[3] He attended the Louisiana State School for the Blind in Baton Rouge, and grew up listening to zydeco music, including that of his uncle Claude Duffy, an accordion player.
He performed around New Orleans for about three years with Esquerita, who encouraged him to consider a solo career,[2][4] and also played drums in the early 1960s with Stanley "Buckwheat" Dural.
[1] As a pianist, Hammond organist and singer, August performed solo in clubs and restaurants, and recorded his first single, "Little Red Rooster," for the local Tamm label in 1966.
He released further albums on the Maison de Soul and Black Top labels in the early 1990s, including Creole Cruiser (1992) and Sauce Piquante (1993).
He had open heart surgery in 1998, but continued to perform and record thereafter, releasing the album Legends Making Memories, with Willie-Tee Trahan and the band Cypress, in 2012.