I was asked if I would post book reviews here by someone on both this and another site. I have nearly a dozen years worth of reviews I did for the Galveston Daily News since I first started reviewing books for them in 2006. So, I figured I would start putting up some of the early reviews. Kind of a re-review. A good book only improves with age, and the ones I post will be ones I believe need a fresh look.<\/p>\n
This week’s entry follows:<\/p>\n
By Mark Lardas
\nThe Daily News<\/p>\n
Published November 19, 2006<\/p>\n
\u201cTexas Zydeco,\u201d by Roger Wood, University of Texas Press, 2006, 336 pages, $34.95<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n In the first 20 pages of Roger Wood\u2019s book, \u201cTexas Zydeco,\u201d a reader only casually acquainted with zydeco music learns three things:<\/p>\n These are a taste of the surprises in this delightful book.<\/p>\n Wood traces zydeco from its beginnings through the present. Wood reveals that, zydeco originated in Texas.<\/p>\n Developed by job-seeking black Catholics from Louisiana who flocked to Texas refinery towns along the upper Gulf Coast in the middle of the 20th century, zydeco borrows heavily from the French culture of these Louisiana expatriates.<\/p>\n Yet Texas is as essential to zydeco as Louisiana. The accordion and French language of Louisiana were merged with the Texas fiddle and guitar to create a unique sound.<\/p>\n The rubboard \u2014 more properly, a percussion vest \u2014 is also a Texas native. Even the word \u201czydeco\u201d reveals the music\u2019s bi-state nature. It is an anglicized spelling of a French word coined by a Louisiana native then living in Houston.<\/p>\n \u201cTexas Zydeco\u201d is as much a social history of the Creole Texas as it is a history of zydeco music.<\/p>\n You learn about Houston\u2019s Frenchtown and the black communities along the \u201czydeco corridor\u201d that runs from Lafayette, La., to Houston as you learn about the music. The two are intertwined.<\/p>\n It is also a personal book. You learn about the musicians\u2019 lives and families along with their music.<\/p>\n Wood presents the development of zydeco, from the earliest trends that emerged in post-World War II Houston, through today\u2019s competing zydeco styles \u2014 from nouveau through neo-traditional. If you did not know the difference between a button accordion and a piano accordion, you might be fascinated by the competition that arises between these schools.<\/p>\n The text is lavishly accompanied with images captured by photographer James Fraher, illustrating the zydeco scene. The mood generated by the black-and-white photographs accentuates the story told by Wood. Fraher\u2019s photographs are as crisp as Wood\u2019s words.<\/p>\n \u201cTexas Zydeco\u201d could be classified as a coffee table book, but it is not superficial. It is a valuable reference for anyone serious about zydeco, and an entertaining and absorbing introduction to zydeco for those unacquainted with it.<\/p>\n Mark Lardas, an engineer, freelance writer, amateur historian and model-maker, lives in League City. His website is marklardas.com.<\/em><\/p>\n I was asked if I would post book reviews here by someone on both this and another site. I have nearly a dozen years worth of reviews I did for the Galveston Daily News since I first started reviewing books for them in 2006. So, I figured I would start putting up some of the early reviews. Kind of a re-review. A good book only improves with age, and the ones I post will be ones I believe need a fresh look.<\/p>\n This week’s entry follows:<\/p>\n By Mark Lardas Published November 19, 2006<\/p>\n \u201cTexas Zydeco,\u201d by Roger Wood, University of Texas Press, 2006, 336 pages, $34.95<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n In the first 20 pages of Roger Wood\u2019s book, \u201cTexas Zydeco,\u201d a … Continue reading \n
Book gets readers acquainted with history<\/strong><\/h2>\n
The Daily News<\/p>\n