Wallace “Cheese” Read – Cajun House Party / Arhoolie CD-415

Description

CD 415

Wallace “Cheese” Read – vocal & fiddle
with Marc Savoy, John Stelly, Isaac Soileau, Isom Fontenot, etc.

Cheese Read was not a professional musician. He preferred to play his music at home or at parties with a few friends but a more powerful singer or more precise Cajun fiddler couldn’t be found in Southwest Louisiana.
#1-15 recorded by Chris Strachwitz in 1979 and most previously on ARH LP 5021. #1629 recorded in the late 1950s by Dr. Harry Oster and previously unissued.

1. Bayou Pom Pom
2. One Step A Chaumont
3. Les Veuves De La Coulee
4. Read’s Two-Step
5. Tolan Waltz
6. Grand Texas
7. Bosco Stomp
8. Chere Mama Creole
9. Le Pays De L’acadien
10. Keep A Knocking
11. Tu M’as Quitte Dans La Louisiane
12. Perrodin Two-Step
13. Cankton Waltz
14. J’ai Laisse De La Maison
15. ‘Tit Canard Mulet
16. Mamou Two-Step
17. Louisiana Two-Step
18. Parting Waltz
19. Saute Crapeau
20. La Branche Du Murier
21. Chere Meon
22. Madame Sosthene
23. Chere Tout-Toute
24. Mamou Breakdown (Perrodin Two-Step)
25. La Valse De Mauvaise Penchant (Drunkards
26. Mon Coer (Est Barre) Dans L’armoire
27. Battle Of New Orleans
28. Chere Bebe
29. Valse De L’anse Maigre (Mauvaise / Evil One)

REVIEWS

“Read was a somewhat legendary Cajun fiddler who shunned the professional circuit. His diverse influences were the Breaux family, Mayeus Lafleur, Dennis McGee, Leo Soileau, Luderin Darbone, and Bob Wills. His powerful playing and singing is front and center on the 29 selections, culled from 1979 sessions (many featuring Marc Savoy on accordion) and 1959 recordings (mostly beautiful fiddle duets with Isaac Soileau).

16 cuts are previously unissued. This is a precious collection of one of Louisiana’s premiere singers and fiddlers, featuring both hot dance music and rare, gorgeous, old-style playing. This is a `must-get’ item.”

(Kerry Blech — Victory Review)

“A Cajun fiddler with an untouchable nickname, Wallace `Cheese’ Read didn’t make the rounds of the dance halls of southwest Louisiana, preferring instead to play more informally, usually in the company of friends and relatives around the area of his hometown of Eunice. How he came to the attention of Cajun devotees was through recordings he made for both Harry Oster and Chris Strachwitz before his death in 1981. The first seventeen tracks of this marathon CD are taken from two sessions conducted by Strachwitz in 1979, and all but four featured on a previous Arhoolie release (Arhoolie LP/C 5021).

From `Bayou Pom Pom’ to `Bosco Stomp,’ the opening numbers are filled out by Jon Stelly on guitar and the gorgeous accordion work of Marc Savoy. The disappearance of the accordion after only seven tracks is certainly a disappointment, but Cheese’s perfor-mances provide ample compensation for any sense of loss. He barks, he wails, and he makes his fiddle do likewise. Mournful, joyful, or just contemplative, he plays and sings straight from the heart. Stelly and Savoy are traded for a small band for the other Strachwitz session (this one at Savoy’s legendary accordion workshop) but nothing is lost, just more of this wonderfully emotional music The other twelve tracks are taken from recordings made by Oster at various social gatherings around Eunice in the late 1950s and all are previously unissued with the exception of `Valse De L’Anse Maigre.’ Cheese is helped out here by fellow bowman Isaac Soileau (he didn’t mind playing second fiddle) and the intimacy of the sessions really comes across on these recordings, the music really draws you in. `Saute Crapeau’ is a particularly interesting track featuring duetting fiddle and harmonica. Whether you can take the entire 78 minutes all in one go is up to you but what is in no doubt is Cheese Read’s reputation as a purveyor of great old-time Cajun music. Yet another quality release from Arhoolie.”

(Nigel Tassell — Blues & Rhythm)