Arts and Entertainment

Jeffery Broussard and the Creole Cowboys bring the zydeco to 2nd week of Anchorage folk fest

In many small farming communities in southern Louisiana, learning to play zydeco is a birthright.

Working-class musicians pass down their songs and skills to their children, who in turn take up the music, a fusion of Creole culture and afro-rhythms.

It's a family trade and there are few families more closely associated with zydeco than the Broussards. Jeffery Broussard was just 8 years old when he debuted on drums in his father's band, Delton Broussard and the Lawtell Playboys. In the decades since, Jeffery Broussard has been a torchbearer for zydeco, influencing young musicians while maintaining the traditional methods he learned decades ago.

"Back when I was growing up, that's how it was," Jeffery Broussard said. "There were a bunch of family bands that would play at different venues. It's not like that today. A lot of the musicians back home came from the same background as myself. Their daddies played and they wanted to do the same."

For the Broussards, music came easy, but not much else did.

The youngest of 11 children, Jeffery Broussard dropped out of school in seventh grade to help work with his father, who sharecropped land in Frilot Cove, Louisiana. It was a lifestyle that was common among some of the top zydeco musicians of the era.

"A lot of the older guys were sharecroppers," Broussard said. "They had pigs or chickens, all different kinds of farm work. When they'd get off work, they would sit on their porch and play their accordions."

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And while Broussard was already a drummer, a position he later held in his brother Clinton's band as a teenager, he longed to play the accordion -- zydeco's signature instrument.

So when could, he would sneak into the closet and grab his father's accordion, becoming fairly proficient before too long. The elder Broussard knew someone had been digging in his accordion case, but with 11 children, it was tough to nail down a prime suspect. It was only when Jeffery Broussard finally debuted a song that his father finally put the pieces together.

"How did you learn that?" Broussard remembers his father asking.

"I just started laughing," Broussard said. "He could really tell someone was playing because they wouldn't put it away the same way."

Broussard's career as a musician took off when he began playing with Zydeco Force in the early 1990s. The band, which included his brother Shelton and cousin Herbert Broussard, was progressive in a number of areas, from rhythm to vocals.

The band provided a template for a new generation of artists, and Broussard said a number of the group's songs have been covered by other artists.

"We were one of the first (zydeco) bands to have a big group of people singing harmonies," he said. "A lot of the young bands, they copy a lot of stuff from Zydeco Force."

But Broussard said he's not a fan of the recent influence of hip-hop on zydeco.

"There are only a few people playing the traditional stuff," he said. "The young crowd has taken over. That's just hip-hop."

With the Creole Cowboys, Broussard has reverted to traditional Creole with French lyrics, continuing a career in which he's tried to honor his family and the music's history.

"My thing is that it's something I grew up with," he said. "It's all about my culture. My father passed away and he would still play (until the end of his life). I just want to keep his heritage and culture going. It's music about life. The songs are about true life."

Broussard has toured extensively worldwide, but is making his first trip to Alaska.

"Even if it's cold out there, we're bringing the heat," he said.

Anchorage Folk Festival: Jeffery Broussard and the Creole Cowboys

Friday: Closing band at 7 p.m. session, Wendy Williamson Auditorium

Late-night jam at Spenard Roadhouse, 11 p.m.

Saturday: Zydeco Mardi Gras Ball, 8 p.m. at 49th State Brewing (formerly the Snow Goose Restaurant Theatre); tickets: $15

Sunday: Closing band at 7 p.m. session, Wendy Williamson Auditorium

Workshops, 1-3:45 p.m., Wendy Williamson Auditorium

Chris Bieri

Chris Bieri is the sports and entertainment editor at the Anchorage Daily News.

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