*** Beausoleil

ARC DE TRIOMPHE TWO STEP

(Hemisphere/Metro Blue)

The dreamy French-Caribbean tones of Beausoleil's recent L'Amour ou la Folie are a far cry from the youthful rocking exuberance of this 1976 CD, the group's Paris-recorded debut, which has now become available over here. Rollicking out of southwestern Louisiana's murky bayou country, Beausoleil have grown to become cultural ambassadors for French-Americans. But even early on they showed impressive finesse for a group of five teenage and twentysomething hippies digging into their vibrant ancestral music with assertive accordion, zipping fiddle, and high-pitched vocals. Cajun music has always transcended language barriers -- here the country-pop standard "Just Because" becomes a whirling two-step. "CIA" sounds eerily ancient. Although fiddling leader Michael Doucet is the only member of the current group who was around for Arc de Triomphe Two Step, Beausoleil's goal hasn't changed a bit: solid historicism entwined with bon temps rouler.

-- Bruce Sylvester