Clifton Chenier & His Band, "Ay-Tete Fee" c/w "Boppin' the Rock," Specialty SP-552 (rel. 5/1955)

Zydeco music, an olio of various Louisiana styles, had its king in Clifton Chenier, whose beaming countenance and flashy accordion enlivened many a blues, jazz and Cajun music festival over the years. We encounter him at the start of his long, happy career with a 1955 made-in-New-Orleans release for Specialty Records.
        Specialty had a close connection with the Crescent City in the 1950s; Little Richard, Lloyd Price, Professor Longhair, Ernie K-Doe and many others made superb singles (and LPs) for this LA imprint. Chenier was 30 when he cut this single. He grew up in the deep country near Opelousas, LA and spoke Louisiana French, a dialect that still exists in isolated areas of the state. Chenier's father, a farmer, played a single melodeon accordion; an uncle was a fiddler. With blues, country and Cajun music on the radio, young Clifton got an education in roots music styles from an early age. He picked up the accordion at around 22 years' age and, by 1950, played in public. He didn't commit to music as a career for another four years, when he made his first recordings as 'Cliston Chanier." A regional single was picked up by Imperial Records in 1954; they issued it on their Post subsidiary.
        Art Rupe's Specialty label was the first to spell the performer's name right; this is Chenier's first single under his own moniker. Recorded at an unfortunate low volume, it delivers a powerful sound and a lot of enthusiasm and drive on a a pair of winning performances.
        "Ay-Tete Fee" is a bilingual ode to a pretty girl who's engaged Clifton's full attention. It's a heady blend of zydeco music and driving, easy-going r&b. Chenier's English bears a distinct rural Louisianan accent; it's difficult to make out most of his words--due, in part, to the low level of mastering. And, because these early 45s are formatted for the wider grooves of 78-rpm records, one can't boost the volume too high without inviting hiss to the party. I think Clifton and his band get across fine as-is.

 

The Cash Box reviewer, in the golden age of the accordion in pop music, couldn't ID Chenier's instrument of choice. A positive assessment, despite that goof-up.

"Boppin' the Rock" is an instrumental--the ideal background for dancing, drinking, consumption of fried foods and perhaps a scuffle caused by ingestion of one or more of the above items. It gives us a notion of how Chenier and his band could rock the house into the middle of next year.
        Chenier's bluesy approach to the accordion blows away all the Lawrence Welks in the known universe. Small wonder he was crowned "King of Zydeco" and "King of The South" by his legion of fans.

Clifton Chenier's music remained in state for decades. He played what he loved, and though he did some ballads, his forte was good-time music that got a crowd, whether the working-class audience of a rural roadhouse or college-educated white folks at a jazz/blues festival, clapping, dancing and enjoying themselves. The 1980s were his greatest period. He won a Grammy award in 1983 and became a headliner all over the world. His record label, Alligator, sold his LPs and CDs by the truckload. 
        He invented a new type of accordion, the froittor, inspired by a desire to have a less heavy instrument strapped to his body. This lighter squeeze-box could be manipulated to crowd-pleasing effect via the use of bottle openers. 
        Chenier struggled with diabetes, which led to major health problems. His kidneys failed. Dialysis helped for a time, but he had a foot amputated due to diabetes issues and it affected his stamina as a performer. He passed on in 1987, at the peak of his popularity, and is remembered with fondness by all who knew him. And while this 1955 single isn't his first recording, it's where his story really begins.

Tomorrow: Two years earlier for a wild OKeh single by Big Maybelle. This 1953 disc packs a punch!