Iry LeJeune and Revival of the Old Style

After World War II, German-imported accordions once again became available, though the western sound still predominated. Meanwhile, in the small community of Pointe Noire near Church Point, a young man named Iry LeJeune was learning to play his cousin's accordion and listening to old recordings, especially records of Amédé Ardoin. In 1948, LeJeune recorded "The Lovebridge Waltz" and "The Evangeline Special" for a Houston record label. After scoring a big regional hit with the record, LeJeune began to record for Eddie Shuler's Goldband Records in Lake Charles, bringing back the traditional sound of Cajun music from earlier in the century and through his own musical genius giving his songs an immediacy and direct emotional appeal lacking in Americanized music. Iry LeJeune's life was cut short in 1955 when he was hit by a passing car while changing a flat tire, but, by then, the accordion was once again at the front of Cajun bands led by musicians like Lawrence Walker, Aldus Roger, Austin Pitre, and Nathan Abshire.