In Louisiana's Cajun music heritage, more prominent names than Jo-El Sonnier appeared, while artists such as Doug Kershaw carried pared-down Cajun styles into Nashville for stronger country results. Sonnier nevertheless stood apart through his fluid movement between the two genres and his singular reputation as a connector of traditions. Long established on the traditional Cajun circuit, he also topped country charts and lent his vigorous accordion to sessions by figures ranging from Bob Dylan to Steven Curtis Chapman.
Born to French-speaking sharecroppers near Rayne, Louisiana, Sonnier endured severe poverty and often worked cotton fields alongside his parents. He took up his much older brother's battered accordion at age three and soon drew notice as a Cajun prodigy. His first radio broadcast came at six on Crowley station KSIG, and recordings followed by age 11. As a teenager he became a fixture in Cajun music, issuing four albums and at least a dozen singles on regional Louisiana labels. (Some resurfaced in 2000 on the Cajun Valentino collection, whose title echoed his billing then.) Early in the 1970s he moved to California seeking wider recognition, obtained session work, and formed ties with Los Angeles music circles; a Mercury Nashville contract raised hopes of stardom. Those Mercury releases sought to cast him as a Louisiana counterpart to Freddy Fender by pairing accordion with Nashville electric bass and inserting French passages in certain tracks. Though sales remained modest at the time, the material later gained admirers and was fully reissued in 1992.
Sonnier briefly stepped away from country music, returned to Louisiana, and recorded the Grammy-nominated Cajun Life for Rounder. In the early 1980s Merle Haggard chose him as an opening act, while renewed contacts with California musicians such as Albert Lee—who helped drive Nashville's traditional-country revival in Emmylou Harris' Hot Band—prompted another Nashville effort. Signed to RCA, he released Come On Joe in 1987 amid the height of the late-1980s neo-traditionalist surge; the album placed Sonnier alongside Randy Travis on country radio after yielding two Top Ten singles, the ballad "No More One More Time" and a fierce cover of British folksinger Richard Thompson's Cajun-flavored "Tear-Stained Letter."
Sonnier joined Capitol in the early 1990s, yet the growing country preference for 1970s rock roots left him behind. Although his country career stalled, he stayed in steady demand as a Nashville session player. Appearances followed on releases by Alan Jackson and Harris, extending beyond country to Elvis Costello and Edie Brickell & New Bohemians. As a songwriter he enjoyed success when Patty Loveless and George Strait recorded his "Blue Is Not a Word," and he placed additional songs on other artists' albums through the late 1980s and early 1990s. Acting credits included roles in Mask, They All Laughed, and A Thing Called Love. Returning to pure Cajun music on Rounder, he collaborated with Beausoleil's Michael Doucet on several 1990s projects. A second Grammy nomination arrived for 1997's Cajun Pride, and he joined fellow Louisianan Eddy Raven on Cookin' Cajun. Extensive touring took him to the New Orleans Jazz Festival, the Grand Ole Opry in 1999, and venues in Europe and South America. His self-released Cajun Blood earned a third Grammy nomination, this time for the 2001 Best Traditional Folk Album category. In 2015 Sonnier claimed his first Grammy when The Legacy won Best Regional Roots Music Album. Jo-El Sonnier died on January 13, 2024, at the age of 77. ~ James Manheim
