News - #15 FEBRUARY, 1999

The Latest News... When we started this newsletter several years ago, it was because we had piles of good news, stories of great travels, all kinds of happy stuff. Through 14 issues, there are lots of fond memories. But a band is not immune to the ups and downs of life that everyone else experiences. We're all alike in that regard. We never imagined that our happy newsletter would have to report that one of us had passed away. But as most of you probably already know, Jimmy was killed on January 25th. The one comfort we've taken is the huge outpouring of response from the local and outside community. Jimmy had won the respect and admiration of so many people! Thank you all so much for your cards, e-mail and phone calls. It really helped. I have written extensively about Jimmy, his family and funeral, and posted it on our web site (www.rounder.com/mamouplayboys.html) so I won't repeat it here. However, I did want to again mention that donations are being accepted for a trust for Jimmy's nine year old daughter, Javen, which can be sent in care of Jimmy's father, Murphy Domengeaux, 210 East Bridge Street, Breaux Bridge, LA 70517. So, what do we do now? We've been asking ourselves this same question, and obviously, Jimmy would have wanted us to continue. So, we're gonna do his memory honor and keep this thing rolling. We've done a bit of rehearsing with several guys and played a few gigs with each. The idea is to keep things simple and relaxed and not make any big decisions too soon. There is no rush to find a permanent replacement. As you can see from the schedule, we have a lot of gigs and travel coming up, and with each day we're becoming more and more confident. The music will show us the way. We had a gentle few months since the last newsletter. But the gigs we had were quite fun. For instance, New Years Eve at Grant Street was a great time. The Huval Family Band opened the night with a fantastic and solid performance. There's something about a family, and that little drummer could play! By the time we started, the place was pretty cozy, especially with all those people from Catahoula (Terry and Martha from Whiskey River showed up with two big van-loads of people)! Soon the balloons were flying and the party favors were tooting. The band all shook hands and kissed our loved ones at the side of the stage (not to confuse the two). What a great way to bring in 1999. We didn't play the Prince song, by the way. We figured "Allons danser" would suffice. It was a little difficult sound-wise but we enjoyed playing the "Cajun Comic Relief" in early January at the Heymann Arts Center. And it was all for a good cause, St. Joseph's Shelter here in Lafayette. We ended up helping out another friend, Carol Rachou, Jr. up in Washington, DC who called me on a Monday asking if we could play for the Magical Mystery Krewe post-Mardi Gras Ball party that next weekend. Apparently, our friend Buckwheat Zydeco is down for a few weeks for a vocal chord operation. So, we scrambled, put our travel agent to work and figured out a way to do it. What an event! The Washington Hilton was just crawling with black-tied Louisianians. The scene in the ballroom was surreal. Talk about decking a place out! Later, Senator Breaux played a couple numbers with us on the rubboard (hey, anything to keep his mind off that trial!). His parting comment was "You guys are good." Of course there were about four other bands there from Louisiana, playing for various functions. And they were all better dressed than were we! The next day we flew over to Charleston, West Virginia and did a live taping for Mountain Stage, which airs on 118 public radio stations nationwide. The satellite feed of the edited show will be sent out February 12th, so all during Mardi Gras week, Jimmy's guitar playing will be warming places like Barrow, Alaska (actually 16 stations in Alaska will broadcast it). I have included list of the stations and times for the show below. Unfortunately, no stations in Louisiana will carry it. We had a fun time with Father Dick, Hugh and all the Cypremort Sippers Mardi Gras Krewe on January 23. The Bayview Restaurant in Cypremort Point is a cool little place. When Hugh gave us directions, he said to take the road all the way to the end, and he meant it. We also wanted to highlight what a great time we had at Whiskey River January 24th. La Bande Feu Follet, an ensemble of young players from the Lafayette area, performed during our break. They really wowed the crowd with the quality of their music. Steve is producing their record which should be out in the next couple months. Finally, we've rescheduled our Florida gigs that were postponed from late January. Skipper's in Tampa helped raise $2,000 for Jimmy's daughter, so we're especially looking forward to returning that favor. Hope to see all you Florida people then (actually we have three trips coming up in that direction). And, thanks again to all of you for your kind support! back to news