BRINGING THE BAYOU TO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST

Steve and Jane-Clair Kerin
Steve Kerin is a master of the Cajun/Zydeco/blues traditions of his native Louisiana. Since moving to Portland, he has added a joyful Louisiana zest to our regional music – and became a dedicated supporter of the Musician Health & Services Program.

Written by Claire Levine

After a cross-country camping trip from their Louisiana home, Steve and Jane-Clair Kerin spent a couple weeks house-sitting for a relative in Portland.  And, as so many of us do, they fell in love with the place. 

One day after deciding to make Portland home, Steve opened the paper to find an ad for a piano instructor – and his fate was sealed.  

Steve is a classically trained pianist who fell under the spell of the roots music of his home state. He studied the performances of the greats of the time -- Professor Longhair, James Booker, and Dr. John. He eventually performed in top venues with some of his heroes, like Harry Hypolite, who had played guitar with Clifton Chenier. His amazing musicianship and his inherent feel for music of all kinds carried him seamlessly into Portland’s performance scene.

Steve will be appearing with the Bayou Boyz and Ty Curtis at this year’s Waterfront Blues Festival. You can meet him between 6:30 and 7:30 p.m. on July 3 at The JWF booth, and hear first-hand about his love of the music and of his fellow musicians in his adopted home town.

Arguably “the hardest-working man in Portland show business,” (with apologies to James Brown), he plays keyboards and accordion and sings with more bands than he can call out quickly: Too Loose Cajun & Zydeco Band, the Ty Curtis Band, The Bayou Boyz, Kris Delane and the Hurt, Lloyd Jones’s band, and a whole bunch of other terrific groups. He has won the Cascade Blues Society’s award for best keyboard player seven times and is a member of the society’s Hall of Fame.

He is back to his pre-Covid performance schedule – playing six or seven days a week. (He once told a reporter that if he had a night off from performing, he’d probably be playing music with friends anyway.) He prefers local venues, especially happy hour shows, so he can “come home at a decent hour and sleep in my own bed.” 

The Laurelthirst continues to be a favorite venue, where he performs with different bands. And he has regular happy hour gigs with the Bayou Boys on Sundays at Spirits Pub and  on Mondays at Mekong Bistro. 

Like many musicians, Steve took to live-streamed performances early on in the Covid shut-down. “I did it from my house for about a month, and then it was ‘I gotta get out of here.’”  So, with a portable keyboard and rechargeable amp, he took to the great outdoors. He received help from Jean-Clair, a science educator who knows the geography and geology of the Northwest. She also ran the computer, accepted requests and made delightful cameo appearances.

“I did one up on Mt. Hood. I did one on Mt. Rainier. I did one near the Columbia River – just all over the place. And after I’d done it for a while,” he thought, “I could do this for the rest of the year.” And he did, five days a week as long as the venues were closed.

The shows gave him a chance to showcase some of his less-frequently exercised instrumental skills, performing on guitar and autoharp – and his ability to connect with audiences, even through the weird medium of Facebook.

Calling his nightly episodes, “Sing along with Steve,” he invited followers to send in requests. That often meant he would learn a song in the morning and play it that evening. An audience of music-starved shut-ins loved belting out “Amy” in the privacy of their own homes.

Shortly after settling in Portland, Steve received the chance to play the Waterfront Blues Festival with Louisiana friends in the band Bluerunner. His contacts at the festival led him further into Portland’s blues community, and he has performed at the festival almost every summer since he landed in Portland.

And for much of his time in town, Steve also has been an enthusiastic participant in shows benefiting the Jeremy Wilson Foundation’s Musician Health & Services Program. He has performed at the All Things Must Pass tribute to George Harrison and at various holiday shows supporting the foundation.

Every year on Thanksgiving weekend, he appears in The Next Waltz. A natural for the Dr. John feature “Such a Night,” he also plays keyboards and sings on virtually every song in the recreation of The Band’s iconic three-hour “Last Waltz” show.

He said, “It’s really become kind of a family. We all look forward to getting together at rehearsals and seeing everybody. A lovely thing for a wonderful, wonderful cause. One year, he said, all the performers singing “The Weight” were recipients of help from The JWF. 

“One thing people should know is that if you’re a professional musician, you never get health care through your job. So, this is a huge help for musicians. Health care is a big deal,” Steve said.

This year, his love of the blues festival and his commitment to the Musician Health & Services Program converge. To demonstrate his appreciation for the program, he’ll be at The JWF booth on the festival site, meeting fans and talking music.

And he has contributed a recording of his original song, “Joy” to a collection that will raise funds for The JWF.  It’s a song he wrote shortly after they moved to Portland, where they knew no one.

“It was strange, because I’d lived in the same home town my whole life. So, it’s a song about taking stock of what’s important in life and to keep those things in mind.

“Like love.”