Customer Reviews

Louisiana Hot Sauce Creole Style

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4 star:		(1)
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Mr. Canray Fontenot was a true gem. Every song on this album is a beautiful little piece of Creole history. Mr. Fontenot's music is simple and uncomplicated, but don't let that fool you. It is in simplicity that the complexities of Mr. Fontenot's music really shine through.
You will not hear this music on radio stations outside of Louisiana, unless someone on NPR hears it and decides that they've uncovered a diamond in the rough. Please take a chance on this album if you want real music to listen to.
Mr. Canray's songs pull at all of your emotions and it truly is a shame that we lost this man just a few years ago. "Bernadette" will ring in the heart of this listener forever.

I can't imagine Cajun and Zydeco music nowadays without the influence of Creole fiddler Canray Fontenot. But I won't suggest that you listen to it because it's important. Listen to it because it's terrific music.

Fontenot sounds like he's been singing these songs for decades without getting tired of them. I don't get tired of them, either. There are better-known versions of some of these songs (John Delafose had a huge Zydeco hit with "Joe Pitre a Deux Femmes", and Beausoleil does a wonderful "Grand Mallet") but never better-played ones.

Bois-Sec Ardoin and Beausoleil show up for some of these sessions, but Fontenot's sweet, sly, spontaneous singing and fiddling is always up front, as it should be. Twenty-seven tracks of fiddle and rusty voice may sound like a bit much, but Fontenot's built up an astounding repertoire, and every song has a particular mood and personality that sets it apart from the rest. There's not a bad one in the bunch.

If you like fiddle, this is a must have. Canray Fontenot (R.I.P.) was fantastic.

The liner notes, which explain how he built his first fiddle out of a cigar box, are quite touching.