For those also interested in Cajun culture and language, the above link is a great new site with a lot of interesting tidbits.

Thanks Bryan, I am always on the lookout for more information of that type.

By the way, are you related at all to Amanda LaFleur? I have her book, "Tonnerre Mes Chiens", which is very good. I used to correspond with her now and then on matters of Cajun French. It turns out that she went to the same college that my mother and grandfather attended - it is Middlebury College in Vermont. My grandfather is from an old Vermont family, and I lived there for many years myself.

I keep wondering when Amanda and her co-authors are going to complete their new Cajun French dictionary. I recall that Albert Valdman is one of the co-authors, and he was much involved with the creation of the Dictionary of Louisiana Creole. That book is *very* expensive, but it is also very well done. I was hoping that the Cajun French dictionary they were working on would be just as good. The one by Father Daigle is good, but there is a need for a better one. It has been many years since I heard anything about this project. I guess it has either been hopelessly delayed or abandoned all together?

Anyway, thanks again for the tip on the web site.

-David

Though we are from the same general area, we are not closely related, if at all. She is a big city girl (Ville Platte.

She is also supposed to be working on a free online Cajun course. I always send her unusual (slangy) words I come across when I am home.

Indeed this is a great site. I wrote to the author to congratulate him and he wrote me back after visiting my web page :

"Gérard:
Merci pour tes compliments payé en regard de mon site internet.

Ta musique est très Cajinne.
J'crois quand même que les mots que tu emploies et les thèmes sont pas pour moi.

Il y a beaucoup de sujets qu'une personne pourrait employer et mettre en musique pour édifier
tes auditeurs.

J'connais que les Cajuns ont des vilaine paroles dans leurs discours, mais j'm'accorde pas avec eux.

C'est pas pour mépriser, Gérard, que j'offre mes sentiments, seulement. Mes grand-parents sont pas
regardé avec des actes comme t'as chanté dans la chanson "La queue du Chat." Ça semble pareil dans
les thèmes des autres chanson presenté sur ton site.

Mes sentiments sont guidé par ceux-ci, "Qi'il ne sorte de votre bouche aucune vilaine parole; n'en ayez
que de bonnes, propres à édifier, si besoin est, et à faire du bien à ceux qui les entendent." (La Bible)

Encore, merci et je te souhaite une bonne avenir
James Léger"

Well... Mr Leger is doing a great job and sure is a very nice man... but... My songs are just "Pure Francadian Songs" (a brand new tradition !!!

Nathan Abshire recorded "La Banane à N'onc Adam" and Sidney Brown recorded "La Pistache à Tante Nana...

Shall we start playing and singing biblical texts in French ?
What do you think, mates ?

Gérard! Ton lien numéro trois travaille pas.-neal

T'as oublié ça Gérard ? : "On dit dedans la Bible, le temps après finir, oh le temps, le temps après finir. Allons se mettre à genoux et dire nos prières, allons se metre à genoux...". Ouais, par le vieux Nathan aussi

Christian

The site is indeed interesting, although many of the words are standard french, and not specifically cajun.
Another thing that is interesting about the site is that it shows how many people are interested in their culture and the language. It is a language capable of expressing the most nuanced emotions and human situations but traditional music despite all it's spirit doesn't usually offer a model for involved contemporary songwriting.
When I listen to a song like Paul Daigle's "La Lumiere Dans Ton Chassis", or Zachary Richard's "Je Peux Pas M'Empecher" that tells a good story and speaks obout the emotionally complex relationships that people are living today.
I wonder who other people think are the best Cajun songs/songwriters?