Blues & Creole Night

The elevator at The Ark is out of service while technicians make repairs. Attendees for this show will need to be able to walk up and down the stairs to the second floor of The Ark where the show takes place.

One of the brightest young talents to emerge in Cajun, Creole and Zydeco music over the last decade, Cedric Watson is a four-time Grammy-nominated fiddler, singer, accordionist & songwriter with seemingly unlimited potential. Originally from San Felipe, TX (population 868), Cedric made his first appearance at the age of 19 at the Zydeco Jam at The Big Easy in Houston, TX. Just two years later, he moved to south Louisiana, quickly immersing himself in French music and language. Cedric has performed French music in 17 countries and on 7 full-length albums with various groups, including the Pine Leaf Boys, Corey Ledet, Les Amis Creole with Ed Poullard and J.B. Adams, and with his own group, Bijou Creole. Cedric’s music resurrects the ancient sounds of the French and Spanish contra dance and bourré alongside the spiritual rhythms of the Congo tribes of West Africa, who were sold as slaves in the Caribbean and Louisiana by the French and Spanish. 

Rev. Robert Jones, Sr. has been a professional musician for more than forty years. The legendary blues man, Willie Dixon encouraged him to bring his music into schools over 35 years ago, and The National Blues Foundation recognized his work as a leading blues educator in 2007. An award-winning multi-instrumentalist, he is accomplished on guitar, harmonica, mandolin, banjo, fiddle and ukulele. Robert is the former host of the award-winning radio programs “Blues from the Lowlands” and “Deep River” broadcast on Detroit Public Radio’s WDET-FM Detroit. He has taught music history courses at Wayne State University in Detroit, and he serves as a member of the affiliate faculty at Boston’s Berklee School of Music.

Dedicated to the traditional sounds of Southwest Louisiana, Creole du Nord delivers a lively Cajun & Zydeco groove featuring fiddle, accordion and a rockin’ rhythm section “pour les bonne temps.” Bandleader Mark Palms traced his family roots to Breaux Bridge and now brings the uplifting spirit of Louisiana to the northern great lakes with Michigan’s finest; Billy King (gtr), Walter Prettyman (fid), Carol Palms (bass) & Pete Siers (drums).  After learning from some of Louisiana’s best… such as Joe Hall, Steve Riley, Blake Miller, Jesse Lege, Ray Abshire, Walter Mouton and more, Mark and the band Creole du Nord have been playing festivals, dances, and clubs across Michigan and the midwest.

Tonight’s show is sponsored by Blue LLama Jazz Club