Queen Ida & Her Zydeco Band

"Queen Ida" Lewis Guillory (January 15, 1929) is a Louisiana Creole accordionist. Born Ida Lee Lewis to a musically talented family in Lake Charles, Louisiana, Queen Ida learned to play accordion from her mother after she spent a few years learning the piano. Her family moved to Beaumont, Texas, when she was ten and eight years later moved to San Francisco, California. Her first language is French, and wherever they went, took their Creole culture and music with them. In 1988, Queen Ida toured Japan, becoming the first zydeco artist to do so. She toured Africa the following year and in 1990 went to Australia and New Zealand. On the album Back on the Bayou (1999), Queen Ida got together on the bayou in Louisiana with her brother, Al Rapone, for a zydeco reunion. Rapone often wrote and produced for her and formed the Bon Temps Zydeco Band, which later became Queen Ida's backup group. Doubling up on accordions with her oldest son Myrick "Freeze" Guillory, they are joined by Terry Buddingh on bass, James Santiago on guitar, Bernard Anderson on saxophone, Erik Nielsen on drums, and her youngest daughter Ledra Guillory and son Ron "The Rock" Guillory on rub board and vocals. As "Queen Ida and the Bon Temps Zydeco Band," the ensemble was the musical guest on Saturday Night Live on November 23, 1985, with Paul Reubens as host. Queen Ida also co-authored a cookbook, Cookin' with Queen Ida in 1990, which featured Creole recipes. Queen Ida continued to perform live through the 2000s, and though she did not release any albums during this period, she has joined her son Myrick and his band onstage. She officially retired from playing in 2010 and lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, where she enjoys cooking for her friends and family. Selected discography 1999Back on the Bayou w/Al RaponeZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2265 1995Cookin' with Queen IdaZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2197 1995On a Saturday NightZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2172 1994Mardi GrasZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2227 1990Zydeco a La ModeZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNP 2112 1985Caught in the ActZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2181 1983In San FranciscoZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2158 1982The Queen Ida and the Bon Temps Zydeco Band on TourZydecoGNP Crescendo - GNPD 2147 1980The Bon Temps Zydeco Band & Queen Ida in New Orleans'ZydecoGNP Crescendo - 1977Uptown ZydecoZydecoGNP Crescendo 1977Zydeco a la modeZydecoGNP Crescendo 1976Play the ZydecoZydecoGNP Crescendo Awards Grammy Awards Won: 1 Nominations: 4 1980Best Ethnic or Traditional RecordingQueen Ida & the Bon Temps Zydeco Band in New OrleansZydecoNominated 1982Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk RecordingQueen Ida and the Bon Temps Zydeco Band on TourZydecoWinner Blues Music Awards Won: 4 Nominations: 6 Queen Ida Blues Music Awards History 1983Traditional Blues Female ArtistNominated 1984Traditional Blues Female ArtistNominated 1988Traditional Blues Female ArtistNominated 1989Traditional Blues Female ArtistWinner 1990Traditional Blues Female ArtistWinner 1991Traditional Blues Female ArtistNominated Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.