It was 1983 when 18 year old Terrance Simien graduated from Lawtell High School in St. Landry Parish near Opelousas, LA. Two years earlier he had already started his first band, Terrance Simien and the Mallet Playboys, performing in the rural dancehalls and church halls of Louisiana and east Texas.
He already had a solid music foundation from playing trumpet in the school band from age 9 until he graduated high school in 1983. He was often called upon to sing the Black national anthem, Lift Every Voice and Sing for high school assemblies. At age 14 he taught himself how to play accordion by listening to zydeco music on the only black radio show, hosted by Luke Collins who programmed all soul and zydeco.
Of course he could not have done any of this without the full support of his extraordinary parents, the late Matthew and Ethel Rene Simien. They saw his talent when he was young and knew he would work hard to have a successful career. He did just that – and as much for them as he did for himself and his band. They were so proud of his accomplishments, as they were of all four of their children, who were all successful in their careers.
Simien also celebrates his current band mates for their critical contributions to the success of this group, and for making it feel so effortless. He also reflects on and acknowledges all the other massively talented artists who joined him on stage and studio over the years: Mitch Marine, Popp Esprite, Chubby Carrier, the late Sherman Robertson, Dowell Davis and Russ Broussard to name a few. Our FOH sound engineer, the late Richard Trahan. They all brought something unique and wonderful to the sound and always made the journey interesting and fun. And did we mention the booking gents and attorneys, labels, distributors and publicists we’ve worked with over the years? And the music writers, radio programmers and DJ’s? They all made a difference in the outcome and their contributions were critical to our success.
1990 was one of the most pivotal years in Simien’s career when Danny Williams agreed to join the band on a trial run to see if it was a good fit. It was, and Danny became a must loved, valued and permanent member of this musical family. He became the groups’ trusted band leader, Terrance’s co-writer and co-producer. Thankfully, 33 years later, they are still together making music and making plans for the future.
40 years of touring the world, recording GRAMMY award wining music and far surpassing the “10,000 hours” of practice to achieve mastery, (or in this case 10,000 performances) has informed who Simien has become as an artist and as a man. All year long we’ll be celebrating this milestone with all of you, too because YOU were with us every step of the way and we could not have done it without you!