| Positively Beadhead | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1999 | |||
| Genre | Zydeco | |||
| Label | Tone-Cool | |||
| Producer | Terrance Simien | |||
| Terrance Simien chronology | ||||
| ||||
Positively Beadhead is an album by the American musician Terrance Simien, released in 1999. [1] [2] Simien supported the album with a North American tour. [3] The album title refers to Simien's practice of throwing beads to his fans during concerts. [4]
Simien was backed by his band, the Mallet Playboys. [5] "Keep On Smilin'" is a cover of the Wet Willie song. [6] "500 Miles" is a version of the folk standard written by Hedy West. [7] "Jolie Blonde" is an interpretation of the Cajun song. [8] "Macque Choux" is named after the Creole corn recipe. [9] "Mardi Gras in the Country" employs congas and timbales in the song's break. [10] "Grandma's House" imagines various dead musicians in heaven. [10] Paul Cebar contributed to the songwriting. [11]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [6] |
| The Associated Press | [12] |
| The Gazette | 7/10 [13] |
| The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings | [14] |
The Gazette noted that "some bands aim for back-to-the-bayou authenticity, but Simien has a fondness for uptown soulfulness." [13] OffBeat wrote that Simien "sings in a silky, creamy high-end voice that's gorgeously soulful, exhibiting a sheen like no other." [9] The Chicago Tribune determined that, "closer to Cajun-flavored pop than genuine folk, Simien's eclectic brand of bayou elevates melody over feverish dance grooves, but what it lacks in old school energy it more than makes up for in fetching, accordion-accented hooks." [15]
The News Journal said that "Simien's ever-curious take on the afterlife shares equal space with Zydeco rave-ups and Caribbean-flavored steel drums." [16] The Boston Globe concluded that "Simien is finally on his way to living up to his potential." [8] The Star Tribune opined that "all the zydeco, soul music, yuppie pop and hippie rock pay off wonderfully." [11]
AllMusic deemed Positively Beadhead "an album that has a lot more going for it than just another garden-variety zydeco party disc." [6]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "All Her Lovin" | |
| 2. | "Paradise" | |
| 3. | "Mardi Gras in the Country" | |
| 4. | "This Old Road" | |
| 5. | "Grandma's House" | |
| 6. | "500 Miles" | |
| 7. | "La Neuville Danse" | |
| 8. | "Jolie Blonde" | |
| 9. | "Same Dog" | |
| 10. | "Macque Choux" | |
| 11. | "Keep On Smilin'" | |
| 12. | "Shake Your Tambourine" |
Zydeco is a music genre that evolved in southwest Louisiana by French Creole speakers. It blends blues, rhythm and blues, and music indigenous to the Louisiana Creoles and the Native American people of Louisiana. Although it is distinct in origin from the Cajun music of Louisiana, the two forms influenced each other, forming a complex of genres native to the region.
The music of Louisiana can be divided into three general regions: rural south Louisiana, home to Creole Zydeco and Old French, New Orleans, and north Louisiana. The region in and around Greater New Orleans has a unique musical heritage tied to Dixieland jazz, blues, and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. The music of the northern portion of the state starting at Baton Rouge and reaching Shreveport has similarities to that of the rest of the US South.
BeauSoleil is a Cajun band from Louisiana, United States.
Maison de Soul is a Louisiana-based Zydeco and blues record label. It was founded in 1974 in Ville Platte, Louisiana by Floyd Soileau and remains under his ownership. It is one of four record labels under Soileau's Flat Town Music Company umbrella, and combined the Flat Town labels make up "the largest body of Cajun, zydeco, and swamp music in the world". Living Blues magazine has called Maison de Soul "the country's foremost zydeco label".
Terrance Simien is an American zydeco musician, vocalist and songwriter. He and his group The Zydeco Experience won the Grammy Award for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album in 2008 and for Best Regional Roots Music Album in 2014.
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.
Roy "Chubby" Carrier is an American zydeco musician. He is the leader of Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band.
Wilson Allen Savoy 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. His father Marc Savoy, famous accordion builder and musician, and his mother, Ann Savoy, musician, author and music producer, are well known ambassadors and supporters of preserving the Cajun culture.
The Grammy Award for Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album was an honor presented to recording artists at the 50th, 51st, 52nd and 53rd Annual Grammy Awards (2008–2011) for quality zydeco or cajun music albums. The Grammy Awards, an annual ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, are presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".
Sherman Robertson was an American blues guitarist and singer who has been described as "one part zydeco, one part swamp blues, one part electric blues and one part classic rhythm and blues."
Flood City Music Festival is an annual music festival held in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, presented by the Johnstown Area Heritage Association. The festival began in 1989 as a street fair to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the Johnstown Flood. The event was renamed the National Folk Festival in 1990, and was held in Johnstown's Cambria City neighborhood from 1990 to 1992. In 1993, it was renamed the Johnstown FolkFest and eventually the festival moved from Cambria City to downtown Johnstown in 2004. The festival emphasized acoustic music, but was expanded and renamed the Flood City Music Festival in 2009 to include other styles of music.
Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience is a Zydeco band from Louisiana led by Terrance Simien.
Turn the Page is an album by the American zydeco musician Chris Ardoin, released in 1998. His band, Double Clutchin'—which included his brother, Sean—is also credited. Ardoin was still a teenager when the album was recorded.
Boogie Woogie Zydeco is an album by the American zydeco band Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band, released in 1991. The album was part of the zydeco revival of the late 1980s and early 1990s, and was noted for its especially fast tempos and rock elements.
Hot Rod is an album by the American musician C.J. Chenier, released in 1990. He is credited with the Red Hot Louisiana Band. Although Chenier grew up listening primarily to R&B, he considered Hot Rod to be a traditional zydeco album.
There's Room for Us All is the second album by the American musician Terrance Simien, released in 1993. It was recorded with Simien's band, the Mallet Playboys. Simien supported the album with a North American tour.
Bayou Ruler is an album by the American band Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, released in 1998. A couple of its English-language songs were regional hits, although they proved controversial to some Cajun traditionalists. The band supported the album with a North American tour.
La Vie Marron is an album by the American band Filé, released in 1996. The title translates as "The Runaway Life".
Boozoo Chavis is an album by the American musician Boozoo Chavis, released in 1991. It was part of the Elektra/Nonesuch American Explorer series. The album was the culmination of a comeback for Chavis that had begun in 1984. Chavis supported the album by playing the Newport Folk Festival.
Peace, Love & BBQ is an album by the American musician Marcia Ball, released in 2008. Ball supported the album with a North American tour.