Cajun Rocker to Spice Up Strawberry Festival : The Louisianian, who records in French and English, says he’s renewing his interest in Acadian music.

“Strawberry Fields Forever,” sang the Beatles. That may be an overly optimistic view in Oxnard considering the city’s pro-development mania. Indeed, the California Strawberry Festival seems to have a healthier prognosis than the Oxnard Plain, where the strawberries may someday soon have to be imported.

Of all the myriad festivals in the county, seemingly one for every town except for maybe Oak View and Somis, the Oxnard shindig once again offers far and away the best musical talent, including a good mix of our not-inconsiderable local talent.

One of the headlining imported players is Louisianian Zachary Richard, who will be bringing his Cajun brand of rock to bedazzle the red-lipped spectators Sunday afternoon in English and French. The Tulane graduate has alternated between recording in either language, but for now, French appears to hold sway for Richard, pronounced ree-shard . His last release was “Snake Bite Love” in 1992, but lots of stuff is pending as “the Cajun bad boy” indicated during a recent interview from his Louisiana home.

No albums since 1992, what’s been happening?

Last year, I was at the Acadian World Congress in Canada--the year 2004 will be the 400th anniversary of Acadia. What started out as sort of a serious seminar ended up as a giant family reunion. Lots of Acadians from Louisiana came up, and there was this large musical spectacular which was broadcast by satellite to France and all over Canada. So I re-established contact with part of my musical personality that had been dormant for 10 years, and I got the opportunity to go back to something that’s real important to me.

I had done four albums in English which had been my most success commercially, but I had sort of abandoned my roots, but it was not a deliberate choice. To make a long story short, I just got back from France, where I’m working on my first French-language album in 10 years. I’m also working on an album in English.

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A translation of the French album?

No, but I used to do that early on. I’d write in English, then translate it, but I’d always lose some of the nuances. On the English album, I think I’ve got some material that is really exceptional.

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Does France rock?

I think it’s pretty odd because all the French musicians want to be Americans. The dream of every French singer is to make it in America. They think that since American music is popular in France that French music will be popular in America. I don’t think they ever got over the Franco-Prussian War. They haven’t been a big power for a long time, so they create all these illusions.

But to answer your question, there is a music scene in France, but it’s relegated to French-speaking countries. But there’s a lot of French people in the world, so it’s not a “B” market. And culturally, it appeals to me a lot.

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Does the term Cajun help or hinder your career?

It’s really not a negative connotation but it has been a significant drawback to my career, but I created that problem myself, so I can’t blame anyone else. I’m called a Cajun artist but there’s still enough rock ‘n’ roll in my music to piss off most of the Cajun people. The Cajun tradition is a source of inspiration to me, but not to imitate or revitalize. Cajun bands sound pretty much the same--it’s pretty much a one-trick pony and there’s not a lot of variety. I’m very proud of my heritage, but in terms of musical creativity, the Cajun style is only one aspect.

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So then, how would you describe your sound?

I don’t know if I can. My job is to make it, not to describe it. There’s so many different elements in my music, such as American music. I was influenced by John Cougar [Mellencamp], Bob Dylan and Creedence Clearwater Revival. I think I’m a songwriter that writes in the American folk-rock genre with the influence of Louisiana.

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Why are there so many great musicians in Louisiana?

It’s the water. No, really, it’s the culture. The mixture of so many various cultures has created something unique. For example, the white culture came to Virginia, then moved to California and killed the Indians. Louisiana was the only state during slavery that allowed the Africans to keep their drums and express themselves musically. Because of that, now we have jazz and blues. The culture here is very vibrant, and music has always been a part of it.

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Do you enjoy life on the road?

I’m on the road six to eight months a year, but I’m really not a road dog. I’m like fine wine--I don’t travel well. The long bus rides and the [lousy] food never changes. But I like to play and I like to meet people. There are certain things you could or should not do, and you can’t always control the amount of rest you get.

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What was your strangest gig?

There’s been a lot of those. Let’s see, one time I played a French agricultural fair. There was no one in this big tent except a couple of cows, but they seemed to be into it. Another time, I played for some Indians way in the north of Quebec in this nickel-mining town. The only way to get there was to fly for hours in a little Piper Cub. The Indians got so wild, I had to sneak out of the bar because they wouldn’t let me leave. I had to crawl out the back door, crawl through the snow and break a window to get into my room.

Details

* WHO: Zachary Richard and others.

* WHEN: 3:30 p.m. Sunday.

* WHERE: California Strawberry Festival, 3250 Rose Ave., Oxnard.

* HOW MUCH: $6 (adults), $4 (children and seniors).

* CALL: 385-7578.