Ray Abshire, Cajun musician and Louisiana Folk Artist Hall of Famer, dies at age 68

Emerson "Ray" Abshire, a beloved Cajun musician and Louisiana Folk Artist Hall of Famer, has died. He was 68.

Abshire, who died unexpectedly Tuesday, was the owner and operator of Magnolia Torque and Testing, Inc., which specializes in hydraulic torquing and hydrostatic testing. 

But Abshire was probably best known as a Cajun musician who played with many artists, including the Balfa Brothers. He passed his love for music down to his two sons, Travis and Brent.

The accordion player grew up in the "dance hall era," playing in front of a couple hundred people. 

"It’s hard to find a nicer man than Ray," said Herman Fuselier, executive director at St. Landry Parish Tourist Commission and host of Zydeco Stomp on KRVS. "When Philip Gould and I were working on our dance hall book, Ray took an entire Sunday to ride us all over south Louisiana to show us places he used to play. Most of them are now empty lots, but Ray was full of stories and memories. It showed the type of guy he was, always willing to help."

Ray and the Balfa Brothers band

Abshire, who was born near Gueydan, toured the nation with the Balfas for seven years. He was invited to join the band in 1969 when health issues started to sideline his cousin, Cajun accordion great Nathan Abshire.

"I didn't know it then, but I had got an invitation to the greatest institution in the world to learn traditional Cajun music — the Balfa Brothers band," Abshire told The Daily Advertiser in 2014. "I didn't recognize that for years to come. It didn't start sinking in until after I got out of music."

Abshire was one of the last links to the Balfa Brothers, a pivotal band that greatly inspired today’s pride in Cajun music, language and culture. In 1974, he played with the Balfa Brothers during the first Tribute to Cajun Music in a stormy March afternoon.

Organizers wondered if people would actually come to hear local music that wasn’t in a club and didn’t have dancing, according to Fuselier. They were even more nervous when thunderstorms drenched the area that same day.

But the event sold out. Nearly 12,000 people packed into the Blackman Colisseum to hear 11 bands play tribute to the folk music. The festival later grew into Festivals Acadiens et Creoles. 

"When it was our turn to go and we walked out on the thing, we were like 'god dog.' No one had any idea it was going to be like that," Abshire, who was 22 at the time of the festival, said in 2014. "If it hadn't rained, they would have had to turn people away."

Recording albums

Abshire's second son was born a year after the Tribute to Cajun Music, forcing him to leave the bandstand and work in the oilfield for 18 years. In the early 1990s, Abshire heard a familiar, twin-fiddle Cajun sound played by Balfa Toujours, a band founded by Christine Balfa, daughter of Balfa Brothers great Dewey Balfa.

Abshire helped keep that Balfa tradition of acoustic accordion, fiddle and guitar alive.

He went on to teach accordion at music camps and workshops throughout the country. He was inspired to record his first album, "For Old Time Sake," which featured Balfa Toujours fiddlers Courtney Granger and Kevin Wimmer and won the Cajun French Music Association's Best First Recording Award.

In 2003, Abshire sent Granger a handwritten letter asking if he'd like to join him on his first album, as testament to how genuine and old-fashioned Abshire was.

Granger met Abshire at the Dewey Balfa Cajun and Creole Heritage Week. At first he didn't recognize Abshire, he only knew of the legendary artist through stories he had heard from his uncles, the Balfa brothers.

"He showed up at one of the days at the camp and my dad said, 'Look, it's Ray Abshire.' I immediately grabbed my fiddle and started playing," he said. "The connection was undeniable. He had such a strong connection with my family previously. We just happened to meet that day and we hadn't stopped playing since."

The two had plans to play together at next year's Mamou Courir de Mardi Gras. Granger considers Abshire family, close like brothers and admirable like a father. 

"He was just one of the best guys," Granger said. "He was very generous with his time, with everything."

Family legacy of Cajun music

Abshire's sons Travis and Brent became interested in Cajun music. In 2013, they recorded the "All Night Long" CD.

"They always listened to the music, but didn't start playing until they were in their late 20s," said Abshire in 2013. "They both went to college, then all of a sudden they started paying attention to how the Abshire family has contributed to music heritage in Louisiana."

Abshire is survived by his wife of 48 years, Peggy S. Abshire; his two sons, Travis and Brent; his mother and stepmother, two brothers and grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his father, Emerson Abshire.

Visitation will be held Friday from 1-8 p.m. with a 7 p.m. rosary at the Delhomme Funeral Home, 1011 Bertrand Drive. Visiting hours resume at 8 .m. Saturday until the 1 p.m. service. 

Contact Victoria Dodge at vdodge@theadvertiser.com or on Twitter @Victoria_Dodge.