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Archive Files of Cajun, Creole, and Zydeco Musicians |
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Jeremy & the Zydeco Hot Boyz |
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Click here to go to the MySpace page for Jeremy and the Zydeco Hot Boyz Jeremy and the Zydeco Hot Boyz released another CD, Cold Hearted, in 2007. 2005 CD: Gotta Find My Woman Jeremy Frugé and the Zydeco Hot Boyz continue to grow musically with the release of another CD in late 2005. On the CD, Jeremy stays connected to his zydeco roots with songs like Boozoo's "Oh Yeah" and "I Got a Camel" in English and "Jolie Catin" in French. He also covers the music of his great uncle, John Delafose with "Joe Pete a deux femmes." According to the liner notes, the Hot Boyz' "Gotta Find My Woman," the title cut, includes samples from John Delafose, but the Hot Boyz have totally transformed the song with new lyrics and harmony vocals, offering a smoother, more polished sound. "Grind on Me" is the Hot Boyz' version of R. Kelley's song, a slow, sensual fusion of rap and zydeco with a throbbing beat and some nice guitar work by Troy Prudhomme. The original songs on the CD, which display both Jeremy's song writing ability and his maturing vocal expressiveness, include "Attracted to Your Body," "Early" (about what a man discovers when he comes home early), and "I Don't Care." "Basile Two-Step" is an original instrumental. Other musicians on the CD are Gary "Tank" Delafoisse on drums, Clarence "Lil Chick" Leday on rubboard, and Brian Fruge on bass. For bookings, contact Leisa Delafoisse, (337) 432-5375 or email leisadelafoisse@yahoo.com or leisafd@aol.com. |
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2004 Hot Boyz Update
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Go to the Zydeco Hot
Boyz Official Page for more information. In 2004, Jeremy Fruge and the Zydeco Hot Boyz released their third CD, titled Now, Whacha Gonna Do?. Sean Ardoin was executive producer. The CD includes eight original songs–featuring a variety of stylings that display Jeremy's continuing growth as an accomplished musician–plus covers of "Why You Want to Make Me Cry" and "I'm Coming Home." Clarence "Lil Chuck" Leday III, grandson of the legendary guitarist, is shown immediately below on scrubboard. Members of the band in the wide shot taken at the Liberty Theater August 14, 2004, are Lucien Hayes, Clarence Leday III, Gary Delafoisse Jr. (on drums), Jeremy Fruge, Brian Fruge, and Herk Semien.
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2003 Hot Boyz Update |
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Jeremy and the Zydeco Hot Boyz are living up to their name in 2003, releasing their second CD in Maison de Soul's ValueDisc series, traveling with the Louisiana Music Cavalcade across the state, and performing at, among other venues, the Dewey Balfa Creole and Cajun Heritage Day and the Original Southwest Louisiana Zydeco Festival on the main stage. The CD, titled The Thing About Love, features four original songs (including a waltz), Jeremy's version of "Amédé Two-Step," and Jo Jo Reed's "A Hard Head Makes a Soft Behind." The CD is dedicated to Jo Jo for his help and inspiration. |
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| The photos in the above section were taken at
the Original Southwest Louisiana Zydeco Festival and the Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole
Heritage Day at Lake Fausse State Park. |
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Before he played at LSUE's Community Day, Jeremy had been performing in the area for a year or so, including appearances at the Eunice 2000 Folklife Festival and at Geno Delafose's annual fan appreciation party (he also played at the Assumption Catholic Church Hall in Basile along with his uncle, Geno Delafose, a couple of weeks before he appeared at LSUE).
While at LSUE, he performed Zydeco favorites like "Give Me Cornbread." With JoJo Reed on lead guitar, Jeremy sang JoJo's "A Hard Head Makes a Soft Behind," and he gave the crowd his version in French of "Chère ici, chère là bas."
Other musicians on the stage for the performance at LSUE included Gary Delafoisse and Brian Fruge on frottoir, Calvin Thomas on drums, and Jerry Douglas on bass.
In late 2001, Jeremy and the Zydeco Hot Boyz released their first CD, Move Your Feet Ya'll, one of the new ValueDiscs from Maison de Soul Records. Priced at about a third of the cost of a regular CD, it features five traditional zydeco songs, including four original compostions by Jeremy.
In "Move Your Feet," he urges dancers to get on the floor and zydeco to the Hot Boyz beat. "Hot Boyz Trail Ride" describes one of the activites at which the Hot Boyz have been frequent performers.
The CD also includes "Now I'm Mad," one of those songs in which a man complains about a cheating woman, and "In My World," an expression of love.
The last song is the late John Delafose's "Broken Hearted," and Jeremy dedicates his version to the memory of his great uncle, who is truly a zydeco legend. The liner notes recall the times when Jeremy at age 3 used to visit with John Delafose: Jeremy " always headed straight for the music room where he and his cousin Gerard Delafose experimented with various instruments."
According to the notes, Jeremy also plays the trumpet, drums, and rubboard. In addition to playing the music of John Delafose and that of his son, Geno, Jeremy likes to perform the music of Keith Frank, Jo Jo Reed, and the late Beau Jocque.
In addition to Jeremy (age 14 when the CD was recorded), the musicians on the CD are Gary Delafoisse (age 11) and Brian Frugé (age 15) on rubboard; Calvin Thomas (age 10) on drums; Jerry Douglas on bass; and Herman Semien on lead guitar.
Southwest Louisiana now has a number of teenage Zydeco bands whose young musicians know how to keep on and move ahead with the great sounds of real Zydeco. Jeremy Frugé and the Zydeco Hot Boyz are one of the leading bands of this new Zydeco generation.
For more information on Jeremy and the Zydeco Hot Boyz, contact Leisa Delafoisse, (337) 432-5375.
The pictures on this page were taken at LSUE Community Day in April 2001, at the Eunice Folklife Festival in October 2001, and at the Mamou Christmas Parade in December 2001. In the left column, from top to bottom, are pictures of Jeremy Frugé, Jeremy and drummer Calvin Thomas, Gary Delafoisse Jr. on rubboard; and then Jeremy on accordion and Brian Frugé on rubboard riding a float in the Christmas parade. The wide shots of the entire band were taken at LSUE (with Jo Jo Reed at far left) and at the Eunice Folklife Festival. The photo immediately below was taken at LSUE, showing Jeremy, Brian, and Gary with Jerry Douglas behind them.
Posted January 2002.