NORWICH – For the second consecutive week, local residents will have the opportunity to enjoy some world-class music as part of the Chenango County Blues Festival Summer Concert Series, this time in the form of zydeco legend C.J. Chenier and his Red Hot Louisiana Band.

Bringing his unique blend of funky, bluesy and traditional zydeco to the stage, Chenier is no stranger to Norwich, and has long been considered a local and regional favorite, said Chenango Blues Festival Board of Directors President Eric Larsen, who first saw the band perform on the Chenango County Council of the Arts stage nearly two decades ago.

“They’re one of the premier zydeco bands in the country,” said Larsen. “He’s a great showman, it’s a great show and it’s going to be fun to watch. He’s an entertainer.”

The son of one of zydeco’s founding fathers, the Grammy Award-winning “King of Zydeco” Clifton Chenier, C.J. began performing on saxophone with his father and his Red Hot Louisiana Band in 1978. Following his father’s death in 1987 he took up the reins, and the accordion, and began to blend the traditional Cajun sounds of the zydeco ensemble with more modern influences, from the funk of James Brown and Funkadelic to the jazz of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, a mix that has garnered rave reviews.

“Zydeco is always a lot of fun and it gets people up and moving,” said Larsen, who added “locally and regionally people don’t often get a chance to see this kind of performance.”