Writer Ben Sandmel was the final drummer and manager of the Hackberry Ramblers. Today, he wrote: Guitarist, singer and emcee Glen Croker, the last surviving old-time member of the Hackberry Ramblers, passed away on August 23 in Lake Charles, Louisiana at age 77 following a lengthy illness. Born in Lake Charles in 1934, Croker began [...]
Tag Archives: Hackberry Ramblers
Obituary: Luderin Darbone (1913-2008)
January 1, 2009 – 12:01 am
[The Lost Bayou Ramblers performed a number of tributes to the Hackberry Ramblers including one at this year’s Jazz Fest. These turned out to be the last gigs for the Hackberry Ramblers’ fiddle player, Luderin Darbone, who passed away November 21 in Sulphur, Louisiana. The Lost Bayou Ramblers’ drummer Chris Courville remembers those dates.] At [...]
Dr. Michael White an NEA Heritage Fellow
May 22, 2008 – 7:30 am
Yesterday, traditional jazz clarinetist and educator Dr. Michael White was awarded an NEA Heritage Fellowship. He is the eighth Louisianan to receive this recognition since 2000. In 2001, Boozoo Chavis was named a Heritage Fellow. In 2003, the honor went to Luderin Darbonne and Edwin Duhon of the Hackberry Ramblers, then in 2005, BeauSoleil’s Michael Doucet and Creole [...]
Grammys: The Jethro Tull Effect
February 1, 2008 – 12:01 am
The first-ever Grammy Award for best Cajun/zydeco album brought out quite the field of nominees—not just the standard five, but thanks to a three-way tie for the last slot, a Louisiana lucky seven: Terrance Simien, Geno Delafose, the Pine Leaf Boys, the Racines, Roddie Romero and the Hub City All-Stars, the Lost Bayou Ramblers and [...]
The Hackberry Ramblers: Fest Focus
May 1, 1993 – 12:01 am
Luderin Darbone and Edwin Duhon still remember the night in 1934 when the Hackberry Ramblers went electric. The problem until that time, explains Darbone, the 80-year-old fiddler and co-founder of the group, was that string bands like the Ramblers couldn’t be heard in crowded Louisiana dance halls—not the way accordion-based Cajun bands could. “With our [...]
