Boogie Kings

The Boogie Kings (also known as The Fabulous Boogie Kings) are an American Cajun swamp pop and blue-eyed soul group.

The band formulated in Eunice, Louisiana in 1955 consisting of teenaged members Doug Ardoin, Skip Morris, Bert Miller and Harris Miller.

In the mid-1960s, the band expanded to include Ned Theall, a trumpeter from Abbeville, who became the group's leader. Because of Theall, and his musical arrangement skills, the band changed its style of music from swamp pop, to a more successful, blue-eyed soul sound of music.

In early 1965, the band released its first self-titled album on the Jin label and recorded at Floyd Soileau's studio in Ville Platte, Louisiana. During this time, the band was provided leadership from front man Clint West (born Clinton Joseph Guillory in Ville Platte on August 11, 1938). West booked the Boogie Kings in venues outside the Evangeline Parish and Acadiana area. West's vocals on songs such as "Try Me" and "Big Blue Diamonds" provided success for the Boogie Kings. The band later separated from its front man, Clint West, who then led his own version of the Boogie Kings, called "The Fabulous Kings". West has received several Hall of Fame Honors for his musical talents. West died on June 28, 2016 at St. Landry Extended Care Hospital in Opelousas, Louisiana.

The band began to feature trumpeter G.G. Shinn on vocals, who had previously been only an occasional vocalist. By May of that year, Jerry LaCroix, (performing under the name Jerry "Count" Jackson) joined the group. Jerry and G.G. sang several numbers as a duet, a feature only rarely seen in American rhythm and blues, and probably unique in the South at that time.

A new album was quickly recorded in New Orleans at Cosimo Matassa's studio under the production of Baton Rouge's Sam Montel, which was released in the late summer of 1965. This combined with a hitherto unseen stage performance not generally seen in southern Louisiana and Southeast Texas gave the band a stature and popularity new to the region.

In the winter-spring of 1966, the band traveled to Las Vegas in an attempt to break out. Hoping that the release of a 45 rpm by Houston's Huey Meaux ("That's Blue Eyed Soul", backed with "Do 'em All", recorded at his Pasadena, Texas studio) would launch them to success, this tour was not the success hoped for. The band returned to Louisiana in June 1966.

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