Richard and Barry have just spent the past 11 days in Northern California—at a black cowboy ranch, in nightclubs, at a Silicon Valley woodshop, and in many homes—listening to zydeco and interviewing Louisiana Creoles and other lovers of the music. We’re producing a radio documentary about how zydeco has sustained Creole culture in the Bay Area since the 1940s. Among those we interviewed was accordionist Andre Thierry (pictured here), the rising star in California zydeco circles.

Andre at the Woodshop. Photo by Barry Yeoman.