​Early Zydeco was a blend of Louisiana French accordion music and Afro-Caribbean beats. It sat at the crossroads of Creole, Cajun, gospel and the blues, yet has since evolved to include influences from several other genres. Instrumentation almost always includes an accordion, frottoir (also known as a washboard), guitar and drums which typically add even more rhythm and syncopation to create a highly danceable mix. The word Zydeco gets its name from a colloquial Creole French expression “Les haricots ne sont pas salés” meaning “there is no salt in your beans” or idiomatically for “the times are hard.” Like the blues, early Zydeco offered a way for the rural poor both to express and escape the hardships of life through music and dance.​​