Ryan Brasseaux & the Lost Bayou Ramblers

I have this job that sometimes requires me to sit at the back of a lot of rooms listening quietly to people talk about things I know nothing about. Last year, I had to do that at the International Country Music Conference, which is held every year at Belmont and is worth going to for the great food and the incredible view of Nashville (which is only topped by my secret spot for watching the 4th of July fireworks). On Thursday night, folklorist Ryan Brasseaux claimed he was going to talk about a history of Cajun music. Instead, he brought with him the Lost Bayou Ramblers, a Cajun band. You have to imagine, us all shoved in one big room, most of us sitting around tables, and this friendly, dark-hard guy stands at the podium while a handful of other guys, all in their 20s, sit with instruments in hand. Brasseaux would say something about, say, the kinds of music being made in France right before the Acadians left and he'd turn to the band and they'd play us a little bit. Then a folksong from Acadian Canada, then something the Africans brought to Louisiana, and something the early Cajuns would play. And he'd always say, "Listen." Listen, listen for the smooth notes, now listen for the ways the Cajuns incorporated the syncopated rhythms they heard in the music of the slaves. Now listen for this, now listen for that. The band was incredible and you should go see them if you ever have the chance. They must have played for three or four hours without a break, one song to shake your butt to after another. But Ryan Brasseaux is kind of my hero--a person who can guide you around the things and the people he loves and make you feel both that you've been made better by the experience and that you have a stake in their continued well-being.