Doors are at 7:30 pm; Dance lesson at 8:00pm; Show at 8:30pm

Tickets are $12

The Zydeco Flames return to one of their favorite haunts for a night mixing newer songs and old favorites. Winner of a 2009 North Bay Music Award, the Flames appeared on Ashkenaz’s 30th Anniversary CD and have shared stages with most of the greats of the style at dances and festivals up and down the West Coast. They include songs from their recent, seventh album of searing Louisiana zydeco music, “Fire Dance,” and their best dance tunes from the past.

Ashkenaz is a special place to the Zydeco Flames. “It’s one of the first three places we played when we got together in 1990,” says guitarist Frank Bohan. It all began when accordion player Bruce Gordon teamed up with singer-rubboard player Lloyd Meadows to play at parties, including the premiere of the essential documentary film on Cajun and zydeco music, “J’ai ete au Bal.” Soon they expanded to a full band – with electric guitarist Bohan, bassist-singer Timm Walker, and drummer William Allums Jr. – carrying on in the tradition of Clifton Chenier, Buckwheat Zydeco, and Queen Ida. The Flames have performed at just about every important event in the Bay Area, from the Black and White Ball to the San Francisco Jazz Festival, as well as countless Louisiana, Cajun, and zydeco fests. Five of their songs are featured in the computer game “The Sims Unleashed.”