Where There's Smoke There's Fire

Where There's Smoke There's Fire
Studio album by Buckwheat Zydeco
Released	1990
Genre	Zydeco
Label	Island
Producer	David Hidalgo
Buckwheat Zydeco chronology
Taking It Home (1988) Where There's Smoke There's Fire (1990) On Track (1992)

Where There's Smoke There's Fire is an album by the American musician Buckwheat Zydeco, released in 1990.[1][2] Zydeco and his band, Ils Sont Partis, supported the album with a North American tour.[3] The album peaked at No. 140 on the Billboard 200.[4]

Production

The album was produced by David Hidalgo, who also played guitar.[5][6] Dwight Yoakam duetted with Zydeco on the cover of Hank Williams's "Hey, Good Lookin'".[7] "Beast of Burden" is a cover of the Rolling Stones song.[8] Putting aside his accordion, Zydeco played a Hammond B-3 on "Maybe I Will".[9] Steve Berlin played baritone sax on the album.[10] Hidalgo duetted on the cover of Bobby Troup's "Route 66".[11]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[12]
Calgary Herald	B[13]
Chicago Tribune	[14]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[15]
Entertainment Weekly	B+[16]
The Grove Press Guide to the Blues on CD	[17]
MusicHound Folk: The Essential Album Guide	[18]
Orlando Sentinel	[10]
The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings	[19]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[20]

The Toronto Star praised the "scalding, inventive tracks like Dural's own 'We're Having a Party', an experimental groove that levitates zydeco into the land of George Clinton psychofunk, replete with Hidalgo's sniping guitar, pop-bass and interplay of horns and accordion."[7] The Calgary Herald opined that "Buckwheat doing his own material, particularly the instrumentals, could raise the dead and get them up dancing."[13] The Gazette wrote that "Buckwheat chooses his cover songs with a beautifully blithe disregard for stylistic boundaries."[21] The Chicago Tribune noted that "Hidalgo has had plenty of experience navigating those narrow straits where traditional sounds and contemporary styles can mingle smoothly and not create a roiling mess."[14] The Orlando Sentinel deemed the title track "a rocking instrumental with a wonderful, bluesy guitar solo."[10]

AllMusic concluded that "this is superior in many ways to the music of [Clifton] Chenier ... due to its generally happier mood and quicker, more emphasized beats and basslines."[12] The Grove Press Guide to the Blues on CD called the album "fun, intelligent 'Creole blues.'"[17]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"What You Gonna Do?"
2.	"Buck's Hot Rod"
3.	"Hey, Good Lookin'"
4.	"We're Having a Party"
5.	"Beast of Burden"
6.	"Be Good or Be Gone"
7.	"Maybe I Will"
8.	"Pour Tout Quelque'un"
9.	"Where There's Smoke There's Fire"
10.	"Route 66"
11.	"It's Getting Late"

References

1. Aiges, Scott (15 June 1990). "Record Reviews: Buckwheat Zydeco". The Times-Picayune. p. LAG6.
2. Gladstone, Jim (21 July 1990). "Records: Where There's Smoke There's Fire". The Atlanta Journal. p. WL18.
3. Barr, Greg (20 Apr 1990). "Concert Gossip". Ottawa Citizen. p. E3.
4. "Buckwheat Zydeco". Billboard. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
5. Gettelman, Parry (8 June 1990). "Music". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 24.
6. Snider, Eric (2 Nov 1990). "Spicy Squeezing". Weekend. St. Petersburg Times. p. 21.
7. Potter, Mitch (18 May 1990). "Buckwheat Zydeco Where There's Smoke There's Fire". Toronto Star. p. D9.
8. Burliuk, Greg (7 July 1990). "Beyond the Polka". Magazine. The Kingston Whig-Standard. p. 1.
9. Warren, Jill (15 June 1990). "It'll Be Party Time When You Hear Zydeco". The Indianapolis Star. p. D5.
10. Gettelman, Parry (27 July 1990). "Buckwheat Zydeco, Where There's Smoke There's Fire". Calendar. Orlando Sentinel. p. 25.
11. Himes, Geoffrey (June 29, 1990). "Buckwheat Zydeco 'Where There's Smoke There's Fire'". The Washington Post.
12. "Where There's Smoke There's Fire Review by Adam Greenberg". AllMusic. Retrieved 12 September 2023.
13. Haynes, Dave (24 May 1990). "Recent Releases". Calgary Herald. p. H3.
14. Heim, Chris (5 July 1990). "Recordings". Tempo. Chicago Tribune. p. 7.
15. Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Omnibus Press.
16. Sandow, Greg (June 8, 1990). "Notable music for the week of June 8, 1990". Entertainment Weekly.
17. Hadley, Frank-John (1993). The Grove Press Guide to the Blues on CD. Grove Press. p. 33.
18. MusicHound Folk: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 105.
19. The Penguin Guide to Blues Recordings. Penguin Books. 2006. p. 87.
20. The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. pp. 94, 95.
21. Lepage, Mark (16 June 1990). "Buckwheat Zydeco Where There's Smoke There's Fire". The Gazette. p. H11.