Clifton Chenier, known as the “King of Zydeco,” was born in Opelousas, Louisiana. His father, a musician, sparked his interest in music and taught him the basics of the accordion. Chenier later mastered the harmonica, organ, and piano. He was also influenced by his uncle, Morris Chenier, and early zydeco pioneer Clarence “Bon Ton” Garlow. Although he worked on a farm as a child, by 1942 he and his brother Cleveland were playing in Clarence Garlow’s band in Lake Charles. Chenier moved to Port Arthur in 1946 to work on the labor gang at the Gulf Refinery, where he frequently played accordion for coworkers during lunch breaks.

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The first frottoir—or metal rubboard—was created for Clifton and Cleveland by Cajun metal craftsman Willie Landry, who worked with them at the refinery. According to legend, Cleveland sketched the instrument in the dirt, and Landry fashioned it exactly as requested. The rubboard became a defining feature of zydeco music, and Landry’s son continues making them today. As Clifton’s lunchtime performances began earning more in tips than his refinery job paid, he left the labor gang to pursue music full-time.

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From 1947 to 1954, Chenier worked various jobs outside music while continuing to perform on weekends. During this period, he formed the Hot Sizzling Band and toured the Cajun and zydeco circuits in Port Arthur, Beaumont, Houston, and Lake Charles. His recording career began in 1954 when he signed with Elko Records and released “Clifton’s Cajun Blues,” followed by early hits such as “Ay ’Tite Fille (Hey, Little Girl)” and “Bopping the Rock.” Chenier toured extensively with the Zydeco Ramblers and also appeared with Clarence Garlow under the billing “Two Crazy Frenchmen.” By 1956, he was recording for the Argo label in Los Angeles. Throughout the 1960s, he remained a fixture at Houston clubs and zydeco venues across East Texas, Louisiana, and Florida.

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Chenier’s national breakthrough came in April 1966 at the Berkeley Blues Festival, where San Francisco Chronicle jazz critic Ralph J. Gleason praised him as “one of the most surprising musicians I have heard in some time.” He was the first artist ever to perform at Antone’s in Austin and reached a broader audience on the premiere season of Austin City Limits in 1976. He returned to the show in 1979 with his Red Hot Louisiana Band. Over the following decades, Chenier continued to appear in clubs, on television, and at major festivals including the Ozark Mountain Folk Fair, the Montreux Rock Festival, and the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, helping introduce zydeco to new audiences worldwide. To thousands of fans, Clifton Chenier was zydeco personified.

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Chenier earned a Grammy Award in 1983 for his album I’m Here, becoming only the second Louisiana Creole—after Queen Ida—to receive the honor. After his death, his son C.J. Chenier carried on the zydeco tradition and began touring with the Red Hot Louisiana Band in 1987. Chenier’s influence extends far beyond the Gulf Coast; Paul Simon, John Mellencamp, Zachary Richard, Rory Gallagher, and Phish have all cited him as an inspiration. Clifton Chenier was posthumously inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame in 1989 and is also honored in the Museum of the Gulf Coast Music Hall of Fame.