Laissez Le Bon Temps Rouler!
This Saturday morning celebration
of Cajun music and culture may just be the most fun you’ll
ever have before noon.
Any other day of the week you’d drive
by this nondescript red brick building without a second glance.
But on Saturday mornings, Fred’s Lounge in tiny Mamou, Louisiana
holds a powerful attraction that goes well beyond this humble bar’s
modest appearance.
That’s partly because this is widely acknowledged as the
place where Cajun music, language, and culture were reborn more
than a half-century ago. But I can tell you from personal experience
that this is about as far as you can get from a dusty historical
landmark.
On the contrary, you’ll find the Saturday morning scene at
Fred’s so full of the irrepressible joie de vivre that is
at the heart of this culture that the place is practically bursting
at the seams. And we’re talking literally here, as hundreds
of Cajun music lovers from around the world show up to party with
a live band and the grandmotherly hostess everyone simply calls
Tante Sue.
If you’ve never heard these infectious rhythms before,
you’ll
find that this is music that simply makes it hard to stand still.
Combine that with a friendly atmosphere where nobody is a stranger
and, like me, you’re liable to be pulled out onto the dance
floor no matter how loudly you protest that you “don’t
dance.”
Eventually someone in the crowd coaxes silver-haired Sue out
from behind the bar to take up the microphone. As she welcomes
everyone to her Saturday morning soiree, she raises the pint bottle
of Hot Damn! cinnamon schnapps she keeps in her well-worn belt
holster in a toast, takes a healthy swig, and launches into a plaintive
song whose Cajun French lyrics you just know must be about the
pain of unrequited love, the heartbreak of betrayal, or maybe both.
All around you the décor is pure “dive bar” in
the best sense of the phrase, highlighted by signs in the dearly-departed
Fred’s child-like scrawl beseeching patrons “Please
do not stand on the tables, chairs, cigarette machine, booths,
or jukebox.” One hand-lettered sign in particular gives an
indication of just how enthusiastic this crowd can get when it
warns “This is not a dance hall. If you get hurt dancing,
we are not responsible.”
For my money, it takes a Saturday morning at Fred’s Lounge
to truly understand the meaning of the Cajun phrase “Laissez
Le Bon Temps Rouler!”— Let the Good Times Roll. One
visit and I’m sure you’ll wholeheartedly agree.
Xtrordinary Xtra
Mamou is known as the “Cajun Music Capital of the World” and
is home to a number of nationally-known Cajun bands including Steve
Riley & The Mamou Playboys.
Xtrordinary Xtra
Mamou’s traditional “Courir de Mardi Gras” celebration—an
all-day event where masked horseback riders roam through the surrounding
countryside gathering live chickens and other contributions to
the community gumbo pot—was revived at Fred’s Lounge
in 1950.
The Facts
Name: Fred’s Lounge
Location: 420 Sixth Street, Mamou, LA;
about 90 miles west of Baton Rouge.
Phone: 337-468-5411
My Advice
- Fred's is open only on Saturdays, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The
music and the radio broadcast start about 9 a.m. The band finishes
by about 1:30 in the afternoon.
- Folks down here know how to pass a good time, which means
that you can expect to see people downing beers first thing in
the morning. No one says you have to join in, but if such behavior
offends you, well, maybe you’d be better off staying home.
- On a related note, be sure to bring a designated driver if
you plan on tossing back a few cold ones.
- To get a preview of the action at Fred’s on your way
into town, tune your radio to 1050 on the AM dial to hear the
live broadcast on KVPI in Ville Platte.
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