Top 10 Albums of 2025: Big Daddy

If you listen to enough new releases in a year, coming up with a Best Of list is always a daunting task with the tsunami of recordings to consider. Some years, it seems splitting an atom would be easier.

I prefer to go by emotion – having an unforgettable, deeper, heartfelt connection to a particular recording than fretting if it’s thumbs up by the alleged hip-and-groovy cognoscenti. That said, I am still knocked out by The Tribute to Clifton Chenier on the venerable micro Valcour Records imprint outside Eunice, LA. Co-produced by Los Lobos’ Steve Berlin and Valcour’s brainchild, the ridiculously talented Joel Savoy, it features such galaxy all-stars as The Rolling Stones, Taj Mahal, Berlin’s Los Lobos bandmate David Hidalgo, Charley Crocket, Molly Tuttle, Steve Earle and others all paying homage to the King of Zydeco. Unerring support is provided by the South Louisiana greats of this generation, Chenier’s son CJ Chenier, Keith Frank, Roddie Romero, Curley Taylor, Steve Riley, Roddie Romero, Eric Adcock, and many, many more. Clifton Chenier took the Creole “La La” rural house dance music of his roots and mixed it with outside influences like blues, swing, R&B, and jazz, transforming it into Zydeco that’s craved by devotees worldwide. On the hundredth anniversary of Chenier’s birth, there couldn’t be a more fitting tribute.

The posthumously released Les Traces de Mon Boghei by Creole traditionalist/accordionist Joe Hall also made my list. The burly powerhouse accordionist was a staunch proponent of the older Creole music Chenier came from, mixing it with modern Zydeco and a little Cajun to sound contemporary. Unfortunately, Hall died tragically the week before Thanksgiving 2024, but his band manager, Mark Palms, vowed to finish the long overdue record while battling cancer and recovering from the grueling treatments. Palms managed to bring this recording to life, but passed away three months later in May. Hall’s band was the envy of many, with Creole fiddler Cedric Watson and former Beau Jocque bassist Chuck Bush. He played the KGNU-CFCZ Mardi Gras twice, in 2014 and 2024. Les Traces de Mon Boghei finds Hall at the top of his game.
Of my non-Louisiana selections, Tom Hambridge’s Down the Hatch shows why he is one of the Blues’ prolific songsmiths with all originals. He wrote material for Buddy Guy’s last few albums and songs sprinkled in on Joe Bonamassa’s latest release Breakthrough where the focus is more on the songwriting than fiery solos. Besides Blues, Hambridge also covers two-steppin’ honky tonk country and Chucky Berry-influenced rock-n-roll.