Réginald Charles Gagnon, known as Cayouche (born 7th January 1949), is an

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the ...

singer-songwriter of

Acadian French Acadian French (french: français acadien, acadjonne) is a variety of French spoken by Acadians, mostly in the region of Acadia, Canada. Acadian French has 7 regional accents, including chiac and brayon. Phonology Since there was relatively lit ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

. He was born in

Moncton, New Brunswick Moncton (; ) is the most populous city in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. Situated in the Petitcodiac River Valley, Moncton lies at the geographic centre of the Maritime Provinces. The city has earned the nickname "Hub City" because of ...

on the eastern coast of Canada.

Early life

At the age of thirteen, Cayouche left eastern Canada with his mother to go live in the suburbs of

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the capital city, state capital and List of municipalities in Massachusetts, most populous city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financ ...

, Massachusetts, in the United States. He later joined the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through ...

when he was 19. While serving, he took part in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

. However, he never went into combat.Claude Côté, ''Cow-boy de l'Est'', dans ''

Voir ''Voir'' was a francophone alternative weekly newspaper in Montreal, Quebec, published by Communications Voir. ''Voir'' was founded by Pierre Paquet in November 1986. The first issue of the newspaper was published on 27 November 1986. Later on ...

'',

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple- ...

, 3 février 2000, . When his military service was over, he returned to

Leominster, Massachusetts Leominster ( ) is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the second-largest city in Worcester County, with a population of 43,782 at the 2020 census. Leominster is located north of Worcester and northwest of Boston. Bot ...

where he married and had two sons, Joshua Charles Gagnon (1972) and Jason Paul Gagnon (1973) and spent the next ten years living there. In 1979, he returned to Canada and went as a nomad with his back pack and his guitar, taking the first small step into his country-folk music career.

Career

His nickname comes from the United States. He says that people would tell him: "t'es pas Acayen t'es Acayouche", meaning "you're not Acadian, you're Acayouche". "Acayouche" later became "Cayouche", which is now his nickname. Even before the release of their first album in 1994, a Radio-Canada team had noticed that the Cayouche phenomenon was already alive and well in the Acadian Peninsula. About 25 years later, in the same place, again almost all people passing by know Cayouche and his character. Thanks to his first album, Cayouche made a phenomenal entry into the music market in Acadia. Reaching a sales figure of more than 15,000 copies in a fairly small market, the album "Un vieux hippy" is surely part of the record collection of most Acadian families. Cayouche, a very simple musician, sings the everyday routine in his slightly coarse voice. Shortly after the release of the album "Un vieux hippie", fans who attended his shows could sing their hearts out to all of the lyrics of his songs such as "La chain de mon Tracteur", "Exporter“ A "or even "The kids kick". The album "An Old Hippy" surely contains many of the new classics of Acadian songs. Especially known for his uniting and festive performances, the singer has maintained a constant popularity throughout Canada and Europe. The "Cayouche phenomenon" gets people from all generations singing and dancing, touching the hearts of the young and old in almost every song. He is among the few Acadian popular artists in history to have sold more 100,000 albums. Among his biggest hits are Export A, La chaine de mon tracteur, L’alcool au Volant, C’est ça mon Acadie and La reine du bingo. Cayouche, who now lives in Maisonnette, New Brunswick, was the subject of a documentary film entitled "Cayouche, Le Temps d'une bière" or in English: "Cayouche : Time for a beer” by Maurice André Aubin in 2009.

Concerts and festivals

* Outdoor Concert Extérieur - Memramcook, New Brunswick, Monument-Lefebvre Parking Lot (September 26 2020) * CMA Show August 2019 – Moncton, New Brunswick – Riverfront Park * The Lobster Trap – Moncton, New Brunswick – The 63 * Back to School 2015 – Moncton, New Brunswick – The 63 * Cayouche / Menoncle Jason – Moncton, New Brunswick – Le Coude * 1755 / Bois-Joli / Cayouche -Shediac, New Brunswick – Festival Arena * Grey Rock Casino 2019 – Edmundston, New Brunswick * Festival Western 2017 – Bonaventure, Canada * Festival Country of St-Georges 2019 – Quebec, Canada * Concert 2019 – Madawaska County, New Brunswick – The Grey Rock Casino

Discography

* ''Un Vieux Hippy'' (released, 1994) * ''Moitié-moitié'' (released, 1996) * ''Roule, roule'' (released, 1999) * ''Last Call'' (released, 2003) * ''Le rappel'' (released, 2011) * ''Les Meilleures Tounes'' (released, 13 December 2019)

Songs

* Mon bicycle, ma musique (3:04) * Au camp (3:59) * Une place au chaud (4:05) * L'Auberge du Quai de l'Horloge (4:23) * La 6 49 (4:04) * Pills à nerfs (6:01) * Red Haired Boy (instrumental) (2:34) * Pas d'icitte, pas d'ailleurs (3:23) * Grand-Père Jos (3:55) * Le frigidaire de mon chum (5:03) * Le blues à Cay (4:09) * Viens faire un tour (4:45) * La Reine Du Bingo (3:50) * La Chaine De Mon Tracteur (2:16) * Laurie (3:00) * Last Call (3:00) * L'alcool au volant (3:20) * Dans la city * Goo'day * Bootlegger * Le frigidaire (4:21) * C'est du fun à être fou * Les enfants à coup d'bottes * J'ai 40 ans (3:40) * Moi j'm'en rappelle * Export "A" * La crotte dans la pipe * Le nord du Nouveau-Brunswick * L'hiver s'en vient * Innocent * Le p'tit

Jeep Jeep is an American automobile marque, now owned by multi-national corporation Stellantis. Jeep has been part of Chrysler since 1987, when Chrysler acquired the Jeep brand, along with remaining assets, from its previous owner American Motors ...

à André * Le bon vieux temps * Les bas de laine * Le rappel * Fume fume *

Captain Morgan Captain Morgan is a brand of flavored rums (including, in Europe, some rum-flavored "premium spirit drinks") produced by British alcohol conglomerate Diageo. It is named after the 17th-century Welsh privateer of the Caribbean, Sir Henry Morg ...

* Francine * Reel du printemps * La dérive * Marie Madeleine * Vivre et laisser vivre * Picassou / Heather Hill * Écoutez * Du thé * J'ai fumé le sapin * Tu M'as Flushé (3:29) * Le Portrait de mon Père (4:12) * Roule, Roule (4:36)

Top Songs

* La chaîne de mon tracteur * La 6 49 * Grand-Père Jos * L'alcool au volant * La Reine du Bingo * Fume Fume * Export "A" * La crotte dans la pipe * Le frigidaire * Dans la city * Le bon vieux temps * Viens faire un tour * Écoutez

Filmography

* Cayouche, Le Temps d'une bière (2009) * Pour l'amour du country (2001–2012)

Record Labels

* Production Péninsule * Production JGC57