Album Notes

Doug Kershaw, known as the Ragin’ Cajun, is considered by most to be the king of the fiddle players. Since his early days on a Louisiana bayou, he still takes a fiddle beyond what most people think possible. Kershaw, with the energy of a nuclear bomb, plays so incredibly fast that clouds of rosin soar from his horse hair bow, giving the impression that it’s smoking! Often, he’ll wear out two or three bows per song - playing, dancing and singing at the same time. Mastering over 20 instruments, many of Doug\'s peers, including the great Jimmy C. Newman, consider him as the best musician, singer, songwriter and performer to ever come out of southwest Louisiana. Kershaw, who is a key player in the promotion and revival of the formerly disappearing Cajun Culture, was born in Tiel Ridge, Cameron Parish, Louisiana, an island just off the Gulf of Mexico on January 24, 1936 to Rita and Jack Kershaw (...they call my mama Rita and my daddy Jack...). Doug is the second of four sons (Ed, Doug, Nelson (Pee Wee) and Russell (Rusty). This is the heart of Cajun country, where French, not English is the native tongue. Kershaw has taken his heritage worldwide with his infectious, foot-stomping sound, making Cajun music as popular as many other forms of music. In the 1960\'s, Doug made his first network television appearance on the premier, \"Johnny Cash Show.\" This performance turned millions of people on to his talents, among them, Warner Brothers Records, with whom he signed a long-term recording contract. Kershaw\'s many recordings have been steady sellers, not only with country audiences, but spanning all categories. Though well-known for his hits, \"Diggy Diggy Lo\" and \"Cajun Joe,\" Doug’s greatest hit is his autobiographical recording \"Louisiana Man,\" which forever immortalized his family and sold millions of copies over the years and was the first song broadcast back to earth from the moon by the Apollo 12 Mission. Doug is still at it as evidenced by his newest album, \"Classical Cajun Gumbo,\" a ground-breaking live concert in which Doug performs with the University of Northern Colorado Symphony Orchestra.