A traditional album from progressive Cajun roots rocker Wayne Toups shouldn’t come as a total surprise. After all, he started his career playing trad before fusing it with contemporary influences in his now-signature “zydecajun” style. But what does come as a surprise is that this is Toups’ most traditional affair ever. Jamming keys, searing rock ’n’ roll guitar and a zydeco-ish double clutching backbeat have all been replaced (at least for this recording) by bouncy, riveting steel rides, swirling fiddle solos and square rhythms.

With grade-A material from Iry LeJeune, Belton Richard, Lawrence Walker, Aldus Roger, Doris Matte and Darrell Higginbottom, Toups captures the ’50s and ’60s Cajun dancehall style that inspired him as a youth. Waltzes, not two-steps, are preferred here and play a major role in this album’s authenticity. Cajun seniors have always preferred them to two-steps due to their ability to express deep, gut-wrenching emotion at slower tempos. Occasionally, a two-step does creep in, such as the blasting instrumental, “Creole Stomp,” and Belton Richard’s “Les Paradis des Musicians,” which features Marty Broussard’s snazzy western swing steel guitar playing.

Of special interest is Camey Doucet’s “C’est ca qui me Fait du Mal,” which was only available as a single in 1974 when a teenaged Toups played accordion with the Cajun gentleman. The disc’s most significant historical find is the bluesy “Trois Jours Aprés ma Mort,” a tune culled from the Lomax Archives. It was originally performed a cappella by Edier Segura but when recorded by Lomax, Segura accompanied his vocals on fiddle. Toups was challenged to put a band arrangement to the quirky tune because it frequently changed time signatures. Whether it’s a disinterred chestnut or an unveiling of a new composition co-written Barry Ancelet, (“La Lettre qu’ elle m’a Laissée”), Toups’ reverence for tradition is never in question.