an American blues musician from southwest Louisiana who is especially known as a slide guitar player. He was born in Canton, Mississippi, and settled in Lafayette, Louisiana. He lives in Bre ...

* D.L. Menard * Jimmy C. Newman *

* Crystal Plamondon *

, accordion *

, accordion * Ann Savoy *

* Amanda Shaw *

Jo-El Sonnier Jo-El Sonnier (; born Joel Sonnier; October 2, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter and accordionist who performs country music and Cajun music. Originally signed to Mercury Nashville Records, Sonnier charted several minor singles on the '' B ...

, vocals *

* Kevin Wimmer

Bands

* Balfa Brothers *

* Captain Gumbo (a Netherlands band) *

* Red Stick Ramblers * Belton Richard and the Musical Aces * The Sundown Playboys * Lisa Haley and the Zydekats

Other Cajun musicians playing non-Cajun music

* Johnnie Allan, swamp pop musician * Rod Bernard, swamp pop musician *

John Fred John Fred Gourrier (May 8, 1941 – April 15, 2005), known by his stage name John Fred, was an American blue-eyed soul, swamp pop, rock and roll, and R&B performer from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, best known for the 1967 hit song "Judy in Disguise ...

, swamp pop & rock and roll musician *

Sammy Kershaw Samuel Paul Kershaw (born February 24, 1958) is an American country music artist. He has released 16 studio albums, with three RIAA platinum certifications and two gold certifications among them. More than 25 singles have entered the Top 40 on the ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist * Warren Storm, swamp pop musician *

Rufus Thibodeaux Rufus Thibodeaux (January 5, 1934, Ridge, Louisiana – August 12, 2005, Nashville, Tennessee) was an American Cajun music fiddler. Thibodeaux played guitar from age six and fiddle from age twelve. He played in local dance halls at 13, and joined ...

, Cajun and

artist (fiddler)

Other related Cajun music producers, authors, folklorists, historians, and activists

* Barry Ancelet, folklorist, cultural activist * Ryan Brasseaux, cultural historian * Carl A. Brasseaux, historian * Kevin Fontenot, historian *

Richard Guidry Richard Guidry (October 18, 1949 – July 27, 2008) was a Cajun cultural activist and educator who worked to save the French language in Louisiana. Born in Gueydan, Louisiana, Gueyden, Louisiana, on October 18, 1949, Guidry (who referred to hims ...

, cultural activist * Harry Oster,

LSU Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 near ...

folklorist, recorded in the 1950s * Ann Savoy, guitarist, Rlsinger,

List of Cajun instrument makers

* Andre Michot, accordion builder * Larry Miller, accordion builder * Marc Savoy, accordion builder and player, cultural activist

References

* Ancelet, Barry. Cajun Music. Journal of American Folklore 107 (1994): 285-303
www.cajunfrenchmusic.org/music/halloffame.htm
* Yule, Ron, Cajun French Music Association Hall of Fame, Lake Charles Chapter, DeRidder, LA: Fiddle Country Publishing, 2004. * Yule, Ron, Iry LeJeune: Wailing the Blues Cajun Style, Natchitoches, LA: Northwestern State University of Louisiana Press, 2007. * http://www.zydecocajun.com/ Isom Fontenot Harmonica/Other instruments {{DEFAULTSORT:People related to Cajun music

Musicians from Louisiana

List of Cajun musicians

Traditional Cajun

Country/Texas swing Cajun

Dancehall Cajun

Cajun "renaissance"

Contemporary Cajun music

Other Cajun musicians/groups

Solo artists

Bands

Other Cajun musicians playing non-Cajun music

Other related Cajun music producers, authors, folklorists, historians, and activists

List of Cajun instrument makers

See also

References