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- Date Released: May 9, 2006
- Genre: International
- Style: Cajun/ Zydeco
- Label: World Village / IODA
A lament for a destroyed hometown that is torn from the soul
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We Say...
A heart can ache for a place as much as for a person, and this is Chenier's elegy for his hometown of Port Arthur, Texas, ripped apart by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. His feelings about the disaster suffuse every note on this career-changing album torn from the soul. Recording with roots rockers the Tarbox Ramblers, he doesn't completely forsake his zydeco past (how could he, when his dad was the crowned King of Zydeco?) but he does take it in a different direction on "Learning To Love," and some unlikely covers — Van Morrison's "Comfort You" reborn as a aching lullaby, and the title track, which makes the song by indie art queen P.J. Harvey into a dark country tune that sits perfectly by Hank Williams's "Lost On The River," as close as zydeco will get to goth. Shadows haunt the upbeat material, too, whether it's Chenier's own "Who's Cheatin' Who?" or covers from his father's oeuvre. This disc wears its heart proudly on its sleeve with the blood dripping for all to see.
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They Say...
Entitling an album The Desperate Kingdom of Love might be a clue that this set isn't going to be your typical C.J. Chenier zydeco house party romp, and it isn't. Chenier's Port Arthur, TX, hometown was hit hard by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and that storm and its aftermath permeates everything here, without actually filtering down into the individual songs in any specific way. There's just this muted feeling of loss and quiet desperation hanging in the air as Chenier moves through a powerful set that uses music to express what is almost impossible to express. Oh, he cuts loose on a couple of party cuts, including the infectious "Finger Lickin' Chicken" and the instrumental "Bogalusa Boogie" (which is dedicated to Gatemouth Brown, who died just days after Katrina destroyed his home in Louisiana), but most of the album is a more meditative affair, and tracks like the opener and title tune, P.J. Harvey's "The Desperate Kingdom of Love," and Van Morrison's "Comfort You," which closes things, are hardly concerned with filling a dancefloor with dancers. Recorded with minimal overdubs in Boston with the Tarbox Ramblers a month of so after Katrina hit, The Desperate Kingdom of Love is easily Chenier's most intriguing outing. He covers a pair of his father Clifton Chenier's songs, giving "Black Snake Blues" an ominous and atmospheric reading while letting "Ain't No Need in Cryin'" speak simply and directly. Perhaps the most striking track is a cover of a little-known Hank Williams' song, "Lost on the River," which is a mournful dirge that unfolds like one long breath of resignation, and yet remains oddly hopeful. It is also about as far from zydeco as one can get. But then this isn't a zydeco outing, in spite of Chenier's reputation as the festival party king. This is a modern blues album, and an admirable attempt to make music that lasts past Saturday night. You can dance your blues away, but when the song stops, the blues will most certainly slip back, and it's time, Chenier seems to be saying, to deal with that.
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| 01. |  |
The Desperate Kingdom of Love |
3:35 |
|
| 02. | |
Black Snake Blues |
4:47 |
|
| 03. | |
I've Been Good to You Baby |
3:10 |
|
| 04. | |
Learning to Live |
4:04 |
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| 05. | |
Rosemary |
3:35 |
|
| 06. | |
Lost on the River |
2:58 |
|
| 07. | |
Who's Creatin' Who? |
3:32 |
|
| 08. | |
Ain't No Need in Cryin' |
5:31 |
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| 09. | |
Finger Lickin' Chicken |
3:14 |
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| 10. | |
Bogalousa Boogie |
3:22 |
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| 11. | |
Comfort You |
4:24 |
|
11 Total Tracks, 42:12 Total Length
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Credits
- Chris Colbourn - Producer // Brad Michel - Mastering // C.J. Chenier & the Red Hot Louisiana Band - Producer // Matt Beaudoin - Engineer // Matt Beaudoin - Mixing // Matt Tahaney - Engineer // Scott McEwen - Bass (Electric) // Scott McEwen - Bass (Upright) // George Balthazar - Photography // Isabela Klaus - Design
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