Women in the Room

This is my favorite Cajun album. The song La Ballad de Howard Herbert is haunting and beautiful in French. (The English translation reveals it to be a pedestrian little story, but hey, everything sounds good in French...) In addition, the acapella "Aux Natchitoches" (did I spell it right??) is stunning and I have yet to find anyone who can sit still to "Zack's Zydeco". This CD is excellent and it's a shame that its so hard to get ahold of!

This CD has a little of everything, Cajun, French Folk songs, Blues and Zydeco. My favorites from this CD are "No French, No More," "Give Me Back My Wings," "Shades Of Blue," and the two French Ballads on the CD. I discoverd this CD when I got bored with most of the music coming out today. I wanted something different. The songs on this CD range from upbeat to blues. There is a song for every mood. I love this CD and have since bought all the CD's avaiable by Zachary Richard.

Sure there's the accordion runs, the hard rocking rhythm section, the plaintive vocals, but Richard gives the listener more than traditional Cajun party music. Listen to him describe the loss of language and culture on "No French, No More," or the tragedy of Henry Hebert (en francais) and you know there is more going on with Richard than zydeco. That's not to say that Richard can't light a fire when he feels like it, "Who Stole My Monkey," "My Nannette," and "Too Many Women" all get the party going. But you'll remember the thoughtful pieces for a long time after the party songs fade away.