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Alligator Stomp: Cajun ChristmasCajun music is the irrepressible sound indigenous to Southwestern Louisiana, bleeding into Southeast Texas. Like country music, it is based on European folk music - French to be precise, by way of Canada. Rhino Records' Alligator Stomp: Cajun Christmas (1992) chronicles the holiday heritage of the genre and, in many ways, it's a fine compilation. It's a surefire way to spice up your Christmas gumbo but, in other ways, it is curiously out-of-step with Rhino's usual high pedigree.

First off, I will admit I am not the best guy to review Alligator Stomp. Why? Simply put, I am not a huge fan of Cajun and zydeco music. I'm an American and, within our borders, I have reasonably catholic tastes. I love most of our homegrown music - rock, blues, country, and jazz foremost among them. But, the closer you get to true folk music, and the farther you drift from American shores, the less likely I am to hang with you. And, Cajun music is true folk music. Further, it's based as much on French (or French Canadian) traditions as American. Hell, a lot of it is sung in French, and that's a barrier for my monolingual, ugly American self. Certainly, I recognize the cultural significance of Cajun music, and I can hear the joy, passion, and pain it conveys - even if I can't understand the words. But, everyone has their lane, and Cajun music isn't in mine.

It's All French To Me

So, why are we here? Mainly, it's because Alligator Stomp: Cajun Christmas is part of Rhino's monumental series of Christmas compilations that surveyed the length and breadth (if not the depth) of holiday music in the 20th century (read more). Over the course of more than 20 compact discs, Rhino documented country, jazz, blues, doo wop, reggae, punk, new wave, swing, Latin, and more. Alligator Stomp: Cajun Christmas was one of the many stops on that long, fulfilling journey. Significantly, it is also the fourth volume in Rhino's five-volume series, Alligator Stomp: Cajun & Zydeco Classics. As an amateur music historian, I bought the whole thing, and it served a valuable role in my musical education - even if I didn't get a lot of visceral enjoyment out of it.

I'll give you two good examples of my quandary on Alligator Stomp, Camey Doucet's "What Christmas Means To Me" (1978) and Johnnie Allan's "It's Christmastime In Louisiana" (1987), both of which (titles notwithstanding) are sung in French. The former is filled with the fiddles and accordion requisite to Cajun music - plus a healthy dose of steel guitar - and it sets a wonderful, yet yearning, mood. Much the same can be said of the latter, though it strikes a more celebratory tone. But, I have no idea what either man is singing about.

Alligator Stomp: Cajun ChristmasI fare better with highly regarded accordionist and vocalist Belton Richard's Cajun rendering of two holiday classics, "Blue Christmas" and "Please Come Home For Christmas." Again, it's all French to me, but the tunes are both familiar and beloved. Another highlight is "Bonne Année" (or "Happy New Year"), an original song by Michael Doucet, leader of popular Cajun modernists Beausoleil. That group's updated reading of Doucet's composition "Christmas Bayou" also stands out, and it is easily the most modern-sounding track on the album - closer to rock music than Cajun, and it's got English lyrics. I should note, however, that it bears a suspicious resemblance to the 1970 Byrds song "Lover Of The Bayou"...

The rest of the album - including multiple songs by Cajun Gold and the Jambalaya Cajun Band - is enjoyable, but it consists mostly of Cajun treatments of traditional carols. Some are sung in English, some are sung in French, and some are instrumentals. But, none are terribly remarkable. In their review of Alligator Stomp, the All Music Guide said, "Do not buy this CD if you hate accordions, fiddles, or having a good time," and I agree. It's a great party album, and it's steeped in Cajun traditions. But, to paraphrase a wise man from Tupelo, Mississippi, it don't move me none.

Complaint Department

All that said, I have two specific complaints. The first is curatorial. Most of the aforementioned Rhino compact discs cast a very wide net, gathering as many as 20 tracks from as many different sources, often spanning decades. Unique among them, Alligator Stomp covers just 14 years of music from a genre dating back to the 18th century, and it is drawn from just a handful of sources - I can only assume because Cajun and zydeco Christmas music is a fairly rare bird. All the same, 15 of the 17 tracks on Alligator Stomp were licensed from just one label, Swallow Records, a prolific Louisiana imprint founded in the late 1950's. And, all of those originated on just four albums: Michael Doucet's Christmas Bayou (1986), the Jambalaya Cajun Band's Joyeux Noël (1992), and two vinyl compilations, Merry Cajun Christmas Vol. 1 (1978) and Merry Cajun Christmas Vol. 2 (1987), later reissued as a single compact disc. Moreover, the two tracks not licensed from Swallow are new Beausoleil recordings of songs Doucet previously recorded on Christmas Bayou - a Swallow release.

My second complaint arises as a result of that narrow focus. Unlike the rest of the Alligator Stomp series, Cajun Christmas focuses exclusively on Cajun music - no zydeco whatsoever. As Cajun music's first cousin, zydeco shares its French Canadian lineage while folding in blues of African origin. For me, at least, that makes zydeco more attractive - and its presence is sorely missed.

The bottom line? If you love Cajun music, Alligator Stomp: Cajun Christmas is an essential purchase - at least if you don't already own those four Swallow albums. And, Cajun Christmas is part of the historic Rhino CD series that should be the cornerstone of any comprehensive Christmas collection. That it fails to measure up to the standards of that series is a problem - no matter my personal preferences. [top of page]

Albums Albums

SongsEssential Songs

  • Blue Christmas (Belton Richard, 1978)
  • Bonne Année (Michael Doucet, 1986)
  • Christmas Bayou (Beausoleil, 1992)
  • It's Christmastime In Louisiana (Johnnie Allan, 1987)
  • Please Come Home For Christmas (Belton Richard, 1978)
  • What Christmas Means To Me (Camey Doucet, 1978)

Further ListeningFurther Listening

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