Lynn August

about

Lynn August (born Joseph Leonard August Jr. in Lafayette, Louisiana, on 7 August 1948; died 13 February 2025) was an American zydeco accordionist, keyboard player, singer, and bandleader. Having some sight until about the age of four, August attended the Louisiana State School for the Blind in Baton Rouge, and grew up listening to zydeco music, including that of his uncle Claude Duffy, an accordion player. He began playing drums and occasionally sang with Duffy's band, and at the age of 11 played percussion with the singer Esquerita, who suggested that he learn keyboards. He performed around New Orleans for about three years with Esquerita, who encouraged him to consider a solo career, and also played drums in the early 1960s with Stanley "Buckwheat" Dural. In 1978, he was recruited to play organ in accordionist Marcel Dugas' band. Recognising the growing popularity of zydeco music, he bought an accordion and in the 1980s formed his own band, the Hot August Knights. He played recorded his first album, Zydeco Groove, in 1988. He released further albums on the Maison de Soul and Black Top labels in the early 1990s, including Creole Cruiser (1992) and Sauce Piquante (1993). A feature of his performances and recordings has been the adoption of the Creole style of "juré", with a cappella group singing, clapping and dancing, as recorded by Alan Lomax on his field recordings in the 1930s. He toured Europe in 1994. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Common

top songs

albums

▥

Sauce Piquante

Creole People

▥

Putumayo Presents: Louisiana Gumbo

▥

Louisiana Gumbo

▥

Creole Cruiser

▥

Putumayo Presents Louisiana Gumbo

The Legendary Lynn August: Then and Now

▥

From Back in the Day

▥

Lafayette Soul Show

Blues, Mistletoe, and Santa's Little Helper

▥

Cajun Heat Zydeco Beat

▥

Planet Squeezebox (Disc 2)

similar artists