CALENDAR OF FLORIDA DANCE EVENTS
Your Source for Cajun-Zydeco Dancing in Florida
Welcome to FloridaCajunZydeco, a website dedicated to people who love to dance to Louisiana-style music. This site features a calendar page of Cajun and Zydeco dance bands and events in the state of Florida (below), and a Festivals page of major Cajun and Zydeco events anywhere in the United States -- even Louisiana! Check out my blog on page 3 for stories from my monthly news magazine, Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!, and select posts from our Facebook group page, Florida Cajun Zydeco Dancers. And in the spirit of the dance community that embraces this joyful music, "If you're smiling, you're doing it right!"
Saturday, April 6, 2025 --- Max Hatt and Edda Glass Bossa Nova / Jazz (Gulfport, FL)
Backyard concert in Gulfport, FL. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., concert at 7 p.m. Website: maxhatteddaglass.com for music samples. Suggested donation: $10-$15 Contact enroy@yahoo.com or call 404-822-4327 for information.
April 11–13, 2025 --- Tampa Bay Blues Festival (St. Petersburg, FL)
Tab Benoit, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Taj Farrant, Ronnie Baker Brooks, North Mississippi Allstars, JJ Grey & Mofro, Walter Trout, Curtis Salgado, Ruthie Foster, Selwyn Birchwood, Anna Popovic, DK Harrell, Joanne Shaw Taylor, and Siera Green. Website: tampabaybluesfest.com
Friday, April 18, 2025 --- Evening of Storytelling with Walt Belcher & Friends (Gulfport, FL)
Backyard concert in Gulfport, FL. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., show at 7 p.m. Website: maxhatteddaglass.com for music samples. Suggested donation: $10-$15
About Walt Belcher: “After 35 years as a newspaper reporter and columnist, I started a different kind of storytelling. I now serve on the board of the Florida Storytelling Association. I host a monthly storytelling open mic in Safety Harbor. Fla. I have told personal stories at The Moth and the Florida Storytelling Festival. I also serve on the board of the Suncoast Storytellers Inc. of St. Petersburg. I have told at the Stone Soup Storytelling Festival in South Carolina, the Cumberland Falls Storytelling Festival in Kentucky (Liars Contest Winner). My stories of Bone Mizell have been turned in an amusing book available on Amazon.” Contact enroy@yahoo.com or call 404-822-4327 for information.
April 25–27, 2025 --- Pensacola Crawfish Festival (Pensacola, FL)
The day most zydeco dancers will want to attend is Sunday, April 27 — Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble (noon to 2 p.m.), followed by Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band (2:30 to 5 p.m.). $5 admission per day. Main Music Stage in Fountain Park. Additional information: fiestapensacola.org/crawfish-festival
This website will be shut down permanently on July 1, 2025.
Welcome to FloridaCajunZydeco, a website dedicated to people who love to dance to Louisiana-style music. This site features a calendar page of Cajun and Zydeco dance bands and events in the state of Florida (below), and a Festivals page of major Cajun and Zydeco events anywhere in the United States -- even Louisiana! Check out my blog on page 3 for stories from my monthly news magazine, Florida Cajun Zydeco Update!, and select posts from our Facebook group page, Florida Cajun Zydeco Dancers. And in the spirit of the dance community that embraces this joyful music, "If you're smiling, you're doing it right!"
Saturday, April 6, 2025 --- Max Hatt and Edda Glass Bossa Nova / Jazz (Gulfport, FL)
Backyard concert in Gulfport, FL. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., concert at 7 p.m. Website: maxhatteddaglass.com for music samples. Suggested donation: $10-$15 Contact enroy@yahoo.com or call 404-822-4327 for information.
April 11–13, 2025 --- Tampa Bay Blues Festival (St. Petersburg, FL)
Tab Benoit, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, Taj Farrant, Ronnie Baker Brooks, North Mississippi Allstars, JJ Grey & Mofro, Walter Trout, Curtis Salgado, Ruthie Foster, Selwyn Birchwood, Anna Popovic, DK Harrell, Joanne Shaw Taylor, and Siera Green. Website: tampabaybluesfest.com
Friday, April 18, 2025 --- Evening of Storytelling with Walt Belcher & Friends (Gulfport, FL)
Backyard concert in Gulfport, FL. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., show at 7 p.m. Website: maxhatteddaglass.com for music samples. Suggested donation: $10-$15
About Walt Belcher: “After 35 years as a newspaper reporter and columnist, I started a different kind of storytelling. I now serve on the board of the Florida Storytelling Association. I host a monthly storytelling open mic in Safety Harbor. Fla. I have told personal stories at The Moth and the Florida Storytelling Festival. I also serve on the board of the Suncoast Storytellers Inc. of St. Petersburg. I have told at the Stone Soup Storytelling Festival in South Carolina, the Cumberland Falls Storytelling Festival in Kentucky (Liars Contest Winner). My stories of Bone Mizell have been turned in an amusing book available on Amazon.” Contact enroy@yahoo.com or call 404-822-4327 for information.
April 25–27, 2025 --- Pensacola Crawfish Festival (Pensacola, FL)
The day most zydeco dancers will want to attend is Sunday, April 27 — Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble (noon to 2 p.m.), followed by Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band (2:30 to 5 p.m.). $5 admission per day. Main Music Stage in Fountain Park. Additional information: fiestapensacola.org/crawfish-festival
This website will be shut down permanently on July 1, 2025.
Festivals in Louiisiana, Florida and Connecticut; archived articles from 2018-2019 OffBeat Magazine, the New Orleans music paper that closed its doors in 2024; Adventures in Vinyl: George Lewis and music critic Al Rose; Paul Thorn featured on cover of Blues Blast Magazine'; Two Robots Talk about robots flattening our culture in a podcast; and Festival-O-Rama.
Excerpt: “Steve [Riley] was the producer of our first two records. He had a huge part in my musical development at a young age. To me, [Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys] made it okay to be creative in Cajun music. They wrote their own material but it wasn’t writing songs that recycled the same, old motifs. They were writing songs that mattered. They made albums like rock bands did. All the songs went together and told a story. Nobody ever did that in Cajun music before. I don’t think I was aware of that at the time but I’ve always gravitated towards their music.” — Chris Stafford of Feufollet, 2018
Excerpt: “Steve [Riley] was the producer of our first two records. He had a huge part in my musical development at a young age. To me, [Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys] made it okay to be creative in Cajun music. They wrote their own material but it wasn’t writing songs that recycled the same, old motifs. They were writing songs that mattered. They made albums like rock bands did. All the songs went together and told a story. Nobody ever did that in Cajun music before. I don’t think I was aware of that at the time but I’ve always gravitated towards their music.” — Chris Stafford of Feufollet, 2018
Feature: Clarence White and his string-bender guitar. Stories: Gulfport Swamp Opera performs Mar. 4; Mardi Gras in Dunedin on Mar. 4; Acadiana mourns the passing of Sidney Williams, Lynn August and Goldman Thibodeaux; Lynn August— a blind man’s life in music; Adventures in Vinyl: Clarence White and his string-bender guitar; Suwannee Spring Reunion Mr. 20-23; Festival-O-Rama.
Excerpt: “When I first saw footage of Clarence, he was so cool. He was like James Dean cool. It was really beautiful to watch him play. It was like poetry,” said Stuart.
Excerpt: “When I first saw footage of Clarence, he was so cool. He was like James Dean cool. It was really beautiful to watch him play. It was like poetry,” said Stuart.
Feature: Mardi Gras 2025
Chubby Carrier and Bayou Swamp Band in Florida Feb. 15, 2025; Fresno's Sounds of Mardi Gras Festival runs Feb. 13-16 featuring Tom Rigney and Flambeau; Mardi Gras festivities in Florida and SW Louisiana; Anya Burgess Sola Violins featuring in Lafayette news; Book Review of Alan Lomax: The Man Who Recorded the World; Adventures in Vinyl: Jack Teagarden, King of Blues Trombone box set; Festival-O-Rama listings for 2025.
Excerpt: “Musicologist, archivist, anthropologist, political activist, singer, author, DJ, photographer, talent scout, filmmaker, concert and recording producer, television host — Alan Lomax was one of the most remarkable figures of the twentieth century, a man whose striking achievements in so many different areas of culture merited a front-page obituary in the New York Times.”
Chubby Carrier and Bayou Swamp Band in Florida Feb. 15, 2025; Fresno's Sounds of Mardi Gras Festival runs Feb. 13-16 featuring Tom Rigney and Flambeau; Mardi Gras festivities in Florida and SW Louisiana; Anya Burgess Sola Violins featuring in Lafayette news; Book Review of Alan Lomax: The Man Who Recorded the World; Adventures in Vinyl: Jack Teagarden, King of Blues Trombone box set; Festival-O-Rama listings for 2025.
Excerpt: “Musicologist, archivist, anthropologist, political activist, singer, author, DJ, photographer, talent scout, filmmaker, concert and recording producer, television host — Alan Lomax was one of the most remarkable figures of the twentieth century, a man whose striking achievements in so many different areas of culture merited a front-page obituary in the New York Times.”
Feature story: Hurricanes, Music Festivals and Baseball, Oh My!
Also, Orange Blossom Opry "Blues and Brews" series; Florida Winter Music Festival will be Nov. 7-10 at former Sertoma Youth Ranch (renamed Florida Sand Music Ranch); Getting Funky and a list of funky zydeco tunes; Festival-O-Rama.
Excerpt: “Life can deal some harsh blows, but music is there to restore the soul."
Also, Orange Blossom Opry "Blues and Brews" series; Florida Winter Music Festival will be Nov. 7-10 at former Sertoma Youth Ranch (renamed Florida Sand Music Ranch); Getting Funky and a list of funky zydeco tunes; Festival-O-Rama.
Excerpt: “Life can deal some harsh blows, but music is there to restore the soul."
Stories include: Revisiting the Boozoo Chavis Songbook; Rosie Ledet — Zydeco Sweetheart; Wayne Toups — Back to the Bayou; Muddy Waters — The Art of a Masterful Blues Recording.
Excerpt: “People started telling me, ‘Boy, you act different when you’re on stage.’ And I just started thinking about it, and I realized that it’s like, nobody can bother you when you’re on stage — you’re just somewhere else. You can do whatever you want. You’re safe.” — Rosie Ledet
Excerpt: “So, I bought a pint of Seagram’s 7 for $1.35 and gave it to him. After a while it loosened him up and the whole group began meshing really well,” added Eddie. “We were just about at the 2:47 of elapsed time [recording “Paper in My Shoe”] preferred as the ideal cut-off point by juke box operators when I heard this horrible crashing on the other side of the partition which separated the control room from the studio itself. When I peered around, there was Boozoo on his back and on the floor still playing without skipping a beat even after falling off his stool,” claimed Eddie Shuler. [Eddie Shuler, owner of Goldband Records, commenting on the first recording session with Boozoo Chavis]
Excerpt: “Ever since I heard The Eagles Unplugged (album) I had an idea that one day, with those electrifying, high-energy shows that we put on, to break it down with an acoustic bass and acoustic guitar,” said Toups. “It would represent the songs in a different, more subtle way. It would show a different side.” — Wayne Toups
Excerpt: “An interesting result of Waters’ recording process on Folk Singer is how it allows us to hear blues music differently than we were used to. Until now, electric blues records were (usually accidentally) claustrophobic in their sound palette. The distorted harmonica would melt into the over-driven sound of the vocal track. A blues record was like a burning car — it wasn’t made up of different pieces that come together to create a whole, but was instead a flaming amalgamation of sound that couldn’t be broken down to constituent pieces. Much like the early acoustic 78-r.p.m. blues records that were recorded poorly and full of surface noise, the indecipherability of the sound provided mystery. On Folk Singer, Chess Records suddenly started acting as if they were a jazz label like Verve, providing space between the instruments, where the room is a virtual instrument. For better or worse, the blues sounded `respectable’ on Folk Singer.” — Tom Ryan
Excerpt: “People started telling me, ‘Boy, you act different when you’re on stage.’ And I just started thinking about it, and I realized that it’s like, nobody can bother you when you’re on stage — you’re just somewhere else. You can do whatever you want. You’re safe.” — Rosie Ledet
Excerpt: “So, I bought a pint of Seagram’s 7 for $1.35 and gave it to him. After a while it loosened him up and the whole group began meshing really well,” added Eddie. “We were just about at the 2:47 of elapsed time [recording “Paper in My Shoe”] preferred as the ideal cut-off point by juke box operators when I heard this horrible crashing on the other side of the partition which separated the control room from the studio itself. When I peered around, there was Boozoo on his back and on the floor still playing without skipping a beat even after falling off his stool,” claimed Eddie Shuler. [Eddie Shuler, owner of Goldband Records, commenting on the first recording session with Boozoo Chavis]
Excerpt: “Ever since I heard The Eagles Unplugged (album) I had an idea that one day, with those electrifying, high-energy shows that we put on, to break it down with an acoustic bass and acoustic guitar,” said Toups. “It would represent the songs in a different, more subtle way. It would show a different side.” — Wayne Toups
Excerpt: “An interesting result of Waters’ recording process on Folk Singer is how it allows us to hear blues music differently than we were used to. Until now, electric blues records were (usually accidentally) claustrophobic in their sound palette. The distorted harmonica would melt into the over-driven sound of the vocal track. A blues record was like a burning car — it wasn’t made up of different pieces that come together to create a whole, but was instead a flaming amalgamation of sound that couldn’t be broken down to constituent pieces. Much like the early acoustic 78-r.p.m. blues records that were recorded poorly and full of surface noise, the indecipherability of the sound provided mystery. On Folk Singer, Chess Records suddenly started acting as if they were a jazz label like Verve, providing space between the instruments, where the room is a virtual instrument. For better or worse, the blues sounded `respectable’ on Folk Singer.” — Tom Ryan
Stories include: The Making of the first recording of Cajun music connects with the present; Terrance Simien finds a world connected by music; Son of Greatness: C.J. Chenier; Old Crow Medicine Show to headline Suwannee Roots Revival (the band's story connects with Doc Watson, Bob Dylan, Marty Stuart, Darius Rucker, and just about everybody in bluegrass music); RCA’s Dynaflex vinyl records of the 1970s; and Festival-O-Rama.
Fernest Arceneaux: Prince of Zydeco; A blind man's life in music: a story about Lynn August; Philosophy of Modern Song, a review of a Bob Dylan book; Why bluegrass music has a home in Florida.
Excerpt: “Bobby Osborne’s daredevil vocal swoops, sustained notes, and the drive of the twin banjos with lightning runs combined to make something so staggeringly propulsive it would most likely make Yngwie Malmsteen scratch his head. This is speed metal without the embarrassment of Spandex and junior high school devil worship.”
Excerpt: “Bobby Osborne’s daredevil vocal swoops, sustained notes, and the drive of the twin banjos with lightning runs combined to make something so staggeringly propulsive it would most likely make Yngwie Malmsteen scratch his head. This is speed metal without the embarrassment of Spandex and junior high school devil worship.”
Happy birthday, Chubby Carrier! Story on Chubby Carrier and his career. Story on Suwannee Roots Revival Oct. 10-13, 2024. Feature stories on two artists performing at Suwannee Roots Revival. Also, "Vinyl Adventure" with the 1962 release The Lonely Bull by Herb Alpert, the first release on the new A&M Records label.
Excerpt: “I reminisce all the time about watching my grandfather and my daddy make this wonderful music when I knew they couldn’t read or write,” he said. “But they played this music from their heart and soul, working in the bean fields, picking cotton and singing the blues away.” — Chubby Carrier
Excerpt: “I reminisce all the time about watching my grandfather and my daddy make this wonderful music when I knew they couldn’t read or write,” he said. “But they played this music from their heart and soul, working in the bean fields, picking cotton and singing the blues away.” — Chubby Carrier