Rosie Ledet
Friday, April 1, Westville Pub

Rosie Ledet is known as the “Zydeco Sweetheart,” and for that reason alone, she’s leading this week’s column. How could I resist such a phrase? In “zydeco” and “sweetheart” you have two great words whose coexistence only adds to their appeal, kinda like mountain stream, Tennessee football, or free donuts. You can see the calculus at work here.

How Rosie Ledet got to be a zydeco sweetheart is an appealing story in itself: raised Mary Roszlea Bellard, Little Rosie grew up tuned into the classic rock station out of Eunice, Louisiana. Her favorite bands were Santana and Z.Z. Top, and like a lot of her peers, she didn’t waste her time with the old-time regional stuff. That all changed when she was 16 and saw local legend Boozoo Chavis play a zydeco dance. She was an instant convert, and within a year, she was married to Boozoo’s bassist, Morris Ledet. When Morris went out on the road, Rosie stayed home and practiced on an old button accordion, and before long she was up on stage; not long after, she was fronting her husband’s band, making her name as one of the few female zydeco singers on the circuit.

Since 1994’s debut album Sweet Brown Sugar, Rosie’s reviews have been all about her promise. Ten years and six albums later, they read the same: some day this gal is gonna be good. I’m not sure why she hasn’t made the leap, but listening to her latest, Now’s The Time, I came away only half-impressed. The problem, methinks, lies in rudimentary solo chops that one reviewer kindly described as “adequate.” That’s a reasonable judgment: Ledet won’t get kicked out of any clubs for her playing, but she’s not taking the accordion to great heights either. Now’s The Time certainly doesn’t have the drive of a Buckwheat Zydeco or C.J. Chenier album, and while Ledet’s button accordion isn’t as naturally fluid as the piano-style accordions that Buckwheat and C.J. use, there are plenty of button soloists who can run laps around Little Rosie.

Even so, the Zydeco Sweetheart should put on a good show. Her band is solid, ready and able to provide the good-time dance-happy groove that is central to zydeco’s appeal. You’ll hear rhythmic basslines, chicken-scratch guitar, snare-heavy drum work, the intoxicating glide of the rub board, and Ledet’s buttoned-up solos to boot. Authentic zydeco doesn’t hit town very often — and almost never in a setting as intimate as the Westville Pub. Ledet and her band should have more than enough moxie to get that joint rockin’.

The show starts at 9 pm and the cover charge is $8. Call 828.22.9782 for more info.

Shawn Camp
Friday, April 1, Grey Eagle

Nashville may not be Shawn Camp’s oyster just yet, but given the speed with which he hit the town’s A-list, it might not hurt to have the cocktail sauce handy. The son of an ironworker and a beautician, the Arkansas native moved to Nashville at age 20 to play music for a living and met with quick success. His first gig was a spot in the Osborne Brothers band, and in short order he joined the backing bands of Alan Jackson, Suzy Boguss, and Trisha Yearwood. By the time he was 24, Camp had a solo career; by the time he was 26, he had a record in the Country Top 40 (“Fallin’ Never Felt So Good”). In between steady session gigs, Camp gained acclaim as a sterling songwriter: his tunes have been cut by George Strait, Kenny Chesney, Patty Loveless, and Randy Travis, and he’s delivered #1 hits for Garth Brooks (“Two Pina Coladas”) and Brooks & Dunn (“How Long Gone”).

His first album for John Prine’s Oh Boy label, Live at the Station Inn, is a bluegrass-flavored work-up recorded over two stellar nights at Nashville’s legendary bluegrass club. The album features Bucky Baxter on dobro, Stuart Duncan on fiddle, Mike Compton on mandolin; Camp plays guitar and uses his Southern tenor to stretch out a strong batch of original tunes. It won’t be all bluegrass Friday night: Camp’s press cites his ability to “straddle bluegrass, honkytonk, folk, and roots rock” (must hurt), and there’s a good bet he’ll play some of each at the Grey Eagle.

Jeffrey Dean Foster opens. Call 828.232.5800 for ticket prices and the start time.

Also Playing in Asheville

• Todd Snider, Grey Eagle, 3/30

• Galactic, Orange Peel, 3/31

• Pat McLaughlin, Jack of the Wood, 4/1

• Edwin McCain, Orange Peel, 4/1

• Drums and Tuba, Stella Blue, 4/2

• Whitewater Bluegrass Co., Jack of the Wood, 4/2

• Jen and the Juice, Westville Pub, 4/2

Three Good Things That Have To Do With Baseball But Also Might Make Good Names For Racehorses

1. Hit-And-Run

2. Fielder’s Choice

3. Suicide Squeeze

They Said It

“There are only two seasons — winter and baseball.”

— Bill Veeck