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Bay Area Calendar
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This website is created and maintained by Andrea Rubinstein.
I've been taking Juice Plus+ since 1996.
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Springtime beckons...
(March 10, 2005) As I write this, the magnolia trees are in bloom and there
are hints of spring in the air. The winter goldfinches and chickadees have
almost disappeared, but the herons, egrets & rosette spoonbills are building
nests in Lake Martin. And in my yard, the tomatos are growing next to the swiss
chard (a vegetable that the clerk at my local supermarket has never even heard
of!)
Mardi Gras came early this year, with its requisite influx of visitors from
round the country. As usual there was too much to do... dance, go to parades,
attend parties, play in jams... sometimes all at the same time. My house guest
and I deposited all the beads we had into a basket and at the end of Mardi Gras.
It weighed almost 15 pounds!! And we weren't even trying that hard! I visited
festivities in Breaux Bridge, Church Point, Iota and Eunice as well as
Lafayette this Mardi Gras season, each of which had local variations to their
traditions.
Among the winter's musical highlights were watching the rapid emergence and
musical-coming-of-age of young Creole fiddler, Cedric Watson & the Creole
Cowboys, which in addition to Cedric includes Jeffrey Broussard (from Zydeco
Force) on accordion and D'jalma Garnier (formerly with File) on guitar. The
Lost Bayou Ramblers, with Louis and Andre Michot, continue to draw diverse,
enthusiastic crowds as they bring youthful energy to Cajun music, as do T-Sale.
And on the zydeco side, Curley Taylor & Zydeco Trouble, definitely impress all
those who see them, with their mix of original zydeco compositions, Sam Cooke
covers, hip hop and classic repetoire. Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys are
back in the recording studio, their live shows are now featuring some of the
songs that will be on that CD. For those interested in historic Cajun master
works, David Greely has been performing tunes by legendary fiddler Varise
Conner, along with members of the Conner family. And for those curious about
how traditions evolve, Celjun is a local band, featuring Cajun fiddler
extraordinaire, Mitch Reed, plus transplanted Irishman, Tony Davoren, and
transplanted Yankee, Linda Handelsman, which mixes Celtic and Cajun music
together in very interesting ways. Local slide guitar legend Sonny Landreth held
court at Grant Street Dancehall, which was packed for the CD release of the
excellent recording he made there last year. Plus most weeks you can also find
those stalwarts, Geno Delafose and Keith Frank packing 'em in around town.
Right now, things are settling down (maybe resting up is a better phrase) for
the next explosion of activities which means that it is April in Acadiana: I'm
talking that yearly marathon of events that includes Dewey Balfa Cajun-Creole
Heritage Week, Festival International, New Orleans Jazz Fest, and the Breaux
Bridge Crawfish Festival. For those of you who will be in town and haven't
visited for a while, you might want to check out the resurgence of Lafayette's
downtown, the Sunday brunch with live music at Blue Dog Cafe, anything at
the Blue Moon Saloon, the Saturday afternoon jam at Louisiana Heritage &
Gifts, the new art museum at U-L, & Lake Martin at peak birding season.
