Mama, I'll Be Long Gone : The Complete Recordings of Amede Ardoin, 1929-1934

This two-CD set is the definitive compilation of the recordings of the zydeco pioneer, containing all 34 of his recordings from 1929 to 1934. Actually, the majority of them were billed to both Amédé Ardoin and fiddler Dennis McGee, though Ardoin was the solo artist for some of the tracks. Remastered from the original 78s of three collectors, there's still some unavoidable surface noise and other imperfections, but the sound is as good as it's likely to get with the technology available at the time of this 2010 release. The less specialized music fan might be better off hearing a track, or a few tracks, by Ardoin on a compilation rather than his entire output, as the similarity of the songs might prove daunting all at once. Nonetheless, the soulfulness of his voice and playing cuts through the age of the source material, with appreciative liner notes summarizing what relatively little is known about his life (as well as including the one known picture of Ardoin).