Archive Files of Cajun, Creole, and Zydeco Musicians
Posted between 1999 and 2008

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   Corey Ledet

   and His Zydeco Band
Click here for high res photos posted on Flickr. Check out Corey's mySpace page
2009: A Matter of Time
In May 2009, Corey Ledet released A Matter of Time, a CD that showcases his talent in just about every type of zydeco. Click for details.
 
2007: Don't Shut Me Out
In early 2007, Corey Ledet released a new CD titled Don't Shut Me Out, featuring all original songs and one traditional juré number. Click here for more information on the CD.
Click here for more information on the 2006 CD Goin' Down to Louisiana with Corey Ledet and Cedric Watson.

Winter 2006 Update

Corey Ledet was back at the Liberty Theater Feb. 18, 2006, with just rubboard and drums to accompany him, wowing the crowd with more great renditions of Clifton Chenier.  On songs like "Pinetop's Boogie Woogie," piano accordion players like Chenier or Ledet can produce a rich, complex flow of swiftly moving notes that when punctuated with the raw percussive sound of the rubboard will get both your body and mind resonating.

When he was at the Liberty last fall, Corey described a trip to Moscow where he played before a crowd of some 70,000. He also had an audience in the millions on Russian TV. People were so excited about Corey and the zydeco sound of his band that they were playing "air" rubboard the way rock fans play air guitar.

 

Click here for a few photos of Corey "Lil Pop" Ledet at the Original Southwest Louisiana Zydeco Festival and Festivals Acadiens.

 Corey "Lil Pop" Ledet, a native of Houston, Texas, excels at both the urban Zydeco sounds of his home town, the Creole music played in days past by his relatives in rural Louisiana, and the contemporary Zydeco beat that draws crowds to dance halls across the region and beyond. He has now settled in the small town of Parks, La., in St. Martin Parish, where he put together his first CD, 3 Years 2 Late, in Dirk Powell's Cypress House Recording Studio.

On the CD, Corey Ledet shows his versatility in performing in just about any style and on any accordion, whether single-row, triple row, or piano. The CD title may represent postponed intentions, but Corey has certainly finally delivered in full.
Eight of the cuts on the CD are songs written by Corey Ledet, including the double clutchin' sounds of "The One," "Dance All Night," and "Sound Check" (which at 7:15, is actually the longest cut on the CD),  the smooth harmonies of "Trailride," and the hard core blues of "You Left Me Last Night ."

Fiddler Cedric Watson, accompanied by accordion and triangle, performs "Tante Eun Waltz," a tribute to an aunt with an unforgettable smile, done in Creole style to the tune of "Tante NaNa." Cedric's fiddling can also be heard on "That Song," an old style Creole instrumental, and on "Diggy Liggy Lo," Corey's total transformation of Terry Clement's song using the same tune as Boozoo's "Johnnie Ma Cabri." The band also plays Boozoo's "Do It All Night."

 

 

 

Corey Ledet's cousin, Leon Sam, is shown
playing at the Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival in 2003. Corey includes two songs by Leon on the CD. Among Corey's other musical connections: his grandfather played drums with Clifton Chenier, Rockin' Dopsie, and Fernest Arceneaux.

 

Corey learned to play the piano accordion  from his cousin Leon Sam, who used to be part of the Lawtell band Sam Brothers 5 (a group that once played at LSUE in the late 1970s). He include two of his cousin's songs on the CD, "Leon's Boogie" and "Magic Lady," both of which feature the saxophone.

Other songs on the CD include "Boudin Man," by guitarist Joseph Rossiyn, and "Way Back Home" by the Jazz Crusaders.

In addition to playing accordion and singing lead vocals on the CD, Corey Ledet also plays organ on several tracks. Corey's cousin, Greg Potier, is on scrubboard and background vocals. Drumming duties are shared by Brad Frank and Jay Prejean. Joseph Rossiyn and Wayne Singleton are on guitar on various cuts, with Kyle Hebert playing bass.

The photos on this page, taken at Downtown Alive! in Lafayette in June 2004 and at the Liberty Theater in Eunice in late July 2004, show Corey Ledet on accordion, Greg Potier on scrubboard, Joseph Rossiyn on guitar (below),  Glen Sam on bass (beneath Rossiyn), and Jay Prejean on drums,. Also pictured below is Corey performing at Festivals Acadiens in September 2003 with Cedric Watson on fiddle and James Adams on guitar (Adams does background vocals on the CD) in a workshop session devoted to Creole music.

 
   


Corey "Lil Pop" Ledet and His Zydeco Band are shown performing at Downtown Alive!
in Lafayette.

 
Posted 8-5-04
All photographs and text by David Simpson.

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