James “Butch” Cage, fiddler, was one of the last surviving members of the 19th-century black string band tradition. His wild, kinetic playing is a testament to a world that has been lost in this century. Cage was born in Hamburg, MS on March 16, 1894. He was also a reputable guitarist player. Butch’s musical soul mate was the fiddle. His wild and energetic playing had an African feel. After the 1927 floods in Mississippi, Cage moved to Southwest Louisiana. He settled in Zachary. There he did a variety of menial jobs and played string band music at church functions and house parties. Harry Oster, a musicologist, heard the pair in Zachary in 1959. Oster’s field recordings with Thomas and Cage became a fascinating glimpse into the pre-blues tradition of black string bands. They were also huge hits at the 1960 Newport Folk Festival. It was almost as if the duo had just stepped out of an era gone by. Cage has been called a Cajun fiddler by many reviewers and fans, but his style was actually based on an older African tradition that led to the Mississippi string quartet. You can hear this haunting and beautiful fiddle playing on the amazing Country Negro Jam Sessions (Arhoolie 1962), Raise A Ruckus Tonight (1979) and Old Time Black Southern String Band Music (2006). Butch Cage was killed in Zachary in 1975.
