One for the Road (Buckwheat Zydeco album)

One for the Road is Buckwheat Zydeco's debut album, credited to his band at the time, Buckwheat Zydeco Ils Sont Partis Band. Ils Sont Partis is French for 'They're Off!', used by horse race announcers at the start of a race. It was released on J.D. Miller's Blues Unlimited label in 1979. The majority of the tracks were written by Buckwheat Zydeco, credited to his birth name, Stanley Dural. He reworked Fats Domino's "Good Hearted Man" renaming it "You Got Me Walkin' the Floor" and Clifton Chenier's "Oh My, Lucille" as simply "Lucille". B. B. King's "Rock Me Baby" was also covered. The track "I Bought Me a Raccoon" was his first local hit and was inspired by his pet racoon, Jack (later replaced by Tina), who he brought on the road and draped over his shoulders while playing.

Critical reception
Alan Greenberg for AllMusic contrasted One for the Road to Zydeco's later work as more blues-based, slower and more bass-heavy, and overall more relaxed. Michael Tisserand, in his book The Kingdom of Zydeco describes the album as a "mixture of two-step, waltzes, and the blues."

Personnel

 * Buckwheat Zydeco – vocals (French and English), accordion, piano, and organ
 * Ted Zerby – bass
 * Jimmy Papillion – drums
 * Russell Gordon – guitar
 * John Bell – saxophone
 * Elijah Cudges – washboard