Description
Founded in 1975, BeauSoleil (often billed as “BeauSoleil avec Michael Doucet”) released its first album in 1977 and became one of the most well-known bands performing traditional and original music rooted in the folk tunes of the Cajuns and Creoles of Louisiana.[2][1] In early years they appeared at CODOFIL‘s annual “Tribute to Cajun Music” in Lafayette, Louisiana.[2][3] They were part of the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in 1983.[4]
BeauSoleil tours extensively in the U.S. and internationally. While its repertoire includes hundreds of traditional Cajun, Creole and zydeco songs, BeauSoleil has also pushed past constraints of purely traditional instrumentation, rhythm, and lyrics of Louisiana folk music, incorporating elements of rock and roll, jazz, blues, calypso, and other genres in original compositions and reworkings of traditional tunes. Lyrics on BeauSoleil recordings are sung in English or Cajun French (and sometimes both in one song).
According to the band’s website, BeauSoleil’s musicians “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.” The band’s name is a tribute to Joseph Broussard dit Beausoleil, an Acadian resistance leader who led many Acadians to Louisiana following their expulsion by the British.
BeauSoleil has appeared on soundtracks to films The Big Easy,[1] Passion Fish and Belizaire the Cajun. The group plays at jazz and folk festivals and has appeared on numerous television shows, including CNN‘s Showbiz Today, Austin City Limits, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, and Emeril Live. BeauSoleil appeared regularly on Garrison Keillor‘s Prairie Home Companion radio show. Keillor has hailed the group as the “best Cajun band in the world”. BeauSoleil has also performed in concert with Mary Chapin Carpenter and opened for the Grateful Dead. Carpenter featured them on her 1991 single “Down at the Twist and Shout“,[1] in which they are also mentioned by name.[5]
