"La Valse de Devillier"- Amar's Waltz

Amar "T-Frere" (Little-Brother) Devillier was born July 4th, 1909 to parents Amar Devillier Sr. and Theresa LaFleur Devillier near the town of Port Barre, Louisiana but was raised on a farm in L'Anse Maigre (Meg), a rural area between Mamou and Eunice, Louisiana. His father died when he was a young boy and times were hard for Theresa and her children. She loaded up a horse and wagon and traveled with Amar and his older siblings from Port Barre to L'Anse Maigre to be with relatives. They were poor and Amar was forced to mature at a very early age to help support the family. In his teens, he went on to marry Dula Guillory and they would later have two children, a daughter, Eura Mae ( Mrs. Houston Hebert ) and a son, Jerry. It was a rugged, difficult life for the Devillier's, especially early on and beyond The Great Depression. The family had no electricity, running water or tractor until the 1950's. Amar, a sharecropper, farmed rice and cotton. He also did work for the parish, such as using his team of horses and wagon for odd jobs when needed. He didn't own a truck until around 1949. The family grew or raised their own food and lived off wild game they caught or hunted. Amar was adept at "hand fishing"(wading in the water feeling with hands under a submerged tree stump or brush) or setting cane pole's for catfish and Loggerhead turtles. Dula worked at Lindsey Marcantel's General Merchandise store in Mamou. Amar first learned to play the accordion as a teenager from his brother-in-law Angelas Manuel, who taught him the basics and later from a young prodigy by the name of Alphonse"Bois Sec"Ardoin from the nearby farming community of  Duralde, who helped him further hone his skills. Occasionally on weekends, Amar would hitch up the horse and buggy and ride the family to their neighbor, Wallace Cheese Read's house and "passe la veille" (play music and visit). In that same era, a fellow farmer by the name of John Delafose and his family would work alongside the Devillier family on their farm. During break time it was common for John to borrow Amar's accordion and both would take turns playing old tunes. Amar, on the accordion, along with Angelas Manuel on fiddle, started out as teenagers getting paid thirty-five cents to play at many bals de maison (house dances) in the 1920's. He was considered by local music buffs as one of the original French musicians from the area. The two played their first dance hall gig at Cazo's Dance Hall in Mamou in 1925 for the sum of $2.50 each with 35 cents in tips. (Cazo's, owned by Cazo Bertrand and located on 6th street in Mamou, was noted as a notoriously rough place, as it had been closed down for over a year prior, due to a tragic shooting incident). Amar went through a set of bellows often on his accordion because there was no amplification at the time. Musicians had to play loud to be heard thus they were hard on their instruments. Amar began playing Fais Do-Do's (dance halls or public dance parties) just about every weekend in the 1930's and played more frequently throughout the 1940's, thereby greatly supplementing his income, which enabled him to eventually purchase his own property to farm. His son Jerry recalls a prominent fiddler from Eunice (Leo Soileau) picking up Amar in a car, which was a luxury for the Devilliers, and would drive to play at club outside of Cameron to earn $5 each, considered decent money back then. Several surviving family members during interviews recall that Amar had an uncle by the name of Estillie Granger, who owned an old converted school bus and was the only family member to have access to such a vehicle. Estillie would load up the bus with family members and make the long trek from L'anse Meg to the "Cajun Riviera", the nickname for a very popular regional summertime destination called Holly Beach, located on the shore of the Gulf of Mexico in Cameron Parish Louisiana, to bring and watch Amar perform to a packed house at a very popular local dance hall. The venue was known to feature many of the popular Cajun music artist of that era. The musicians that performed there usually hailed from around southwest Louisiana and the Acadiana region. He was in several bands that featured these musicians at different times, Dennis McGee, Isom Fontenot, Joseph "Cabri" Menier, Ed and Bee Deshotels, Preston Manuel, Lindsy Bellard, Cyprien Landreneau, Adam Landreneau, Roland Soileau, and young guns Eston Bellow and Harry Lafleur ( Harry and the Louisiana Aces). They played at various clubs, bars, and dance halls such as Courtableau Inn, known as the "Bloody Bucket"(Port Barre), Blue Goose (Eunice), Cazo's Dance Hall (Mamou), Club 26 (Old Crowley Rd), Snooks (Ville Platte), Dup's Lounge (Hwy 13 North of Eunice near Lakeview Park.) , Fred's Lounge (Mamou), Piersall's Dance Hall, Manuel's Bar and other type of functions as well. He and his band mates also played at the Cotton Festival (Ville Platte), Rice Festival (Crowley), Yambilee Festival (Opelousas), Mardi Gras Festival (Mamou) and Swine Festival (Basile). In early 1950, according to several media sources, Amar would head up a band for the purpose of recording a few records. They were called "The Louisiana Jambileers", which featured himself on accordion, Dennis McGee on the fiddle, Joseph "Cabri" Menier on guitar, Wallace Lafleur on vocals, Eston Bellow on triangle, and Isom Fontenot on harmonica. Cyprien Landreneau may also have been a participant. That same year they had two singles recorded and produced by George Khoury of Khoury Records under the Lyric label based in Lake Charles, LA (the actual recording was contracted out to KEUN studios in Eunice), titled "The Durald Two Step" and "The Shoe Pick Waltz". These two songs were later released in 1951. The songs are also featured on several compilation albums and are considered unique, true gems because they feature some of the earliest known Cajun music with harmonica to be recorded. They are also registered with Smithsonian Folkways, a division of the Smithsonian Institute. George Khoury apparently thought enough of this group that he tried to resurrect his Lyric label with their songs before eventually moving towards a different direction musically with the inception of the "Swamp Pop" genre, in which he heavily contributed. (Phillips "Sea of Love", Cookie & the Cupcakes "Mathilda") etc.  Author John Brovin states about Khoury Records in his book, South to Louisiana: The Music of the Cajun Bayous, "Lawrence Walker and Nathan Abshire headed a powerful lineup that included Elise Deshotel and his Louisiana Rhythmaires, Amar Devillier and the Louisiana Jambaleers, Will Kegley, Shuk Richard and his Louisiana Aces with Marie Falcon." Of additional interest according to Cajun historian and rare recordings collector Wade Falcon and researcher and author Lyle Ferbrache, they note a distinct similarity of the melody that was used by Terry Clement for his song "Diggy Liggy Lo", a song that Terry and his brothers had originally penned the lyrics and sang, to the melody similar to Amar's song "The Durald Two Step". Clement's song was recorded and released by J.B. Miller studio between late 1952-1954, a couple of years afterwards. In an interview, Clement admitted he wrote the words and borrowed the tune from an earlier song that his father liked. In 1961, Doug and Rusty Kershaw re-released their version. Doug would again release it as a solo in 1969, making the song extremely popular. The song was also covered by other acts such as Buck Owens, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, etc. According to Falcon, in an interview with Cyprien Landreneau, the song "Shoe Pick Waltz"  was over 100 years old at the time. It was probably composed by a person who lived on Bayou Choupique just North of Eunice. This particular record also holds the distinction of being the first recording and having the only single digit designation of Khourey record's Lyric's label series (#1). Things were going well for Amar and the group, as they were in high demand until a near tragic automobile accident in 1951, which caused Amar to have to step away from playing music for several years until his recovery from severe head injuries he had sustained. Members of the group went on to play with other musicians. Harry Lafleur, Cabri Menier, and Eston Bellow eventually wound up with Austin Pitre. Amar did eventually return to playing music again. From the mid to late 1960's, he competed in the solo accordion and group divisions, where he was accompanied on occasion by his son Jerry on harmonica or the triangle (often playing them simultaneously) and twin brothers Ed (fiddle) and Bee Deshotels (guitar & vocals), often finishing among the top in both categories. In 1965 at the Cotton Festival Amar garnered 1st place finishes in both the Solo Accordion Division and Group Division. From that year on for several consecutive years, his bands had 1st place finishes in at least one or more of the major festivals of the region. Amar and Dennis McGee, one of the most prominent Cajun fiddle player's of all-time, were known to have co-written songs together, most notably "La Valse de L'Anse Meg" or "La Valse Devillier".  According to Billy McGee, son of Dennis, the tune was later renamed "Kathleen's Waltz" by Sady Courville to reflect the love his daughter (Kathleen Segar) had for the song. As reported in an old newspaper article, the song was originally going to be played on the opening of the Glenn Campbell Show on national television, which featured special guests Allie Young, Dennis McGee, Sadey Courville and Billy McGee. It was changed however, because of production difficulties. Amar and his good friend Isom Fontenot were also known to have collaborated on several old classic tunes such as "The Crowley Two Step" and  "La Valse de la Misre". There was no doubt Amar was a strong accordion player, for he often competed and placed high in contest in the Acadiana region. He competed against the likes of Lawrence Walker, Ambroise Thibodeaux, Alpha Bergeron, Cyprien Landreneau, Shelby Vidrine, Tan Benoit, Alton Landreneau, Roy Fusilier, Felix Richard, Avey Brunet, among others. His head to head competitions with Walker were well known among the locals of that era. The competitions were seen as very spirited, with Lawrence Walker usually getting the nod. (This was nothing to be ashamed of since Walker is still considered an All-Time Great). Amar and his bands also played in the same circles with other bands featuring such artists as Nathan Abshire, the Breaux Bros, Jimmy C. Newman, Dudley Rozas, The Balfa Brothers, Alphonse "Bois Sec" Ardoin and Canray Fontenot, Austin Pitre, Wallace "Cheese" Read, Chuck Guillory, Alpha & Shirley Ray Bergeron, Leo Soileau, J.B. Fusilier, Maurice Berzas, Rodnis McGee, Louis Lejuene, etc.  In 1967, Amar, along with fiddle player Adam Landreneau and Paul Tate Jr. on the triangle, performed at a convention held at the famous Court of Two Sisters in New Orleans, Louisiana. Amar had a rather extensive playing career until his untimely death due to a tragic accident involving his hunting shotgun at his home in 1969, after returning from a duck hunt. In interviews with several of his relatives, they recalled that during his funeral in Mamou, people were lined up outside of Ardoin's Funeral Home waiting their turn to get in the building to pay their respects. The funeral home had to ask people to please stop sending flowers due to the lack of space to accommodate them all. It was a testament of endearment many from the community felt for him. One wonders, if Amar had lived throughout the 1970's when Cajun recordings were at a premium, would his name be mentioned along with his contemporaries. He was certainly on that path. His body of work had already been impressive. The late Cajun Hall of Fame duo fiddlers Dennis McGee and Sadey Courville would go on to dedicate an old tune in his honor by renaming it "Le Two Step a Frere Devillers" or "Devilliers Two Step". The song appears on several Top 40 all-time Cajun music recordings list. The University of Louisiana - Lafayette Dupre library has live field recordings from Ralph Rinzler of the Smithsonian Institute featuring Amar playing along with other Cajun musicians such as Leo Soileau, Isom Fontenot, Cyprien Landreneau, Ambroise Thibodeaux, Deo Langley, Bee Deshotels, Ed Deshotels, Roy Fuselier, and Jerry Devillier from Revon Reed's live radio broadcast from Fred's Lounge and also from several of the large area festivals. There is a photo hanging of Amar and his brother-in-law, Angelas Manuel, on the KVPI  Wall of Fame inside the world famous Fred's Lounge in Mamou. Amar was truly an early Cajun French music and accordion playing pioneer, both pre and post WWII. In early November, 2019 both Amar and his son Jerry,  a World Class harmonica player were inducted into the Cajun French Music Association's Lake Charles Chapter's Cajun Music Hall of Fame. This is a well deserved and long overdue acknowledgement to someone that has been somewhat overlooked throughout the history of Cajun Music. ***** I want to extend a very special thank you to the people who laid the groundwork for my research: Jerry Devillier, Writer Lisa McCauley of Bonnes Nouvelles Publication , Cajun historian and vintage record collector Wade Falcon, Author and music historian Lyle Ferbrache, Author, musician and Southwest Music historian Ron Yule, Author John Brovin's book "South to Louisiana",  Khoury Records, KEUN radio in Eunice and Cajun musician Eston Bellow. I would also like to thank the following area newspapers for the use of their microfilm archives: The Eunice News, The Opelousas Daily World, The Evangeline News of Ville Platte, Bonne Nouvelle Publication of Evangeline in Ville Platte, and the Morning Advocate of Baton Rouge. Special thanks to the C.F.M.A  Lake Charles Chapter (especially Rhonda Istre), and numerous kin folk of the Devilliers for their input, including Verona Young Johnson, Gwen Landreneau Granger and Claney Duplechen Jr., who at the behest of his father Claney Sr. (owner of Dup's Lounge) would grow up playing many drumming sessions with "T-Frere" and other notable musicians of the area around Mamou and Eunice when he was a young man.
*Dedicated to the memory of my Parents, the late Louis B and Dora Granger for instilling my Acadian/Cajun Heritage at a young age. Also, a special thanks to friends Eddie and Sharon Leblanc for their inspiration..                                                                   
. Composed by Neal P Granger

Amar and Dula Devillier




Angelas Manuel and Amar (Photo on the KVPI Wall of Fame inside Fred's Lounge in Mamou,La)
Mamou La. Mardis Gras music contest Winners 1965. Standing left to right: Deo Langley, Tan Benoit, Roy Theriot (State Comptroller) Felix Richard, Rufus Richard, Roland Soileau. Kneeling left to right: Ed Deshotels, Frere Devillier, and Jerry Devillier
Mamou Mardi Gras 1959  (Left to Right) Amar, Cheese Read(?) and Zelian Vidrine
1966 Jambilee Festival 1st Place Group Division
"T-Frere" with Linsey Bellard 1968
Cyprien Landreneau on Fiddle, Eddie Richard on guitar with Amar 1968
1965 Yambilee Festival 1st Place Group from left to right Ed Deshotels, "Frere" Devillier, Bee Deshotels, and Jerry Devillier
The KVPI Wall of Fame located inside the world famous Fred's Lounge in Mamou, Louisiana. The "Cajun Capitol of the World".


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Continued from above article.
"T-Frere" on his property in the community of L'anse Meg (Maigre), between  Mamou and Eunice, Louisiana 

Cyprien Landreneau on fiddle, Amar Devillier on accordion and Adam Landreneau on triangle.
Courtableau Inn (Bloody Bucket) once located in Port Barre, LA. 
Coz's Blue Goose once located in Eunice, LA
1967 Convention at the Court of Two Sisters in New Orleans , Louisiana. Left to right: Adam Landreneau, Amar Devillier and Paul Tate. Jr.
Music competition results from the 1965 Louisiana Cotton Festival held in Ville Platte. 1st place tie in the Accordion Solo Division and 1st place in the Group Division


CFMA Lake Charles Chapter's Cajun Music Hall Of Fame Plaque.


A very popular destination for locals and tourist located in Holly Beach, Louisiana. Four Corners Bar. Amar and his family would travel here so he could entertain. The dancehall lasted for several decades until Hurricane Rita washed it away.
Dup's Bar off Hwy 13 North of Eunice, LA. A popular dancehall and "watering hole" where Amar and many other local Cajun musicians would perform.

This picture of Amar was taken sometime near the late 1920's to early 1930's.