Album Notes

style : Swamp-pop

The Band LA 56 (named for the highway that runs through the small fishing town of Chauvin, Louisiana) have had experiences as fishermen. With their CD “Bayou Music” these Cajun folks also prove to be real good Swamp Pop musicians.
Opener “Baby, Baby Please” (written by Jessie Lambas and LA 56’s guitar & accordion player Joe Trahan) is a wonderful Swamp Pop ballad in the style of Cookie & the Cupcakes’ fifties hit “Mathilda”. Following in the same beautiful style is Fats Domino’s (& Dave Bartholomew’s) “Valley Of Tears”, which is also well-known by Buddy Holly, Mickey Gilley, Brenda Lee, Faron Young and different Swamp Pop artists. Another real Swamp Pop goodie is “Missing You”, which I only knew from Johnnie Allan, who also did a Swamp Pop version of Johnny Bond’s “I Wonder Where You Are Tonight”. LA 56 also chose for the French Swamp Pop version of this song, that also has been played by many Bluegrass artists. Bluesy Swamp Pop is brought with Slim Harpo’s “Raining In My Heart” (which is not the same song as Buddy Holly’s “Raining In My Heart”). With Big Joe Turner’s “Flip, Flop & Fly” they speed up to a rockin’ tempo. The Louisiana Cajun & Zydeco atmosphere comes up with “Alligator Walk”, a wonderful song (that also has been covered by Johnnie Allan on “The Ultimate Louisiana Experience”) from The Mojo Blues Band. When you click the link below to their website, you hear LA 56’s beautiful version of this song.
“Your Picture”, a ballad from Bobby Charles (Robert Charles Guidry), is a real beautiful Swamp Pop classic. LA 56 also put a real Zydeco track on this CD, with Horace Trahan’s funny “The Butt Thing”.
“When You Say You Love Me” and “It’s You I Want”, 2 originals, are real fine Swamp Pop ballads, written buy Joe Trahan.