Dynamite

The first steps of Kiamwangana Mateta a.k.a. Verckys as a musician were in a brass band playing the clarinet. It was Isaac Musekiwa, considered by many to be the 'godfather' of the sax in Congolese music, and then with the OK Jazz, who taught him to play the saxophone.

Verckys himself became a member of the OK Jazz in 1964, after having played in bands like Jamel Jazz and Dewayon's Congo-Rock and in the band of Gérard Kazembe. Much more a showman than the rather introvert Musekiwa he made quite a name for himself in Franco's band.

His career with the OK Jazz came to an abrupt end in February 1969 when he was kicked out by Franco after recording and producing four tracks with members of the OK Jazz without Franco's permission.

He decided to start his own orchestra: "orchestre Vévé". With Sinatra Bonga Tsekabu dit Saak Saakul as a singer, Verckys manages to get a contract at the Vis-A-Vis bar where they start in June 1969.
Among the first hits of the band is a track called "Mfumbwa", in which -according to our Congolese friends at mbokamusica- an authentic Congolese (vegetable) dish is praised (recipe!).
The two-part track, plus many more, can be heard on this explosive lp, released on the African label. Although there is no mention of this, I am convinced that at least two of the later Trio Madjesi are singing on this album (the other being Loko Massengo 'Djeskin').

African 360.016 (new link October 26, 2010)

Some of these tracks have been re-released on Sonodisc CD36599, which for some reason seems to have disappeared completely....

Technical note

There have been a few reports of broken links or expired files. I will try and restore and/or replace these as soon as possible.
Please do report all problems you encounter! You can mail me directly (see profile) or post a comment.

Mory Kanté

With a career mostly in Mali and Europe it is easy to forget that Mory Kanté was born in Guinea. It is a pity that most western audiences only know him by his 'hit single' Yéké Yéké. Although it has no doubt brought him fame, it has also labelled him as a pop artist. Anyone who has heard his work with the Rail Band (e.g. this CD) will know that he's more than that.

In a later post I will post some tracks by Mory Kanté with the ensemble of the kora legend Batourou Sékou Kouyaté, but for now here is some evidence of the level of respect he has in Guinea: a programme of the Interprétation Comparée series from 1988, dedicated to Mory Kanté, and to one track: "Balakononfing".

And that's not all. Here is a video from the mid-1980s, of Mory Kanté accompanied by the great Malian singer/griot Mah Damba*. The track is called "Mariama" with an "m", but Mory stubbornly sings "Mariana".... *more about Mah Damba in a later post UPDATE Jan. 6, 2010: the link to the "Interprétation Comparée" broadcast had gone dead. I have replaced it with a (hopefully) more stable link. EDIT June 11, 2013: I have replaced the link to the Interprétation Comparée programme with a faster one.

Kélétigui

One of the monuments of Guinean music, Maître Kélétigui Traoré, founder and chef d'orchestre of the former national orchestra Kélétigui et ses Tambourinis, has died in Conakry on November 11 at the age of 74. He had been ill for quite a while.

He was one of the original members of the Syli Orchestre National, founded in 1959. After this orchestre had been disbanded for the first time in 1962, Kélétigui formed an orchestra which played at La Paillote. The orchestra was later renamed to Kélétigui et ses Tambourinis.
The orchestra also performed as a backing band to other artists such as Sory Kandia Kouyaté and Miriam Makeba, and has toured the world as representative of Sékou Touré's Guinea.

Here is a selection of his work.

Playlist:
01. Merci Safoulaye
02. El chechoza (Paillote)
03. Mone Magnin (SLP 1 - Paillote)
04. Cigarettes Allumettes (SYL 502 - Keletigui)
05. Beni Yarabi (SYL 544 - Keletigui)
06. Toubaka (SLP 15 - Keletigui)
07. Guajira Con Tumbao (SYL 519 - Keletigui)
08. Tambourinis sax parade (SYL 514 - Keletigui)
09. Presentation (SLP 3 - Paillote)

Laye M'Boup

A lot (here or here or here) has been written about orchestre Baobab. So I don't have to introduce this Senegalese orchestra.

I liked the "Ken Dou Werente" lp in the 1980s, but I have not heard a lot of new compositions of the band since. A few years after the release of that album I got hold of a few cassettes released by Bellot Records (who at the time still sold music for affordable prices). And these, with all the technical advances and digital doodahs, remain my favorite recordings of Baobab.

And among those, this cassette is the one I would choose in my top ten from Senegal. It's the most Senegalese of Baobab's recordings, released as a tribute to Laye M'Boup, singer with Baobab from 1970 until his death in 1974.
And what a singer this man was! A voice that sends shivers down my spine. And even more so* with this recording. that just has that extra edge....

Orch. Baobab Gouye Gui de Dakar vol.3 - Hommage A Laye M'Boup (Bellot Records C 3806)

*Some of these tracks on this cassette have been released on the sympathetic Dakar Sound label (DKS 014).

Original de Manzanillo

The Orquesta Original de Manzanillo started just over 45 years in the town of Manzanillo in the Granma province of Cuba*. The first performances were in December 1963 under the name of "Orquesta Tipica", which a few years later evolved to the present name of "Orquesta Tipica Original de Manzanillo".
The most famous member of the orchestra was Candido Fabre, although he was only with the orchestra for ten years (1983-1993).

Of the original orchestra only four remain, and the most famous of those is the leader, pianist and arranger Wilfredo 'Pachi' Naranjo. The 'Original' is very popular in Cuba and have been allowed to tour the world. Nevertheless they have remained very modest and very very Cuban.
Here is a great video from Cuban television from 2006. The track is "Mi Sombrero de Yarey".

*one can't be too explicit nowadays, after hearing the president-elect of the US talking about releasing prisoners in Guantanamo.

Philosopher

He is mentioned in several books about juju music, and he features on the wonderful CD "Awon Ojise Olorun -Popular Music in Yorubaland 1931-1952". But nevertheless Theophilus Iwalokun seems doomed to be one of the many forgotten heroes of African music.
I am assuming that this lp is from the latter part of his career. But that's about all I can tell you about this artist.
Maybe someone knows more?





AHSLP.04

EDIT August 17, 2010: the link has been renewed!

Classic Coumba

This is the second post dedicated to Coumba Sidibé, who is one of the founders of the style which is too often called the Wassoulou style. The main reason for the reference to Wassoulou are, according to the late Alou Fané, the tracks 'borrowed' from dozo n'goni legends like (the -unfortunately also- late) Toumani Koné (I'll post plenty of his music later on). Like 'Noumouna Koulou(m)ba', the track in the video below.

The Sikasso region is, however, a source of a huge amount of musical styles, and Coumba Sidibé used several these in her kamalen n'goni music, which is a relatively new music form. Or, if you like, a tradition which has been started recently.

Here is the cassette I referred to in my first post. The cassette features two great musicians who currently reside in the Netherlands: Dramane Diarra and Zoumana Diarra. The cassette was released by Ibrahima Sylla, and his 'dedication' to the music can be detected on the sleeve: the titles are in the wrong order...

TAKAMBA!!!!

Believe me, the exclamation marks are in no way exaggerated when introducing this cassette. The rather tame track on "Le Festival au Désert" doesn't do justice to the raw force of Super Onze de Gao. And the soft flowing dance in this video will probably confuse, rather than explain his explosive version of the takamba rhythm.

Technically this is one of the most chaotic recordings I have, with cuts and breaks and channels dropping off. But for its unbridled energy it is in a league of its own....

Super Onze - Achalal

¡Merengue!

There is merengue all over the Caribbean, but its roots lie in the Dominican Republic. And it doesn't get much rootsier than on this classic among classics of the merengue music. Recorded 'in the field' in 1977, this album just jumps with joy and energy.

El Ciego de Nagua (plenty of videos on YouTube) has two tracks on this lp. And I just love the accordion merengues of La Macana and Nicolas Gutierres and his group, who unfortunately remain untraceable outside of these recordings. But my favorite tracks are the two from the "Grupo de Bachata" (is that the name or what they are?).
No accordion, but some great guitar.

LLST 7351