“If I hadn’t met Don Montoucet,” contends Kevin Naquin, one of today’s leading lights in the Acadiana crawfish circuit, “I would not have played the accordion.” A strong, stirring testament indeed for the 81-year-old accordionist who not only inspired Naquin to play the loud little box as a youth but also babysat him (in conjunction with wife Adolis), along with their brood of grandchildren.

Despite being under the radar in recent years, Montoucet has earned his place in the annals of Cajun music history. When the great Lawrence Walker died in 1968, Montoucet was asked by fiddler Lionel LeLux to assume the legend’s place in Walker’s Wandering Aces ensemble so they could finish their few remaining commitments. Reluctantly, he eventually agreed and those few gigs extended into years and prestigious trips to the ’76 Smithsonian Festival of American Folklife, Canada and France before Montoucet quietly retired. 

Now, with Montoucet’s second lifetime recording and first disc ever, Naquin has the rare opportunity to repay his affectionately dubbed “third grandfather” with this fitting tribute. Naquin hitched a team of thoroughbreds from his Ossun Playboys and various special guests, son Terry Montoucet (guitar), Jamey Bearb (fiddle) and Paul Frugé (steel guitar), to the senior accordionist for a blazing foray into the ’50s-’60s dancehall style of Cajun music. Montoucet can still lead a zestful charge, barreling straight ahead with flashes of signature ornamentation (“Les flammes d’enfer,” “Amédé Two-Step”).

As much as this is Montoucet’s show, having crack sidemen makes this a collaborative effort. Bearb and Ossun Playboys’ fiddler Louis Dronet combine for many a magical twin fiddle ride. Frugé shades in colorful chords among his otherwise driving playing. Bearb and Frugé shine as emotive Cajun vocalists, the latter especially on “‘Tit Yeux Bleus.” With everyone pushing 110 percent here, Montoucet couldn’t ask for a better bunch of friends.