A fixture in the Bay Area Cajun/Zydeco community since 1995, the Creole Belles have just recorded their first CD, released on April 1, 2008.
The Creole Belles bring the sounds and spirit of Cajun Louisiana to the Bay Area. With fiddle and accordion fronting the band and upright bass, rubboard and guitar providing solid rhythm, they entertain crowds with traditional, down home Cajun and Creole dance music.
Fiddler Delilah Lee Lewis went to Louisiana to study Cajun fiddle for about 3 years in the early eighties. She lived above the Savoy Music Center in Eunice and spent most of her free time visiting the homes of southwest Louisiana fiddlers including Dennis McGee, Canray Fontenot, Wade Fruge, Michael Doucet and Bebe Carriere.
Delilah returned to California where she continued to play Cajun music in various bands and with her good friend, the great Cajun accordionist Danny Poullard. In 1995, she joined with rock-solid accordionist Maureen Karpan and longtime traditional roots musicians Karen Leigh and Karen Celia Heil to bring the sounds of Creole music to Cajun and zydeco fans in the Bay Area. Since the year 2000, Andrew Carriere, the son of renowned fiddler Bebe Carriere, has added his marvelous rubboard rhythms, vocals and accordion to most of the Belles’ performances as well as their new CD.
The Belles are the house band for art openings at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art Artists Gallery in San Francisco. “Their spirited and spicy blend of acoustic Cajun music and vocals can disarm the most formidable and serious of art audiences. I have had a suspicion that some of our patrons come more to listen to their music than to see our art,” wrote Exhibitions Coordinator Steven Pon.
The Belles have enjoyed performing throughout the West, from McCurdy Pavilion in Port Townsend, Washington to Sweetwater Saloon in San Rafael, CA to the Shortgrass Festival in Cimarron, New Mexico.
"Ticklin' The Strings" by Sweet Hollywaiians
Amazing Japanese hot string band playing 1920's, 30's, 40's style hawaiian, swing, calypso, blues, italian music and originals,featuring vintage instruments.3 songs with Robert Armstrong and Tony Marcus(from Robert Crumb and His Cheap Suit Serenaders)
"The Sweet Hollywaiians have probably the best feel for this 20's music of any string band working today. They manage the rare feat of sounding relaxed even when their playing is hot, are top notch musicians with tasteful arrangements and a full, rich, warm sound.Plus, they have a nice gamut of tunes, from King Nawahi to Giovanni Vicari to Bobby Leecan. See them live, if you can, for an unforgettable experience. If you can't, buy their Cds!" ~ Terry Zwigoff
I am geauxing through mes filles categories and messaging some of their ami's and asking those of y'all that have Facebook's to follow us there, too. We have our eyes set on 100 friends today, please help us. Come over to our Facebook page at http://bit.ly/tUQnP
i Thank you for your friendship, we are happy to know each other :0) Y'all have to look us up on YouYube and see bo-Pah play drums to zydeco-out of control! We hope you have the greatest week you've ever had in your whole life! Keiko, Kariel, Mimi and bo-Pah (i drum)
Hi creole belles! SoundSafe loves you! Please make a local music profile page for yourself on soundsafe. org SoundSafe is a 501c3 non-profit working to preserve, strengthen, promote, and unite the Bay Area music community. Upload songs to our radio station, promote your shows, network, and take advantage of our educational resources for the music business. http://soundsafe. org/profiles/new See you there and Long Live Bay Area Music!
Thanks so much for the add! You have some wonderful stuff here - I especially like BERNADETTE! We're adding some Cajun sounds to our set and we attended the Dewey Balfa camp in Ville Platte this past April. I just posted a waltz (The Endless Waltz) that I wrote with Johnny accompanying me on accordion. It's in English (we don't know enough French yet) and it has a feminist theme. I thought you might be interested and I hope for some feedback from professionals like you. Thanks again for the friendship!
Online Now!
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