Cajun and Country Fiddle Great Courtney Granger Has Died
A talented and treasured member of both the Cajun and country music realm passed away too soon on Saturday, September 18th. Courtney Granger was the highly-revered and Grammy-nominated fiddle player, guitarist, and singer for the Southwest Louisiana Cajun and creole outfit, the Pine Leaf Boys. He also was a strong supporter and advocate for country music within the Cajun music community and beyond. Courtney Granger was only 39-years-old.
Courtney Granger was born as Cajun music royalty, originally from Eunice, Louisiana. He grew up surrounded by the music of Southern Louisiana as the grandnephew of Balfa Brothers member Dewey Balfa, who was a beloved Cajun fiddler and winner of the National Heritage Fellowship.
Granger made his solo debut as a fresh-faced 16-year-old on the Rounder Records release Un Bal Chez Balfa from 1999, which put him on the map as both a singer and fiddle player in the French Cajun tradition. Later he was a part of the late-term revival band Balfa Toujours. He then joined the Pine Leaf Boys in 2008, who quickly became respected throughout the Cajun community, and were nominated in 2008, 2009, and 2010 in the Grammy’s Best Zydeco or Cajun Music Album category. Granger also worked and volunteered as a fiddle instructor at camps across the country, and was respected as both an effective and patient teacher.
Along with his gifts with instrumentation, Courtney Granger was especially revered for the high-lonesome vocal style of Cajun singers that is considered a dying art. This also made him especially equipped to cross over into his second passion, which was classic country music.
“Some people learned to sing in the church,” Granger once said, “but I learned to sing in bars.” While his family would be setting up to entertain in local venues throughout Louisiana, young Granger would be singing along with the old country records that would be playing on the jukebox. This is what imparted him with a love for country at an early age, resulting in what some consider to be one of the best classic country tribute records in the last decade, 2016’s Beneath Still Waters.
Sounding eerily similar to George Jones who was born and raised just over the Texas/Louisiana border in the Beaumont area, Beneath Still Waters was produced by Dirk Powell, and featured recognizable names from the Cajun and roots community such as Laurie Lewis and Tom Rozum, vocalist Alice Gerrard, and Cajun fiddler Joel Savoy. Songs written by Dallas Frazier, Max T. Barnes, Hank Cochran, Hazel Dickens, Cindy Walker, and Keith Whitley were all featured in the surprisingly straight ahead and impassioned country record from a Cajun singer.
Courtney Granger had long suffered heavily from diabetes, and fell especially ill in 2017 when he was hospitalized with encephalitis. When he passed away, he was on a waiting list for a kidney donation. A Go Fund Me has been set up to help with Granger’s final expenses that surpassed its asking price within hours, speaking to the love and respect Courtney Granger enjoyed throughout the Cajun music community.
“Our dear friend, Courtney, can finally rest in peace,” the Pine Leaf Boys said at his passing.
September 19, 2021 @ 8:53 am
This is So sad.
My Heart goes out to his family, friends, and fans.
September 19, 2021 @ 9:28 am
Sad. A great singer, Beneath Still Waters was an excellent album and an absolute lesson is lonesome, soulful country vocals. The Jones influence in the vocal, Courtney had it in spades.
September 19, 2021 @ 12:39 pm
His version of Jones’ “Mr Fool” is stunning. RIP
September 19, 2021 @ 12:42 pm
Thanks for sharing this. I hadn’t heard of Courtney Granger until now but I’m sure glad to have found him. Prayers for his family and friends.
September 20, 2021 @ 5:55 am
One quick correction. he was not the accordion player for the Pine Leaf Boys. Wilson Savoy is and he is the son of legendary accordian player and builder Marc Savoy.
I’ve been listening to Courtney Granger for the last 22 years. What a great talent he was. I play fiddle in several Cajun bands and have been known to steal a little of his style.
He’ll be sorely missed by many.
September 20, 2021 @ 7:51 am
Hey John, thanks for the clarification. Did not mean to imply that Courtney played accordion for the Pine Leaf Boys specifically, but that he was an accordion player as well as a fiddler. Totally understand how it could have been read differently.
February 23, 2023 @ 6:28 pm
Courtney did not play accordion. He played fiddle, guitar, triangle and stand up bass.
– Courtney’s sister
February 23, 2023 @ 6:32 pm
Hey Rachel,
Thanks for the clarification. I have updated the obituary.
September 20, 2021 @ 6:02 am
R.I.P Courtney ????
Definitely Gone way to soon’ May your loved ones and friends find peace..????????
September 20, 2021 @ 1:04 pm
Dang it! I had the pleasure of meeting Courtney in the mid-2000s. He was just a youngster at age 39 (it’s hard to believe he was already that old).
One of the cool things about Cajun music is that it spans the generations. Although I don’t remember the exact name of the magazine, back in the mid-2000s, Courtney was interviewed by a folk-music type of magazine. The interviewer asked Courtney something like, “How do you feel about playing your grandfather’s music?” Courtney then answered with something like, “This isn’t my grandfather’s music, this is MY music!”
February 23, 2023 @ 6:30 pm
Dewey isn’t our grandfather. He is our great-uncle. Our grandmother Cecile, is Dewey’s sister.
November 10, 2021 @ 9:43 pm
Just found out about Courtney’s untimely death – absolutely devastated. My husband and I travel regularly from Australia for music festivals, and one of our favourites is Festivals Acadiens et Créoles, where we loved seeing Courtney playing with Ray Abshire & Friends, the Pine Leaf Boys & the Balfas. He was a wonderful talent and will really be missed.
February 4, 2022 @ 4:26 pm
I met Courtney when he was 14 and with his cousin Christine Balfa on tour in Sackets Harbor. NY. Courtney died of type one diabetes as my husband did. It is almost impossible to pass 40 even without smoking. We discussed his illness once at LA Folk Roots Camp. I watched Courtney’s health these years worsen with great sadness. I hope he was with the men and family who loved and supported him when he died. I only now found out. My prayers are with Courtney and Ray Abshire and Hadley Castile and all the wonderful Cajun musicians lost recently.
Your Aunt Jane
May 6, 2022 @ 11:53 am
Lost my husband in October of 2021 and he loved the Pine Leaf Boys. Will miss both John and Courtney.
June 10, 2022 @ 6:13 pm
God bless musicians. IMHO there is no better class of human beings than musicians. And, yes, I know it ain’t my place to make such a judgment, but still…oh wait God bless coal miners, and roofers…ok God bless us all!