Mary Jane Broussard is believed to be the only female Creole-style accordionist of professional status. She hails from a musical family hotbed that includes the Ardoins on one side and the Franks on the other. Despite such a pedigree, it wasn’t until she became a young mother that she taught herself to play accordion, modeling her style after uncle “Bois Sec” Ardoin. Along with Ann Savoy and Jeanie McLerie, she was an original Magnolia Sister in the ‘70s and has made occasional public appearances ever since.

Her debut disc with current Magnolia Sisters Jane Vidrine (fiddle) and Lisa Trahan (guitar/bass) finds her honoring her traditional roots with many selections associated with Bois Sec, including the always-rousing “Allons Danser.” Though it’s solid dance music, the overall ambience is often down home. As expected, her style is less ornamented than her Cajun counterparts, but when it comes to mustering power and boring full steam ahead, she does so effortlessly (“Choupique Special”). Son T-Broussard, who fronts his own Zydeco Steppers, jumps on keys on several selections to juxtapose a modern jammy feel to time-honored tradition for an infectious bouncy sway.