ZYDECO BLANCO
Leif Oines
listening to the cajun & zydeco shows of Leo
Perron and Rick Reid on KNON, an eclectic
community radio station in Dallas, TX. Soon he
found his way to the music festivals of southwest
Louisiana--Zydeco ground zero. At one such
festival, among the booths that sold cracklin's
and pork steak sandwiches, was a booth that
sold cheap toy accordions. Leif bought one,
brought it home, and began learning the music he
had heard at the festival. Leif learned songs by
Boozoo Chavis, Willis Prudomme, and Morris
Ledet--songs that he still plays with Zydeco
Blanco today. Because Leif had so much fun with
his toy accordion, Leif's girlfriend (now his wife),
bought him his first real accordion for Christmas.
With a brand new accordion and a growing circle
of friends that loved Louisiana music and culture,
Leif started his first Zydeco band--Zydeco Faux
Pas. Zydeco Faux Pas made a big splash around
Dallas, but Leif and his new wife wanted to move
to Austin, TX, and the band couldn't follow.
Leif missed Austin by about fifty miles and landed
in the the Blanco River Valley of the Texas Hill
Country. But Leif also missed Dallas and was
unwilling to give up the most fun he had ever
had in his life. Leif kept his eye open for an
opportunity to start another Zydeco band. His
friends in the community kept telling him about a
six-and-a-half-foot-tall cajun that lived in the
valley named Harvey Trahan. When they finally
met, Leif knew it was, once again, time to strike
up the band!
