Various Artists, A New Orleans Visit-Before Katrina (Arhoolie)

When source material turns out to be a bumper crop, one good project will often seed another. Arhoolie’s Chris Strachwitz realized that when he and filmmakers Maureen Gosling and Chris Simon came to New Orleans to shoot a documentary about the California roots imprint. Originally, the intent was just to obtain a sampling of music from BeauSoleil’s Michael and David Doucet (fiddle and guitar, respectively), zydeco accordionist Sunpie Barnes, blues pianist Henry Gray, trad jazzers Sammy Rimington and Lars Edegran and the Tremè Brass Band for a one-hour documentary. Instead, he wound up with enough material to spawn this eclectic offering and a companion disc featuring the British born/longtime New Orleans clarinetist Rimington.

Make no mistake about it; this 18-track disc is not another blatant attempt to introduce Louisiana roots music to the masses and entice subsequent music purchases. Instead, A New Orleans Visit presents musicians playing in unusual configurations, giving spontaneous and mostly unrehearsed performances sans overdubs.

Of the disc’s nine featured artists, Michael Doucet appears on 11 tracks with only a handful that could be considered traditional Cajun music. With brother David’s rhythm guitar serving as the only foundation, hearing Doucet play in a such stripped-down configuration is probably the best way to savor his soulful brilliance. But what’s even more interesting is how easy Doucet appears to be with New Orleans jazz. He supplies spirited licks on Miss Lollypop’s outrageous, sidesplitting “Hey! La Bas,” teams up with Rimington for the bluesy slow drag of “Creole Blues” and supports Tremè Brass Band’s Uncle Lionel’s soft crooning on the sentimental “I’m Alone Because I Love You.”

Since Cajun and zydeco musicians have played together for practically forever, the Doucet-Sunpie pairing is hardly unusual. But what’s noteworthy is how deep their groove must have burrowed that day. On “Zydeco Et La Encore,” Doucet’s fiddling darts in and out of Sunpie’s hearty push and pulls. The two madly swap leads back and forth and occasionally converge. “Joe Pitre Et Deux Femme” finds the bluesy Sunpie wailing away on harmonica while Doucet almost gets electrocuted on the high stings.

Interestingly, the last three tracks featuring the Tremè Brass Band were part of a parade hosted by the Black Men of Labor Social Club. The funeral dirge-like “Just A Closer With Thee” is solemn enough to render weepy eyes anywhere within earshot while “I’ll Fly Away” and “Sing On” are joyous polyphonic sprees with Rimington, trumpeter Kermit Ruffins and trombonist Corey Henry having ample opportunity to blow their lungs out. Considering how challenging live recordings can often be, engineer David Silberberg did an exemplary job of capturing the street feel without any distortion. While there’s never any shortage of Louisiana pan-roots music offerings these days, this has to be one of the most novel yet.