I’ve been a fan of Cajun music, and especially Beausoleil, since my wife introduced me to them shortly after we met around 1988. Sincethen, I’ve been to three or four Beausoleil performances, includingone very special dance with about 150 people and a postage-stamp-sizedance floor, where we could waltz and two-step within arm’s length ofthe band. So it is a special treat to hear bandleader Michael Doucet(“doo-SAY”) with this early incarnation of his ensemble.
By the early Eighties, Beausoleil contained the core of members who are still touring and recording together today: Michael on fiddleand vocals; brother David Doucet on guitar; and Tommy Alesi and DavidWare on percussion. But Arc de Triomphe Two Step, recordedlive in a Paris studio over two days in May 1976, contains acompletely different lineup. Here, Doucet plays fiddle and guitar andsings; he’s joined on vocals by the brothers Kenneth and SterlingRichard, members of a well-known Louisiana musical dynasty in theirown right, who also play mandolin and harmonica (Kenneth) and guitarand tambourine (Sterling); Bessyl Duon, accordion and fiddle; andBruce McDonald on guitar.
All the elements of what is by now a typical Beausoleil record arepresent. There are peppy two-steps, including the title track, “JeuneFille a la Campagne,” and “Johnny Can’t Dance;” and waltzes ofvarious tempos — “Love Bridge,” “Bayou Tech,” “Valse de GrandChemin,” and the lovely “Travailler C’es Trop Dur.” In addition,there’s “Bosco Moscow Stomp,” which is pretty self-descriptive; aballad by Doucet, “Take it to Me;” the bluegrass/rockabilly standard”Just Because;” and the swampy “CIA,” in which you can all but smellthe gumbo and see the full moon rising over the steamy bayou.
I wish the liner notes were more complete, although they’re goodby 1976 standards. I’m curious especially about who is singing leadon all of the songs. It’s obvious that Doucet is singing on my twofavorite tracks, “Travailler C’est Trop Dur,” and “Take it to Me.”This man is one of those musicians who seems to have arrived on thescene fully formed, like a Richard Thompson or a Neil Young, avirtuoso with his own unique style from nearly the first time hestepped into a studio. If nobody has written a biography of MichaelDoucet and his band, it’s high time somebody started work on one.
The material, recording techniques and the performances all arevery good, although this record has a slightly more primitive feel toit than most of Beausoleil’s more recent output. I wouldn’tnecessarily recommend that a newcomer to Cajun music start with thisrecord, but it would be a welcome addition to anyone’s collection of Cajun or world music. As they say in Louisiana, “Allons danser,” or”Let’s dance!”
Capitol EMI Hemisphere, 1976)
