C. C. Adcock (born Charles Clinton Adcock, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and

blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre, genre and form of rock music, rock and blues music that relies on the chords/scales and instrumental improvisation of blues. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electri ...

musician, noted for his

cajun The Cajuns (; French: ''les Cadjins'' or ''les Cadiens'' ), also known as Louisiana ''Acadians'' (French: ''les Acadiens''), are a Louisiana French ethnicity mainly found in the US state of Louisiana and surrounding Gulf Coast states. Whi ...

zydeco Zydeco ( ; ) is a music genre that was created in rural Southwest Louisiana by French speaking, Afro-Americans of Creole heritage. It blends African and Caribbean rhythms, blues and rhythm and blues with music indigenous to the Louisiana ...

electric blues Electric blues is blues music distinguished by the use of electric amplification for musical instruments. The guitar was the first instrument to be popularly amplified and used by early pioneers T-Bone Walker in the late 1930s and John Lee Ho ...

and

swamp pop Swamp pop is a music genre indigenous to the Acadiana region of south Louisiana and an adjoining section of southeast Texas. Created in the 1950s by young Cajuns and Creoles, it combines New Orleans–style rhythm and blues, Country music, countr ...

-influenced sound and for his efforts to preserve and promote swamp pop music. He is also a Grammy-nominated music producer and film and TV composer.

Biography

Adcock was first signed to

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in Jamaica by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in 1959, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, another ...

at the age of 22 by noted record producer and A&R man

Denny Cordell Dennis Cordell-Lavarack (1 August 1943 – 18 February 1995), known as Denny Cordell, was an English record producer. He is notable for his mid-1960s and early 1970s productions of hit singles for The Moody Blues, Leon Russell, The Move, Proc ...

, who also produced Adcock's debut album. The two met when they were both working at a Hollywood soundstage in Lafayette, Louisiana. Adcock has worked with Academy-Award-winning composer and record producer

Jack Nitzsche Bernard Alfred "Jack" Nitzsche ( '; April 22, 1937 – August 25, 2000) was an American musician, arranger, songwriter, composer, and record producer. He came to prominence in the early 1960s as the right-hand-man of producer Phil Spector, a ...

, and he has produced his own recordings as well as the work of artists including

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter. He was the lead singer and lyricist of the rock band Led Zeppelin from its founding in 1968 until their breakup in 1980. Since then, he has had a successful solo ca ...

Florence + The Machine Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

Nick Cave Nicholas Edward Cave (born 22 September 1957) is an Australian musician, writer, and actor who fronts the rock band Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Known for his baritone voice, Cave's music is characterised by emotional intensity, a wide variety ...

and

Neko Case Neko Richelle Case ( ; born September 8, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and member of the Canadian indie rock group the New Pornographers. Case's singing voice has been described by contemporaries and critics as a "flamethrower", "a pow ...

, Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys and

Doyle Bramhall Doyle Bramhall Sr. (February 17, 1949 – November 12, 2011) was an American blues singer, guitarist and drummer with deep roots in the Austin, Texas music scene. Career Bramhall joined The Chessmen with Jimmie Vaughan while in high schoo ...

. He has also worked as a composer and music supervisor for motion pictures and television shows, including Academy Award-winning director William Friedkin's '' Killer Joe'', ''

30 Beats ''30 Beats'' is a 2012 romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Alexis Lloyd. It stars Ingeborga Dapkunaite, Jason Day, Vahina Giocante, Paz de la Huerta, Justin Kirk, Ben Levin, Lee Pace, Condola Rashad, Thomas Sadoski, and Jennifer ...

'' and ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–200 ...

''. He writes, records and tours with his band The Lafayette Marquis as well as swamp pop supergroup Lil' Band O' Gold. He has performed and toured with

Bo Diddley Ellas Otha Bates (December 30, 1928 – June 2, 2008), known professionally as Bo Diddley, was an American guitarist and singer who played a key role in the transition from the blues to rock and roll. He influenced many artists, including Buddy ...

Buckwheat Zydeco Stanley Dural Jr. (November 14, 1947 – September 24, 2016), better known by his stage name Buckwheat Zydeco, was an American accordionist and zydeco musician. He was one of the few zydeco artists to achieve mainstream success. His music gro ...

, as well as alongside his mentor, Lafayette, Louisiana guitarist

Paul "Lil' Buck" Sinegal Paul Alton "Lil' Buck" Sinegal (January 14, 1944 – June 10, 2019) was an American blues and zydeco guitarist and singer. Early years Paul Alton Senegal was born in Lafayette, Louisiana. According to researchers Bob Eagle and Eric LeBlanc, the ...

in Cowboy Stew Blues Revue. His music and productions have also been prominently featured in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

television shows ''

True Blood ''True Blood'' is an American fantasy Horror fiction, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series produced and created by Alan Ball (screenwriter), Alan Ball. It is based on ''The Southern Vampire Mysteries'', a series of novels ...

'' and '' Treme''.

Recording artist

Adcock has recorded two solo albums: the self-titled ''C. C. Adcock'' (produced by

Tarka Cordell Tarka Clay Cordell-Lavarack (28 July 1966 – 28 April 2008) was an English musician, writer, record producer, and model. The son of record producer Denny Cordell, Cordell was born in Westminster, Greater London, and was educated at Harrow School ...

), issued in 1994 on the

Island An island or isle is a piece of land, distinct from a continent, completely surrounded by water. There are continental islands, which were formed by being split from a continent by plate tectonics, and oceanic islands, which have never been ...

label, mixed at

Chris Blackwell Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell OJ (born 22 June 1937) is a Jamaican-British former record producer and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll Hall ...

Compass Point Studios Compass Point Studios was a music recording studio in the Bahamas, founded in 1977 by Chris Blackwell, the owner of Island Records. The concept of the studio was of a recording facility supported by in-house sets of artists, musicians, producers ...

Terry Manning Terry Don Manning (December 29, 1947 – March 25, 2025) was an American recording engineer, record producer, musician and photographer. In a career spanning more than 50 years, he worked with Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams, ZZ Top, the ...

, and reissued in 2000 on the Evangeline label under the title ''House Rocker''; and ''Lafayette Marquis'', issued in 2004 on the

Yep Roc Yep Roc Records is an American independent record label based in Hillsborough, North Carolina, and owned by Redeye Distribution. Since 1997, the label has released albums from North Carolina and international artists, including Fountains of Wayne ...

label. Adcock is also a co-founder of the south Louisiana supergroup Lil' Band O' Gold, which also includes swamp pop pioneer

Warren Storm Warren Storm (né Schexnider; February 18, 1937 – September 7, 2021) was an American drummer and vocalist, known as a pioneer of the musical genre swamp pop; a combination of rhythm and blues, country and western, and Cajun music and black Cr ...

on drums,

accordion Accordions (from 19th-century German language, German ', from '—"musical chord, concord of sounds") are a family of box-shaped musical instruments of the bellows-driven free reed aerophone type (producing sound as air flows past a Reed (mou ...

ist Steve Riley, pianist David Egan and saxophonist Dickie Landry. Together, they have released three albums: their eponymous debut on

Shanachie Records Shanachie Records is an American, New Jersey–based record label, founded in 1975 by Richard Nevins and Dan Collins. The label is named for the Gaelic word '' seanchaí'' (anglicised as shanachie), an Irish storyteller. It was previously distr ...

; ''The Promised Land'' (2010, Dust Devil Music, and 2011, Room 609 Records); and ''Plays Fats'', which features Lil' Band O' Gold performing the music of

Fats Domino Antoine Caliste Domino Jr. (February 26, 1928 – October 24, 2017), known as Fats Domino, was an American singer-songwriter and pianist. One of the pioneers of rock and roll music, Domino sold more than 65 million records. Born in New Orl ...

with guests including

and

Lucinda Williams Lucinda Gayl Williams (born January 26, 1953) is an American singer-songwriter and a solo guitarist. She recorded her first two albums, ''Ramblin' on My Mind (Lucinda Williams album), Ramblin' on My Mind'' (1979) and ''Happy Woman Blues'' (198 ...

, and which was released in 2012 on the Dust Devil Music record label. Adcock has also made guest appearances on other artists' albums, including several by Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys,

Ani DiFranco Angela Maria "Ani" DiFranco (; born September 23, 1970) is an American-Canadian singer-songwriter. She has released more than 20 albums. DiFranco's music has been classified as folk rock and alternative rock, although it has additional influenc ...

and

Record producer

In addition to his solo recordings and work with Lil' Band O' Gold, Adcock has also produced the Grammy-nominated albums ''Grand Isle'' by Steve Riley & the Mamou Playboys and ''Is It News'' by

. In 2011, Adcock produced

’s version of

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer, songwriter, and musician who was a central and pioneering figure of rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texa ...

's "Not Fade Away" for the tribute compilation ''Rave On''. Adcock has also produced Neko Case, Nick Cave and Jace Everett for soundtrack albums for the HBO television series ''True Blood''. In 2012, Adcock produced "We Can't Make It Here Anymore" by

Steve Earle Stephen Fain Earle (; born January 17, 1955) is an American country, rock, and folk singer-songwriter. He began his career as a songwriter in Nashville and released his first EP in 1982. Earle's breakthrough album was his 1986 debut album '' ...

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

and

James McMurtry James McMurtry (born March 18, 1962, in Fort Worth, Texas) is an American rock and folk rock/ americana singer, songwriter, guitarist, bandleader, and occasional actor ('' Daisy Miller'', '' Lonesome Dove'', and narrator of ''Ghost Town: 24 Hour ...

for ''

Occupy This Album ''Occupy This Album: 99 Songs for the 99 Percent'' is a four-disc compilation box set released in May 2012 through the record label Music for Occupy. The album concept, and initial production was initiated by Executive Producer Jason Samel. Jason S ...

''. In 2022 he teamed with veteran swamp pop entertainer

Tommy McLain Tommy McLain (born March 15, 1940) is an American swamp pop musician, best known as a singer but who also plays keyboards, drums, bass guitar, and fiddle. Career McLain first began performing in the 1950s, along with country singer Clint West. ...

, then in his eighties, to produce McLain's ''I Ran Down Every Dream''. The album, ''Rolling Stone'' magazine noted, is "his first pop album in decades" whose title track is "a duet and co-write with lvisCostello. . . ."

Film and TV composer

Adcock's songs have been featured in the motion pictures '' Blaze'', ''

Heaven's Prisoners ''Heaven's Prisoners'' is a 1996 American crime thriller film directed by Phil Joanou and starring Alec Baldwin, Kelly Lynch, Mary Stuart Masterson, Teri Hatcher and Eric Roberts. It is based on a Dave Robicheaux homonymous novel by James L ...

'' and '' Black Snake Moan'', and he has worked as a music supervisor and composer for the films '' Killer Joe'', ''

'', ''

Macumba ''Macumba'' () is a generic term for various Afro-Brazilian religions, the practitioners of which are then called ''macumbeiros''. These terms are generally regarded as having negative connotations, comparable to an English term like "black magi ...

'', ''Dirty Politix'' and '' Night Orchid''. His original songs and productions have also been featured on the Grammy-nominated soundtrack of the

series ''

'', and Adcock has appeared on the series' inaugural season performing with his group The Lafayette Marquis. In March 2009, a documentary co-produced by Adcock, ''Promised Land: A Swamp Pop Journey'', looked at life on the road with Lil' Band O' Gold. The film premiered at the

South by Southwest South by Southwest (SXSW) is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Texas. It began in 1987 and has conti ...

(SXSW) festival in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

Discography

* '' C.C. Adcock'' (1994) * ''Lafayette Marquis'' (2004)

References

External links

Mamouplayboys.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adcock, C. C. 1971 births Living people Electric blues musicians Zydeco musicians American male singer-songwriters American rock songwriters American rock musicians American rock singers Musicians from Lafayette, Louisiana Writers from Lafayette, Louisiana Swamp pop music Singer-songwriters from Louisiana 21st-century American male singers 21st-century American singer-songwriters