I'm Here! (album)
| I'm Here! | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1982 | |||
| Genre | Zydeco | |||
| Label | Alligator | |||
| Producer | Sam Charters | |||
| Clifton Chenier chronology | ||||
| ||||
I'm Here! is an album by the American musician Clifton Chenier.[1][2] It was released in 1982 via Alligator Records.[3] Alligator licensed the album in the hope that label head Bruce Iglauer could produce the follow-up.[4] Chenier is credited with His Red Hot Louisiana Band.[5] The album was reissued in 1993.[6]
I'm Here! won a Grammy Award, in the "Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording" category.[7] It was the label's first Grammy win.[8]
Production[edit]
The album was produced by Sam Charters.[9] Recorded in Bogalusa, Louisiana, the album was completed by Chenier and his band in eight hours.[5] Chenier's brother Cleveland played the frottoir.[10] Chenier made more use of horns than on previous albums, due to his dialysis treatments weakening his accordion playing.[11]
Critical reception[edit]
Robert Christgau called I'm Here! the "first record I've ever heard hot enough to convince me that all those wild tales about the accordion man weren't so much pepper sauce."[13] The Journal News deemed it "first class zydeco," writing that Chenier "sings with more gusto and his band sounds tighter" on record.[17] The Philadelphia Inquirer praised "the funkiest accordion you'll ever hear" and labeled the disc a "prime party album."[15] The Clarion-Ledger noted Warren Ceasar's trumpet, admiring his "searing upper-register notes and triple-time tonguing" on "I'm the Zydeco Man".[18]
AllMusic wrote: "The music bumps and grooves in all the ways it's supposed to. One of the songs dates the album a bit ('Zydeco Disco'), but aside from that one, the rest of the album is pretty much straightforward zydeco and blues."[12]
Track listing[edit]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "I'm the Zydeco Man" | |
| 2. | "Dry Your Eyes" | |
| 3. | "Zydeco Disco" | |
| 4. | "I'm Here!" | |
| 5. | "The New Zydeco" | |
| 6. | "You Got Me Crying" | |
| 7. | "Going Back Home" | |
| 8. | "Eighteen Long Years" | |
| 9. | "In the Mood" | |
| 10. | "Got to Have Your Love" |
References[edit]
- ^ Pareles, Jon (23 Feb 1986). "The Grammy Awards: Mainstream and Safe". The New York Times. p. A1.
- ^ Zimmerman, David (17 Dec 1987). "Clifton Chenier put the zip in zydeco". USA Today. p. 7D.
- ^ Stashenko, Joel (12 Dec 1996). "Alligator Records has plenty of bite". Entertainment. The State Journal-Register. Associated Press. p. 19.
- ^ Van Matre, Lynn (30 Aug 1998). "Snappy Beat". Books. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
- ^ a b "Clifton Chenier Biography by Craig Harris". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ a b MusicHound Folk: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 150.
- ^ "Clifton Chenier". Recording Academy. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ The Blues Encyclopedia. Taylor & Francis. 2004. p. 20.
- ^ Tisserand, Michael (2016). The Kingdom of Zydeco. Skyhorse Publishing.
- ^ Dormon, James H., ed. (1996). Creoles of Color of the Gulf South. University of Tennessee Press. p. 139.
- ^ a b The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 120.
- ^ a b "I'm Here! Review by Adam Greenberg". AllMusic. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ a b "Clifton Chenier". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
- ^ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press.
- ^ a b Tucker, Ken (26 Nov 1982). "Albums". Pop/Rock. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 26.
- ^ The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 128.
- ^ Shepard, Eric (14 Nov 1982). "Record Reviews". The Journal News. p. G5.
- ^ Hall, Mike (28 Nov 1982). "Blues from the Bayou...". The Clarion-Ledger. p. 15H.