Zachary Richard Serves Louisiana Smorgasbord

Zachary Richard is considered a zydeco performer, but the Louisiana-based accordionist-vocalist served up very little straight zydeco before a packed house (heavy with bayou region transplants) at the Palomino on Friday. Richard’s pan-Louisiana smorgasbord of styles ably fulfilled the prime requirement of a good bar band by keeping the dance floor active throughout his hour-long second set, but offered little beyond that.

Supported by a tight backing quartet that required a little time to hit its stride, Richard proved less skilled at traditional zydeco material than at handling “second-line” parade rhythms, a reggae version of “Colinda” (from the “The Big Easy” score), a version of “Jambalaya” that recalled Little Feat, and even a dash of rap. But Richard never gave any indication on any level--as instrumentalist, songwriter or performer--of a vision or special electricity that would lift him above the bar-band ranks.