Nathan Abshire

Nathan Abshire (* June 27, 1913 in Gueydan, Louisiana; † 13 May 1981 in Basile, Louisiana) was an American accordion player in the Cajun music. He is one of the representatives of the Louisiana blues and swamp blues.

Life

Abshire played in his youth in dance halls and at parties. In the 1930s he played with the violinist Lionel Leleux and accordionist Amédé Ardoin. In 1935 he took six songs with the Rayne -Bo Ramblers, on a group of guitarists around the singer Leroy "Happy Fats" Leblanc. Abshire served during WWII in the U.S. Army. After the war he lived in Basile, where he performed at the Avalon Club. In 1949 he released the album " Pine Grove Blues", as well as several recordings on Swallow Records Arhoolie Records in the 1960s. He appeared with Dewey Balfa and the Balfa Brothers at the Newport Folk Festival in 1967. Together with Balfa Abshire devoted much of his time in the 1960s and 70s to promote Cajun music through performances at festivals and at universities in the United States. He died in 1981 in Basile after he had worked for a long time as a guard at the local landfill.

Movie and TV

Abshire was to be seen or heard in

• The Big Easy - The Big Easy (1986 )
• The Good Times Are Killing Me ( 1975) ( TV)

Discography (selection)

• Pine Grove Blues, album, 1949

• Nathan Abshire - The Great Cajun Accordionist
• Nathan Abshire & The Pinegrove Boys