Before you pass a real good time this month, you might want to sample a few Cajun concoctions on video just to set your mood straight some, cher.

The 1989 film J’ai Ete Au Bal (I Went To Dance), by Les Blank, Chris Strachwitz and Maureen Gosling, is a genuine eye-opener in terms of the information conveyed and the carefree way in which it is done.

The fIlm opens with Marc Savoy, a longtime accordion player and singer, telling a good old-fashioned Cajun joke. It is the story of a pact between two Cajun brothers, with one returning from the dead with. “some good news and some bad news” for his brother.

From that moment on I Went To Dance is an infectious, fascinating, deeply researched documentary that virtually beckons the viewer from the sofa to the middle of the living room floor to two-step (more on that later) with the best of them. Those weird, screaming, bastardized French lyrics are mercifully translated so that the non-bilingual can enjoy image and sound.

Blank’s camera is constantly on the move, capturing the deep essence of the south-central Louisiana: purple martins dive-bombing one another in the late afternoon, a lone, peaceful oak tree on a winding dirt road, dogs and children, the innocence of a people who have kept traditions alive and well in the backwoods of civilizations. I

The movie offers a virtual history of the Acadian people from their migration from Nova Scotia in 1755, to the first Cajun recording, “Allon A Laufette,” to a showcase of the pioneers of Cajun music, Joe and Solange Falcon. The movie won the Blue Ribbon Award at the American Film Festival and the Silver Apple Award at the National Education Film Festival. But don’t let these honors sway you. This movie rocks with a rhythm all its own. Great performances span this wonderful film, including some mighty fine fiddle playing by Michael Doucet and a blistering finale by New Age Cajun Wayne Toups.

Insightful interviews interspersed with the Cajun and Zydeco music and laid end to end with Blank’s wonderfully-rendered images of Louisiana make this a must-see for anyone who cares about Louisiana and its quirky, blended heritage.

For real insight into the true nature of one of Cajun music’s genuine kings, check out Blank’s 1973 Hot Pepper: The Life and Music of Clifton Chenier. This is a 57-minute glide of folk wisdom and jive doled out by the late accordionist Chenier.

Blank’s camera never fails to intrigue with his tight close-ups and offbeat feel for conversation and situations. He begins the film innocently enough, focusing on a gentleman in a bar who obviously has had too much to drink and is trying to make it through the evening. Chenier, who is playing a set in the small, cramped barroom, is gracious and kind to the man who looks as if he could go off at any minute. Through all of this, Chenier continues to play his amazing accordion, creating a thoroughly unique and liberating sound.

The rest of the movie feels like a drunken weave as we follow Chenier around the small clubs in Lafayette and Mamou, drinking with his brother and thigh-slapping with his friends. It is an intimate and disarming portrait of a man who lived his life playing the music that he felt inside.

And for those who want to learn Cajun dancing, there’s Allons Danser (Cajun Dancing) featuring the music of Doucet and Beausoleil.

In this highly-accessible video, honored by the American Film Institute and Billboard magazine, the waltz, the one and two-step, and the much more complicated jitterbug are choreographed so that viewers can learn Cajun dancing in the privacy of home. The moves are broken down and

slow-motion is used to depict the basic steps: around the waist, over the shoulder, combination turns, behind the back, the sweetheart spin and the ever-popular windmill. After you’ve watched this tape a few times, you’ll be ready to spin around the hardwood floor, laughing and singing along with those crazy, screaming French songmasters on stage.
Although not a true Cajun, David H. Jones can still look at an acre of rice and tell you how much gravy it’ll take. He is also public relations! communications director for DESIGN PARTNERS.