“Rockin” Dopsie Sr; One of the Originators of Zydeco

“Rockin” Dopsie Sr., 61, an originator of the fusion of Cajun music and rhythm and blues known as zydeco, who played on Paul Simon’s “Graceland” album. Dopsie, whose real name was Alton Rubin Sr., was “really the last of the classic zydeco style--the originators,” said New Orleans music writer Rick Coleman. A crowd-pleasing entertainer and performer, Dopsie toured the world, drawing huge crowds at concerts and festivals. He took his stage name (pronounced DOOP-sy) from a Chicago dancer he admired named Doopsie. He recorded for several labels, singing in French and accompanying himself on the French button accordion. Dopsie’s contribution to “Graceland” was the song “That Was Your Mother.” His last album, “Louisiana Music,” was his first for a major label. The album received a Grammy nomination after it was released in November, 1991. The mayor of Lafayette, La., in the heart of Cajun country, crowned Dopsie the King of Zydeco after Clifton Chenier died in 1987. It was a controversial coronation, because many other musicians had nominated themselves. But Chenier, Boozoo Chavis and Dopsie were considered the originators of zydeco. In Opelousas, La., on Thursday of a heart attack.