Debra K. from COLLINSVILLE, MS Reviewed on 9/23/2012...
Waited for probably a year or more for this CD to become available and was worth the wait. Ordered it mostly for New Orlean's Ladies but the entire CD is great. Some of my favorite songs on it are ones I hadn't heard before. For anyone who likes this genre it's well worth it. Listen to it all the time.
CD Reviews
Overlooked gems, and others
07/10/1998
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Hailing from Louisiana bayou country as their name and album title suggests, Le Roux struggled to find an audience in the late 1970's and early 1980's.This is a shame, as the first eight tracks (from their first two out of print albums) are tasty bayou flavored rock/pop with energetic presence and terrific spirit.The lack of commercial success (the lovely "New Orleans Ladies" was a minor hit single) of the first pair of albums saw the band change their style on their next two albums (also out of print) into a less satisfying arena rock formula that was sadly coming into vogue in the early 1980's. This phase is represented on the last six tracks. Generally it is better than average arena rock (but that is faint praise), and while "Nobody Said It Was Easy" did crack the US top 20, the utterly dreadful "Carrie's Gone" virtually offsets any melodic interest this last phase of the band may have produced.Worth getting for some great songs and listening, as well as a text book case of a vain effort to find a niche in the unjust music world."
Not all of their best...but close
val | Texas | 02/22/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"For those of us in the South who loved their music, this collection simply teases us. It is too bad the origional 2 albums are not available on CD, because they were fabulous! Too bad LP's don't last forever, since mine are over 20 years old, and they sound like it. For those who love this band, this is all that is left, and this CD was wonderful. For those who remember the origional LP's, this collection falls short of representing a fabulous band with incomparable talent. We miss you Jeff Pollard."
Le Roux lives on
S. Hansen | 07/24/1998
(5 out of 5 stars)
"These songs are still being played in New Orleans, La in clubs. After all these years New Orleans Lady is still requested at the famous Pat O'Briens Piano Bar on Burbon Street. All around south Louisiana you can hear the sweet sounds on LeRoux."
Always a Bridesmaid
S. Hansen | Boston Burbs, MA | 06/25/2002
(4 out of 5 stars)
"LeRoux was and still is an excellent band. Over the past few years, almost all of their individual albums have also been released on CD. (You just have to work a bit to find them...small releases on small labels. The last unreleased on CD album, "Keep The Fire Burnin'" arrives on CD for the first time in July 2002!) For all but the most ardent fans, like myself, this compilation is the best. It's an excellent sampler of a band that spent years supporting a number of major touring acts, but never seemed to ascend to the limelight themselves. In my humble opinion, the only glaring omission from this collection is "Mystery" from the 1980 album "Up", but beyond that this is an excellent and very representative collection."
The Most Exciting Music You Will Ever Hear
hillmaner | Champaign, IL | 01/30/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a music fan with hundreds of CD from a wide range of artists, I must admit that this is my favorite album of all time, one that I never tire of playing. It's the kind of music that gets better each time you hear it. This prolific group is perhaps the most underated band ever to record on a major label. As they toured hard, dancing outside of superstardom in the late 70's and early 80's, they wrote, produced, and recorded an incredible catalog of music that ran the gamut from cajun rock, to pop, to soaring power metal/wall of sound ballads - all of it full of intelligent lyrics, melodic bass lines, crisp guitar licks, and some of the best three part harmonies ever put to tape. The musicianship is unmatched. Although Capitol and RCA have been reluctant to re-release the four original gems that are collecting dust in their vaults, you can relive the excitement with this collection, which has excellent production values, thanks to the quality of the original recordings, and Razor & Tie's great digital transfer. Further collections are available at laleroux.com. Regardless of your tastes in music, I think you will be impressed, if not amazed."