Rounder Records : History's Swamp People Celebrate The History and Culture of the Deep Delta - New Release Review

I just received History's Swamp People, and new release from Rounder Records. This 13 track compilation showcases current and past masters of regional music. Opening with Steel Bill's Swamp People, this is a Cajun house party. Dominated by a contemporary blend of funk, fiddle and blues rock, this track also features a nice clean guitar solo from Bill. Next up is a 1969 hit track, Amos Moses, by Jerry Reed. This track was always a crowd favorite and has just a taste of country picking on an otherwise rock track. Buckwheat Zydeco comes on pure cajun with Zydeco La Louisianne and an accordion romp. Everybody loves Tony Joe Whites Polk Salad Annie, up next and another top track from 1969. Amanda Shaw plays French Jig, a cajun fiddle track accompanied primarily by drums. Nice track. The Neville Brothers come on with the high polish on Fire On The Bayou, a funky track with sophisticated instrumentals and vocals. This is a track with real movement and voodoo overtones. Very cool. Chris Ardoin is up next with What's In That Bayou, an accordion lead swinger. Nice vocals harmonies and concise instrumentation makes this one of the coolest tracks on the release. Beausoleil avec Michael Doucet delivers a traditional arrangement of Kolinda in french for a real flavor of the regional roots. Hank Williams (Sr.) is a really great addition here with his version of Jambalaya. This of curse is an absolute standard of delta country roots. Excellent! Zachary Richard performs a funky hop track, Cocodrie, with lots of horns and and solid vocals. Keys provide much of the bottom of this track and there is also a really tasty guitar solo here as well. Jumpin' Johnny Sansone lays down the Crawfish Walk, a springy twisting rocker. Nice sax work and hot harp plays over this modern track. Very cool. D.L. Menhard plays Cajun Saturday Night, another regional country style track. This track has a real warm, welcoming sound to it with slide and fiddle. I really like it. Bobby Charles' 1955 hit See You Later Alligator, is a great finish to what is not just a compliation of related tracks but actually a pretty cool cd to listen to when you need a pick me up.

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