~From Green Man Review:
"The Savoy Family Band is one of those bands in the background of Cajun music. They don't have the exposure, the international tours, the lengthy discographies of a BeauSoleil or Mamou Playboys. But they're one of the key players in Cajun music and culture just the same, both on their home ground of southwestern Louisiana and throughout the music scene. Both Marc and Ann Savoy have been instrumental (pun intended) in the revival of the music and culture, through making and supporting music and musicians -- Marc makes and sells instruments, particularly accordions, and Ann collects and publishes music. They play in the BeauSoleil side project Savoy-Doucet Band, and Ann has produced two Cajun outreach CDs in recent years -- the all-star Cajun music tribute Evangeline Made in 2002 and a duet CD with Linda Ronstadt, Adieu False Heart, in 2006.
So, a CD of this sort is probably the best way to hear the Savoy Family Band, outside of seeing them at a concert or dance. It was recorded live at the Rhythm Roots Festival in Rhode Island. The recording quality is top-notch, obviously professionally done but retaining the immediate quality of a live performance.
The band normally consists of Marc on accordion, Ann on guitar and most vocals, with sons Joel on fiddle and Wilson on piano. Joining them for this gig and greatly upping the rhythmic intensity on drums, is Steve Riley -- frontman of the Mamou Playboys and a cousin of Marc's. Piano is a relatively rare instrument to encounter in a Cajun band, in my admittedly limited experience, but I can see where it would greatly increase a band's danceability. Otherwise, this is a very stripped-down and traditional sounding ensemble.
This nine-song set includes lots of standards you'll be familiar with if you've heard much Cajun music, including "Blues de Bosco," "Bosco Stomp" and "Le Flames d'Enfer." Their "Blues de Bosco" is sung by one of the Savoy sons, partly in English and partly in Cajun French, and has a lively boogie-style swing thanks to that piano. The other Savoy son, Wilson, sings "Flames" in a gruff, raspy baritone.
They also do some more modern fare, including a song written by Marc in the 1960s called "She Made Me Lose My Mind," which he confesses is a French translation of Bobby Bare's "Miller's Cave." They also play Marc's "Vagabond Special," a hot two-step that opened Ann's Evangeline Made project, and Marc and sons crank out a short, ragtime tune they call "Cheese Cloth" while Ann is replacing a broken string, before finishing with the poignant "Last Waltz."
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