Harry Choates - fiddle & vocals
Johnnie Mae Smirle [Manuel] - piano
Joe Manuel - banjo
B.D. Williams - bass
Eddie Pursley - guitar
Ron Ray 'Pee Wee' Lyons or Julius “Papa Cairo” Lamperez - steel guitar
'Harry Choates was an American Cajun music fiddler. Choates's place of birth is disputed. He moved to Port Arthur, Texas in the 1930s, and received little schooling, instead spending time in local bars listening to music on the jukebox. By age 12 he started playing fiddle for spare change in barbershops. He gained early professional experience playing in the bands of Leo Soileau and Leroy LeBlanc, then split off to form his own group called the Melody Boys in 1946. His 1946 song 'Jole Blond', a top 10 hit for Choates, was recorded by country singer Moon Mullican and became a major hit.
Harry Choates was not only one of the most influential musicians in the history of Cajun music, but one of its most tragic figures. A wild and imaginative fiddler, Choates wrote such classic tunes as the Cajun national anthem 'Jole Blon,' & popularized such songs as 'Allons à Lafayette.' Recording for Gold Star, DeLuxe, D.O.T., Allied, Cajun Classics, Macy's, and Humming Bird, Choates introduced Western swing, blues, jazz & country music to the two-steps and waltzes of southwest Louisiana's bayous, influencing nearly every Cajun musician who followed in his footsteps.
Like Hank Williams, Choates balanced his musical talents with painful struggle in his real life. An acute alcoholic, he sold the rights to 'Jole Blon' for $100 and a bottle of whiskey. His habit of missing concerts led him to be blacklisted by the musicians union in San Antonio and resulted in his band breaking up. His death was equally tragic. Failing to make support payments of $20 a week for his son and daughter following his divorce, he was jailed by a judge who found him in contempt of court. After three days of forced withdrawal, he began beating his head against the cell bars and fell into a coma. He died a few days later on July 17, 1951, 6 months before his 30th birthday :(
a tragically short life of trouble for a boy with a broken heart. here go Harry's finest shellac sides for the Gold Star label, recorded betwixt 1946 - 49. included as a bonus is the aforementioned 'Jole Blond'. 320 tanx to brother Ambrose Bierce of We Love Music fame for the blistering bits & booklet. r.i.p. Harry Choates
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