Search - Beausoleil, Michael Doucet :: Gitane Cajun

Cameron Ashley H. from LACEY, WA
Reviewed on 4/4/2007...

Michael Doucet - Violin, Guitar, Accordion, Mandolin, Vocals
David Doucet - Guitar, Vocals
Jimmy Breaux - Accordion
Billy Ware - Percussion
Tommy Alesi - Drums
Mitch Reed - Bass, Fiddle, Banjo, Electric Guitar
Since forming in 1975, Grammy winners BeauSoleil have claimed their undisputed role as the most esteemed Cajun group in music. Michael Doucet avec BeauSoleil take the rich Cajun traditions of Louisiana and artfully blend elements of zydeco, New Orleans jazz, Tex-Mex, country, blues and more into a satisfying musical recipe. From The Grand Ole Opry to Newport Folk, from concert hall to dance floor, the music of BeauSoleil continues to captivate audiences the world over.

Gitane Cajun, new styles, but always Cajun

Susan Budig | Minneapolis, MN United States | 10/07/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"[...]

For those of you who just want the bare facts, listen to the samples provided here on this amazon.com page. The music almost says it all. Waiting for BeauSoleil to put out an original album took nearly five years. The wait was worth it."

Reasonable but not great.

Megan Romer | Ithaca, NY | 12/06/2005

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Beausoleil are considered boundary-pushers in Cajun music, but actually they tend to be footstep-followers. When Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys added Swamp Pop to their repertoire, Beausoleil followed. When The Red Stick Ramblers and The Lost Bayou Ramblers began reviving the swingin' stringband era of Cajun music, Beausoleil followed, and the result is this. Does anyone find it suspicious that The Red Stick Ramblers, only a year and a half before Gitane Cajun was released, had jokingly begun referring to themselves as "The World's Only Cajun Gypsy Swing Band"? "Gitane Cajun" in French means, of course, Cajun Gypsy. Original? Not so much. But is it good? Yeah, I'd say so.



The musicianship here is phenomenal. Jimmy Breaux's accordion playing is nothing short of masterful, his playing is the highlight of every Beausoleil album he's appeared on. No one in the band is a slacker, either, they're all pulling their weight nicely, including frontman Michael Doucet.



The only true travesty of the record is the severe butchering of "La Femme Qui Jouait Aux Cartes", which is a traditional Cajun song, a beautiful slow ballad. Beausoleil ripped it wide open and turned it into a hokey Caribbean-themed number. Just not my taste, I'm afraid.



If you want to listen to authentic Cajun music, this is NOT the place to look, but the record is a fun one and not bad for a casual world music collector."