The King of Zydeco

About this episode

This episode traces the journey of Clifton Chenier, the King of Zydeco, blending his childhood influences with R&B and blues.

Clifton Chenier grew up in rural Louisiana, watching how his father’s accordion could magically turn front porches into dance parties. When he was old enough to play himself, Chenier began blending the Creole zydeco of his childhood with R&B and blues sounds of the 1940s and ’50s. His style packed dance halls across Louisiana and eventually carried zydeco to stages around the world. Through rare archival recordings and firsthand stories, we trace Chenier’s journey from a sharecropper’s son to the undisputed King of Zydeco. Guests: Adam Machado, director of the Arhoolie Foundation and producer of the retrospective box set, King of Louisiana Blues and Zydeco CJ Chenier , son of Clifton Chenier and lead singer and saxophonist for CJ Chenier and the Red Hot Louisiana Band Dickie Landry , saxophonist, composer, and photographer Maureen Loughran , director and curator of Smithsonian Folkways Recordings This episode features archival interview recordings of Clifton Chenier courtesy of the Arhoolie Foundation. You can find the full interviews and archival photographs here.

People in this episode

Guests: Adam Machado, CJ Chenier, Dickie Landry, Maureen Loughran

Topics covered

• Zydeco
• Music History
• Cultural Heritage
• Louisiana
• Archival Recordings

Keywords

• Clifton Chenier
• Zydeco
• Louisiana
• R&B
• Blues
• Dance Parties
• Archival Recordings

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Arhoolie Foundation, Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

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