The cover of this album suggests an earlier, though I'm not sure if it was exactly a more innocent, time. The band hail from Louisiana, as does Yvette Landry, and in fact both albums share band members. While Landry's album is rooted in county, The Revelers play a mix of cajun music with dollops of swing, zydeco, Tex-Mex, and r'n'b thrown for good measure. The recipe is for dancing, but the album is aimed at the head and heart as well as the feet and is just as suitable for the honky-tonk floor.
The head will appreciate the excellent playing while the heart will respond to songs like If You ain’t Got Love. The songs are a mix of traditional given the band make-over and a smattering of original songs sung in English and French as appropriate. Chas Justus, one of the five singers, gives his Blues Take a Holiday a hillbilly twist that will make you smile and the sentiment is universal. He is joined in The Revelers by Daniel Coolik, Glenn Fields, Blake Miller and Eric Prey plus a trio of guests who add to the fiddle and accordion led sound.
The five members of The Revelers have wide resumes that include playing with the Red Stick Ramblers and The Pine Leaf Boys amongst others. Theyare seasoned players who add much spice to their playing. This is an album made with a sense of joy that is apparent in the end result with thirteen songs that are full of life and an energy which bursts out in a contagious fashion. The closing song, enhanced by sax, expresses a sentiment that many will endorse on certain occasions; I Don't wanna Go Home. It brings to an end an album that has nothing to do with chart placing or radio play (but it deserves both), no this is about having a good time on both sides of the stage.
Stephen Rapid