From Bamako to Carencro

Beausoleil is the most well-known band performing music derived from the Cajun
culture of Louisiana. With flavors of jazz, blues and rock and roll, the band's cross genre
appeal and instrumental prowess have earned them fans across the roots music
world. Their debut album for Compass Records FROM BAMAKO TO CARENCRO
takes its name from the cultural connection between Bamako, in Mali, West Africa,
and Louisiana, symbolized in name by the Lafayette, LA suburb of Carencro. Featured
on the album are band members Michael Doucet (fiddle and lead vocals), David
Doucet (guitar and vocals), Billy Ware (percussion) and Tommy Alissi (drums) and
Mitchell Reed (bass and fiddle). Guests Jessie Lege (button accordion), Cory Ledet
(piano accordion), and special guest, multi-instrumentalist Don Vappe (acoustic bass,
electric bass, electric guitar, mandolin) round out the mix.
The new album includes the celebrated Cajun/Creole-rooted music the band is known
for, but also includes some notable jazz, blues and R&B elements. Standout tracks
include the Roswell Rudd composition 'Bamako', a haunting and hypnotic Michael
Doucet original entitled 'Carenco', a Cajun swing version of Coltrane's 'Bessie's
Blues' and a surprising cover of James Brown's 'I'll Go Crazy.' 'Port Arthur Two-Step'
features a duet between Michael Doucet and brother David Doucet, and band bassist
and 2nd fiddler Mitchell Reed contributes the infectious 'Creole Jig.' The album was
recorded at the legendary Dockside Studios in Maurice, LA and mixed at Compass
Sound Studio in Nashville, TN.