POP MUSIC REVIEW : Getting to Louisiana Bayou Way of L.A. : Joe Simien’s Cajun Tunes Prove That His Heart and Music Are Still in the Right Place

If you ever have a week so bad that a Cajun Saturday night won’t cheer you up, check your pulse: You’re probably dead.

There were no weak pulses in sight last Saturday at the Sunset Beach Club, where Lawtell, La.-born accordionist Joe Simien and his band played music so joyous you suspect it actually could bring back the dead.

A Los Angeles resident for nearly half a century, Simien performs often at Southland clubs, dances and festivals that feature Cajun music, and therefore may not have the same aura of mystery or fresh-from-the-bayou authenticity of a Boozoo Chavis or a John Delafose. But at the Sunset Beach, he proved himself every bit their equal as an instrumentalist, singer and songwriter.

With a band led by fiddler Lisa Haley of the L.A.-based Zydeco Party Band, Simien launched his first set with “Joe’s Special,” an original instrumental that quickly had the dance floor packed tighter than a stock pot at a crawfish boil. That gave way to “Gran Texas,” which boasted a gloriously meandering melody that transcended the two-chord structure that dominates Cajun music, winding around chordal curves and vistas. The number drew favorable comparison to Beausoleil’s seamless blend of traditional spirit and melodic innovation.

The quintet continued through an hour set of two-steps and waltzes. Most were traditional, but a few more originals were sprinkled in, notably Haley’s haunting instrumental, “Farewell Waltz.” The bulk of the material was drawn from Simien’s current album, “Special,” recorded live a little more than a year ago at the KCRW-FM studios in Santa Monica.

Simien, an energetic accordionist who didn’t try to dazzle the audience with blinding technique, sang all his songs in French, evincing a soulful wail that harked back to Amedee Ardoin, the legendary accordionist and singer who the 68-year-old Simien claims as a mentor.

Simien’s vocal cry was chilling at times, tapping a deeply rooted yearning in songs about lost love, lost freedom or a lost homeland.

For a bunch of Southern Californians, Haley and company did a remarkably good job of adding color and extra rhythmic kick without changing Simien’s fundamental old-timey Cajun sound.

Haley’s fiddling dovetailed as it should with Simien’s accordion: For Cajun music to soar, the two lead instruments need to hum like twin engines on a Cessna. Occasionally, Haley sounded more like a country fiddler, sawing off single-note runs instead of the constant doubled unison notes and harmonics that distinguish the traditional Cajun and Creole fiddle styles. But she was never less than tasteful and often generated instrumental sparks that complemented Simien’s beautifully.

Simien’s show was the third in a series that Westminster-based promoter David Gaar is staging at the club. The overall sound was cleaner and better balanced than it had been for the inaugural show, by Delafose in September. Still, Simien’s vocals were a bit muddy, and in one song on which Haley joined in, it took several bars before it was apparent that she was singing her verse in English rather than Cajun French.

Now that the Cajun series appears to have established a toehold (it wasn’t quite standing-room only, but an empty chair was as hard to find Saturday as a frown), it would be nice to see more tables cleared to provide more room for dancers, and to avoid the occasional dancer-observer collision.

Gaar said he’s been given the go-ahead to continue the series at the club on the third Saturday of each month, with a mix of Southland-based Cajun and zydeco performers as well as touring acts from Louisiana. Next up is T-Lou & the L.A. Zydeco Band, Feb. 15.