Réginald Charles Gagnon, known as Cayouche (born 1948), is an Acadian

Acadian

The Acadians are the descendants of the 17th-century French colonists who settled in Acadia . Acadia was a colony of New France...

 singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriter

Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...

 of Acadian French

Acadian French

Acadian French , is a regionalized dialect of Canadian French. It is spoken by the francophone population of the Canadian province of New Brunswick, by small minorities in areas in the Gaspé region of eastern Quebec, by small groups of francophones in Prince Edward Island, in several tiny pockets...

 country music

Country music

Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

. He was born in Moncton, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

 on the eastern coast

Eastern Canada

Eastern Canada is generally considered to be the region of Canada east of Manitoba, consisting of the following provinces:* New Brunswick* Newfoundland and Labrador* Nova Scotia* Ontario* Prince Edward Island* Quebec...

 of Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

Early life

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

Boston

Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...

, Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

, in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. He later joined the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

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

Vietnam War

The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...

. However, he never went into combat. When his military service was over, he returned to Massachusetts where he spent the next ten years.
In 1979, he returned to Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 and went as a nomad with his back pack and his guitar.

Career

His nickname

Nickname

A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

 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.
He started his career as a musician in various community centers of northern New Brunswick.

Discography

• Un Vieux Hippy (released, 1994)
• Moitié-moitié (released, 1996)
• Roule, roule (released, 1999)
• Last Call (released, 2003)
• Le rappel (released, 2011)

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
• C'est du fun à être fou
• Les enfants à coup d'botte
• J'ai 40 ans
• 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 à André
• Le bon vieux temps
• Les bas de laine

• Le rappel
• Fume fume
• Captain Morgan
• Francine
• Reel du printemps
• La dérive
• Marie Madeleine
• Vivre et laisser vivre
• Picassou / Heather Hill
• Écoutez
• Du thé
• J'ai fumé le sapin

Further reading

• Cayouche - Wikipedia (français)