CD Review
Clifton Chenier
The Best Of Clifton Chenier
(Arhoolie Records)
by Dick Houff
Review date: November 2004
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"Keeping the Blues Alive Award" Achievement for Blues on the Internet Presented by The Blues Foundation
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The Arhoolie archives are a virtual treasure-trove of musical history. In the realms of American Roots Music, I really can't think of another company that even comes close. Chris Strachwitz started Arhoolie on a shoe-string budget. The record label has grown to be one of the most respected on an international level, and continues to reach people. And here we have another Clifton Chenier release-a best of-no less, and I would have to agree. Here's a bit of history in regards to Clifton. As a young man, I was playing for the most part, in Southern clubs. For awhile, I lived in New Orleans, and became aquainted with Zydeco. Naturally, I dug the fun and dancing-all that sound! Well, a group of us got wind of a Clifton Chenier gig in Baton Rouge. It was the first time I had ever seen or heard Chenier, I became a devoted fan overnight. Several years later, I met one of my heroes in Houston, Texas. The man was Lightning Hopkins. He showed me a few licks and I stole a few! About 25 yearrs later, I learned that Hopkins and Clifton Chenier were cousins from reading the liner notes off of an Arhoolie record! True story-now let's get down to business. On this wonderful collection, you're looking at 17 tracks, plus, a 15 minute interview hosted by Chris Strachwitz, over radio station KPFA-Berkeley, CA, 1978. Some of my favorites have been assembled here: Je Me Reviller Le Matin (I Woke Up This Morning) / Hot Rod / Party Down (At The Blue Angel Club) / Zydeco Cha Cha / Zydeco Sont Pas Sale (Snap Beans Without Salt), oh hell-I love every one of 'em!
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