Coco Robicheaux
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Coco Robicheaux is an American musician and artist, born Curtis John Arceneaux, 25 October 1947, Ascension Parish, Louisiana, USA. Arceneaux took his nom de guerre from a Louisiana legend in which a naughty child called Coco Robicheaux is abducted by a werewolf.
Coco Robicheaux, the son of Choctaw and Cajun parents, spent his early years between his native swamplands of rural Ascension Parish, Louisiana, and the French countryside. Forming his first band at 13, by age 15 he was playing New Orleans' famed Bourbon Street and signing his first record contract with the Mississippi J.B. Label in 1965. During the height of the San Francisco hippie era, he worked with the Haight Ashbury Free Clinic and Bill Graham's Rock Medicine, then became a "rolling stone", traveling across the country to South Padre, Key West, and finally returning to New Orleans.
Coco joined with Orleans Records in 1994 and released the highly acclaimed "Spiritland". In 1998, "Louisiana Medicine Man" was awarded 'Best Blues Album by a Louisiana Artist' by Offbeat Magazine. He received three Big Easy Entertainment Awards' nominations, including Best Blues Artist, the following year. In 2005, Mr. Robicheaux created his own label, Spiritland Records, and released 'Yeah, U Rite!'.
Coco Robicheaux has performed at every New Orleans French Quarter Festival since 1995, for eleven New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festivals, and was featured in the Montreal and Nice Jazz Festivals. In addition to his New Orleans gigs, Coco has faithfully delivered his mojo soul in California, Colorado, Texas, Florida, New York, South Carolina, Australia, Germany, and all across France.
Coco is known for his stage presence and story-telling mastery, and has several stints in the acting world, from "Good Times San Francisco" to George Lucas' "More American Graffiti", and commercials for Popeye's Chicken to indie horror movies and voice overs for the House of Blues.
New Orleans is home for Coco Robicheaux, and he is devoted to the city and its heritage. He contributed to N. O. Musicians' Clinic's fund raising project by performing gratis and donating "Louisiana Medicine Man" to the 'Get You a Healin' CD. The Legendary Tipitina's showcases his artwork, a bronze bust of Professor Longhair, which was created with much love, hundreds pennies collected from friends, and a little help from the Spirit.
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[edit] Discography
- Spiritland (Orleans 1994)
- Louisiana Medicine Man (Orleans 1998)
- Hoodoo Party (Orleans 2000)
- Yeah, U Rite! (Spiritland 2005)
- Like I Said, Yeah, U Rite! (Spiritland 2008)
[edit] External links
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[edit] Press
Hoodoo bluesman Coco Robicheaux typically keeps a big bottle of Tabasco nearby while on stage. The cayenne heat and his ever-present cigars contribute to a raspy, haunting vocal style that's perfectly suited to his mystical lyricism. His Friday night shows at the Apple Barrel are the stuff of under-the-radar legend, gigs where he's joined musical soul mate Dave Easley, arguably the greatest pedal steel player the world doesn't know. In 2005, Robicheaux released the self-produced album Yeah, U Rite, featuring Easley plus a huge cast of local players including Michael Sklar, Jerry Embree and Irene Sage. -Gambit Best of New Orleans-Gambit Weekly
CD REVIEWS
Yeah, U Rite! (He can) do the swamp thing with so much passion...one of the blues' best living songwriters still has something to say...-Offbeat Magazine
Fantasy riff aside, Yeah, U Rite! straddles several lines to excellent effect while remaining true to its Southern rural blues and Cajun/zydeco sensibilities….As the album builds, it becomes a meandering mélange of gris-gris, hard blues, gospel, and Cajun, with a shot-glass of Stax and North Mississippi thrown in. -Michael Cala, Blues Review
Hoodoo Party ...a recording that shakes the booty as well as the mind, touching the listener's body parts as deeply as Coco's soulful singing, writing and playing can reach.-David Kunian, Offbeat
New Orleans party music at its best. Offbeat Magazine's choice for Best Bluesman of 1998 plays his guitar with typical verve, while his gritty vocals tell the story of the blues on self-penned tunes…these practitioners of the musical arts have cast a spell on the listener that captures the seductive allure of a dark and mysterious night in the city of New Orleans. -Rose of Sharon Witmer, All Music Guide
Louisiana Medicine Man Coco Robicheaux has created a moody, memorable, and sometimes mysterious disk, one that evokes a strong sense of place and presents clear artistic vision... Louisiana Medicine Man will have swamp water dripping from your speakers. Tom Townsley, Blues Revue
[**ROOSTER PICK**] ...stone cold blues, gris-gris, cottonmouth swamp, sweet love, Treme stomp (with the Pinstripe Brass Band) and a little something spiritual. Good medicine.-Blues Access
For my money, Louisiana Medicine Man is an even fuller, more entrancing effort than Robicheaux's stellar 1994 release Spiritland. Robicheaux has another terrific batch of songs on this outing, and his intense growl of a voice has never sounded more compelling. Cottonmouth is simply a devastating Louisiana-inspired song, riding on a spooky bayou groove and Robicheaux's dead-on desperate vocal about a man on the run in the swamps. 3:33 Blues is a similarly haunting 12-bar odyssey, a late-night tale of dreams and unrequited love. The title track closes the CD, and sums up the musical and personal vision of New Orleans' coolest hoodoo bluesman. -Scott Jordan, Bluesworthy/Offbeat
Spiritland
Coco Robicheaux has created a moody, memorable, and sometimes mysterious disk, one that evokes a strong sense of place and presents clear artistic vision...Louisiana Medicine Man will have swamp water dripping from your speakers. Tom Townsley, Blues Revue
Spiritland. If this place could be located geographically, you'd probably find it in the low bayou land of southern Louisiana, in the former swamps back o' town in New Orleans or out in the steamy river parishes where the mosses hang from the trees and the mist rises from the land and the water. –MasterDigital
[edit] Fan comments:
This cd is a pleasure to drive with, dance with, and have friends to your house. Hats off to Coco, you've given me your New Orleans to take home." rizabiz, NY
When ever I play this in my car all my passengers want a copy, it speaks to all sorts of people. ...have some fun and listen to music that will fill your belly, put a smile on your face and yet make your heart cry. You will fall in love with Coco. CarrieJ, DC
That voice, that deep voice... This is really something stunning. Album after album, we can get more of it, and yet it seems to be always more deep and quite vibrant. I would call Coco Robicheaux The Voice Of New Orleans, who could deny that? Have a try, listen to it right now, and get caught. Jean-Yves
I met him in New Orleans, I took his music to Europe, I can´t wait to see him again live - but this new CD helps a lot to fill the waiting time. This Music comes from the bottom of a great musician´s soul, this music is New Orleans, this music makes you feel and smell the swamps and this music comes directly from Coco Robicheaux´s Spiritland. Get it, listen to it and you´ll understand.-Beate
This one is so New Orleans, you can smell the Mississippi river - taste the catfish - and feel the swampy steamy breeze. Do your self a favor and take a trip in the ole bayooooohhh - Coco is the perfect guide.-Eugenia
