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2018 The Ragin Cajun: Doug Kershaw and Steve Riley
001-2018-012
41:11 Master Camera files on Hard Drive, Mp4 on Server and Cloud
2018-04-29
Interviewer - Nick Spitzer
ABSTRACT: 02:02 Kershaw tells how he came to write “Louisiana Man;” preparing to discharge from the Army, he asked himself what he wanted more than anything in the world and decided it was to not be ashamed of being Cajun. He explains that he began playing music with his mother, who played guitar and one finger fiddle. 04:14 Kershaw sketches the culinary scene on the houseboat he was born on. 06:43 Riley explains that for as long as he can remember, he’s known the name Doug Kershaw, who he admired for maintaining his roots, growing up playing with Dewey Balfa. He says that the Balfa Brothers and Kershaw did equal parts promoting Cajun music, the Balfas’ being more traditional and Kershaw’s more mainstream or universal. 08:51 Kershaw says that he was able to keep his local connections while gaining renown because he wanted to; while reading and writing French were taken from it, speaking wasn’t, and he figured out he could put the lyrics into English. He points out that if “Louisiana Man” were in French, it’d be evident as a Cajun song. 10:45 Kershaw explains how he and Riley came to do their album, Face To Face, together. 11:18 Riley speaks about the instruments they used, and that brought them together, including Kershaw’s precious old accordions. 13:31 Kershaw speaks to how he came to play the fiddle. 16:00 Demonstration, “The Cajun Stripper” 19:15 Kershaw tells how funny he finds it that the music he did with his brother Rusty is now categorized as rockabilly. He articulates his wilting belief in genre, which he believes enabled him to avoid being categorized and facilitated crossing over. He tells how he and his brothers got their band name, the Continental Playboys, from a club. 21:45 Kershaw recollects the Louisiana Hayride, which was followed by the WWBA and the Grand ole opry. 25:25 Kershaw speaks on his life in Colorado, where he’s lived for thirty-one years and got married in the Astrodome. 29:30 Demonstration, “Saute Crapaud” 31:53 Demonstration “Feed It To The Fish” 34:12 Kershaw speaks about the family he sees on frequent visits home to Cameron Parish. 35:24 Demonstration, “Louisiana Man” 38:55 Demonstration
video recording
Public Access is available in the Archive due to copyright restrictions. Copyrights are retained by the participants. The video is available for viewing at the archive.
New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation Archive