parents and grandparents born inLouisi-
ana.Hewearsa loose-fittingblackshirtand
playswithhishead tiltedback, saucereyes
facing skyward, as if channeling the gen-
erationsofCreoleaccordionistswho came
beforehim.WhileThierry sings inFrench
andEnglish,hisband,ZydecoMagic,makes
the concretefloors tremble. Everyonewho
isnot slurping gumbo is dancing: indoors,
outdoors, young, old, black, white, Creole,
Asian,Louisianan,Californian.
It’s a rollicking, friendlyparty. It’s also
the culminationof a century-long chapter
inAmericanhistory—anepicmigrationthat
transformedthisnation’sculturallandscape.
1960 ,
Thierry’smater-
nal grandparents, LenaandHoustonPitre,
moved from tinySoileau, La., toRichmond,
Calif., justnorthofBerkeley.Theywere fol-
lowingawell-worntrailofLouisianaCreoles
seekingabetter life.
TheCreoles areaFrench-speakingpeo-
pleofAfricanancestrymixedwithvarious
otherheritages—blended “like jambalaya
or gumbo,” saysWarrenSemien, a retired
public-transit employeewho came toSan
Franciscoin1966.SpreadthroughoutSouth
Louisiana (and into East Texas), they’ve
traditionallymade a living growing rice,
sugarcaneandothercropsthatthrive inthe
steamy subtropics. Farmwork therewas
never-ending. “Theyhadaword for it: You
gotowork fromcan’ttocan’t,”saysWilbert
Lewis, an85-year-old frottoir playerwho
lives inSanFrancisco. (InhisgentleLouisi-
anaaccent,hepronouncesthephrase“cain’t
tocain’t.”)“Youcan’tseewhenyougoin.You
can’tseewhenyoucomeout.Thatwassome
harddays, I tell you. And Iwas in it since I
wasabout12yearsold.”
Lewis’more famous sister is thezydeco
accordionistQueenIdaGuillory,aGrammy
winner andNationalHeritageFellow. She,
too, remembersworking“morningtonight”
duringharvestseason. “Mydadbeingarice
farmer, heevenhad
me
ona tractor at one
point,” she says, “because themenwerebe-
ingcalled togo towar, toserve thecountry.
Weworkedveryhardon the farm.However,
weekends,wewouldgotothezydecodance.”
As Saturdayapproached,menonhorse-
back, and later in cars, would travel along
Louisiana’sruralroadsannouncingthenext
dance.Mostoftheeventstookplaceinhouses,
their livingroomsclearedoffurniture.The
Between1915
and1970,
6million
Americans
ofAfrican
descentleft
thesegregated
Southand
headedtoward
thebigcities
oftheNorth
andWest.
1.
AndreThierryandhisband, ZydecoMagic, rehearseat Thierry’shome inRichmond.
2.
ZydecoMagicperforms at JohnSeltzer’swoodshop inPaloAlto.
3.
R.C. Carrier near hishome
inCrockett.
4.
EaglesHall inAlameda.
5.
BettyLeBlancat the23Club inBrisbane.
6.
A zydecodance sponsoredby theOaklandBlackCowboyAssociationat theNoNameRanch
aboveHayward.
7.
MarkSt.Mary in theballroomof theAlamedaHotel.
AA.COM/AMERICANWAY
FEBRUARY 01, 2012
55
