Zaire and Congo music reviews

This collection is nice look at Kanda's earlier years in Paris. The CD contains his first two albums: Iyole & Djessy.
I would say that this should not be your first Kanda album to buy. (That should be Kwasa Kwasa or Amour Fou) but if you have those, and like them--which you ought to--than this album would be the next in a natural progression of Kanda Bongo Man. The recording quality is superb and the licks are mighty featuring Diblo Dibala on guitar.
Get it; 5 stars.

Buy this CD. I purchased this lp in 1988 and it is still my favorite recording by the great Papa Wemba. In the late 60s and early 70s, Wemba helped revolutionize Congolese music by founding Zaiko Langa Langa. This is the group that dropped the guitars and sped up the music. At some point Wemba left the group to become an African superstar. This produce in Europe retains the energy and vigor of his album aimed at the African market, while containing stunning production values and incrediable performances. The songs are varied and each one contains more creative ideas than many musicians have in their whole life. Wemba sings a beautiful ballad, a mutwache, and straight ahead soukous. Wemba has a voice like a bird. After 12 years, this album still resonates in my head. This record is great for dancing, driving, and simpley listening to.

Except for Sango and Yokela which are new songs, this album is made up of enhanced and remastered songs from the 1992 Sai/Liza album which I gather was never released in North America. The music itself is the typical uptempo Kanda we have come to know although my favorite, Cantique, is kind of laidback and has hints of Cuban Rhumba. Great album with exellent music overall.

This CD is GREAT! I like this CD despite the fact that I don't even know what Kanda Bongo Man is saying! The guitar work is excellent and can get you moving your body to the tune. The drums and other instruments also. When I listened to J.T., Iyole, Sango, Lowazo, and Sai, I was actually moving to the beat of the music! I think Kanda Bongo Man's music will get you up and moving once you hear it.

Except for Sango and Yokela which are new songs, this album is made up of enhanced and remastered songs from the 1992 Sai/Liza album which I gather was never released in North America. The music itself is the typical uptempo Kanda we have come to know although my favorite, Cantique, is kind of laidback and has hints of Cuban Rhumba. Great album with exellent music overall.

This CD is GREAT! I like this CD despite the fact that I don't even know what Kanda Bongo Man is saying! The guitar work is excellent and can get you moving your body to the tune. The drums and other instruments also. When I listened to J.T., Iyole, Sango, Lowazo, and Sai, I was actually moving to the beat of the music! I think Kanda Bongo Man's music will get you up and moving once you hear it.

The first song, Me Bowa Ya by Mekongo from Cameroun, is a mid-tempo number with a bubbly beat and an enchanting mix of African and French vocals. The main lyric is in the African language and the chorus is in French, and it works so well.

Massoua Mo by Eba Aka Jerome from Ivory Coast is next, and this one has a long instrumental intro before the male vocal enters the mix. This single vocal is boosted by a chorus of many voices in certain parts while the string instruments become ever more engaging. Quite a stunner!

The next country is Upper Volta: the song Dounougnan by Kambou Clement has a lilting texture, intricate instrumental interplay and a soulful vocal with a spiritual undertone. Bo Mbanda by Pablo from Zaire is a beautiful melodious ballad full of yearning with absolutely breathtaking guitar parts and interesting vocal twists and turns.

The style changes drastically with Jalo by Etoile de Dakar from Senegal. This is a slow, mournful dirge with a Middle Eastern feel, soulful vocals and instrumentation dominated by what sounds like an organ. It sounds like a prayer set to music and is most compelling and memorable. The album concludes with Moboma, an uplifting slice of vocal pop by Menga Mokombi from Congo.

These unforgettable songs are all tuneful, catchy and rhythmically gripping. They demonstrate the opulent richness and variety of the African pop music of the early 1980s. I also strongly recommend Sounds d'Afrique vol. 2 for more of these wonderful African sounds from the early 1980s.

Bought this in 1981 when it first came out and still haven't found an afro compilation that tops it. With a mainly soukous focus and to my mind better than Sound D'Afrique 2 this was THE album that introduced African sounds to the english speaking world. I'm looking to get this on cd if at all possible as my vinyl version is all but worn out.

If you find a copy buy it!

This opulent album opens with Dede Priscilla by Lea Lignanzi from Central Africa Republic, a most rhythmic and hypnotic lilting number with French exhortations to dance scattered in between the lovely sounds of the African language. The next number is by Mensy from Cameroun, somewhat more subdued than the previous, but equally hypnotic and engaging in its rhythmic textures.

Bolingo Mobesu by Vonga Aye from Zaire is a real sizzler with its soulful female vocal, male backing vocals and pulsating beats. Absolutely brilliant and ideal for the dancefloor. The next country is Mali, whence comes Menebo Nden by Moussa Doumbia. This one opens with wailing a capella vocals before the buoyant rhythms come in. It also contains the most beautiful instrumental flourishes and has an overall Middle Eastern flavour, especially in the vocal patterns.

The melodious Madeleina by Pablo Lubadika Porthos from Zaire is next, a flowing love ballad with a bittersweet feel. Then comes Jeff Louna from Congo with Paulina Mineure, a mid-tempo number that sounds the closest to a Western pop ballad. The album concludes with Yoyoyo by Asi Kapela from Zaire. Halfway through there is an interesting rhythmic break before all the instruments return in full force.

Every track on this gorgeous compilation is a pleasure to listen to. The songs are tuneful and most are highly uplifting and joyful. Please also investigate Volume I of Sounds d'Afrique, although I personally like this album more. Together these two albums demonstrate the richness and variety of African pop music in the early 1980s.

I am so glad to find this again. My vinyl version got broken in a move. This is wonderful upbeat music that will make you feel good to be alive. I love it when I find a lost treasure like this.

This album, and its companion album Sound D'Afrique vol.1, are great compilations of early African pop - mostly, but not exclusively, Soukous. Originally put out by Island records in the early 80's, this infectious dance music has vocals of great expressive feeling along with snappy horn sections and churning rhythms (as well as the intertwinning guitar parts we have come to expect from this music. Dare ya not to dance!

I have been in love with Mbilia Bel for years. The first song on this CD I can listen to it over and over and it keeps me going all night long (if you know what I mean) Out of this world beautiful voice !!!!

I love the mix of Cuban and African rhythms and styles and the music is upbeat throughout, so that's why I rated it fairly highly. It would make good background party music.

However, the CD doesn't compel me to get up and dance. It just doesn't have enough energy or spunk. I think the CD is overproduced, so these guys don't feel like they are having as much fun as they should be!

I think many of these reveiws are very subjective, however I hope this is a fair reveiw, that's my intention.
Ricardo Lemvo is a breath of fresh air in music, his music is so interesting because, although it is obviously Salsa, his African background, seeps through in both his singing and also the content of the music.
He really brings together a wonderful marriage of Salsa, and African music. This is particularly interesting because in the Congo he would have been brought up in a style of music called La Rumba Congolaise, which was heavily South American flavoured, and it is fascinating that he is now exporting part of this 'Rumba' back into South American music !
He sings from the heart, but it is a joyful melodic singing, his songs are uplifting, he makes you feel good, you feel happy when you listen to his music.
You can not beleive that he is from the Congo in Africa, because his Salsa, is very Cuban in style, however once you know that he is African, it becomes very obvious in his music.
I am from Britain and have been brought up on a diet of pop and rock, my favourites were Jimmi Hendricks, Led Zepplin, Peter Gabriel e.t.c.
Ricardo Lemvo is the equal of any of them, he is a great.
I have been fortunate enough to have seen Youssou N'dour in concert, and now my biggest ambition is to see Ricardo Lemvo.
Ricardo when's the next album coming out ?
When are you coming to Britain ?

Great show at the Conga Room in Los Angeles, Sunday 5.23.99. This is my entry to win an autographed CD. hope I'm one of the 10.

Kanda Bongo Man is real good live, but good CDs of his are hard to find. I really enjoye dthis CD,and heartily recommend it to anyone who already likes the musical genre, and to folks who are still checking it out. Nice dance music that makes your hips wanna shake...and if you know what you are doing, why not let them? My suggestion--buy this CD.

"Kwassa Kwassa" refers to a dance that was very popular in Zaire (Congo) in the late 1980's and was much popularized by this record. The words "Kwassa Kwassa" might have come from the French "Quoi �a?" (What's that?) and the album cover lends support to this idea (see the lower right corner). If you want a very well played soukous (Congolese dance) album, this is it. Much of the credit must go to guitarist Diblo Dibala, whose riffs are unforgettable, and are the perfect accompaniment for Bongo Man's singing. Circa 1990 you couldn't step outside your house in Central Africa without hearing this record, as every taxi-driver and shop-keeper was playing it. This record is high-energy, exciting, and always uplifting.

Soukous are joyous, wonderfully flowing, fast and rhytmic tunes, rooted in latin dance rhytms but with an African heart. Kanda Bongo Man is one of the greatest soukous artists ever and this CD is probably a God-sent gift to all who feel life is beautiful! Get it. Now!

If it were not for the drummer in Diblo's band having been replaced for this album it would likely be one of my favorite albums. If you don't mind electronic drums ignore this review. If you can tell the difference a real drummer makes you are likely to feel aggravated listening to this.

There aren't many guitarist that can match the skills and rapid-fire style of Zairean Diblo Dibala, the mainstay behind the band Loketo, a word that means "move you hips" in the Lingala language. And shake your hips you will as soon as you put this CD on! The infectious rhythms of this soukous CD, with its foundation in Diblo's dazzling guitar work and backed by the vocals of luminaries such as Aurlus Mabele and Kanda Bongo Man (both mega soukous stars in their own right) are guaranteed to liven up any celebration involving music. Soukous merges the traditional rhumba style with a hard driving beat that is sure to excite the listener to break into dance. "Super Soukous" is a landmark in the evolution of African popular music and caused a sensation when it debuted in 1987, yet its sound is as exciting as ever today. I particularly like to start off dance parties with a bang by playing the highly infectious and danceable Track Three piece called "Amour Et Souvenir"...indeed a souvenir of love, of celebrating life and good times. I haven't tired of this CD yet, and I seriously doubt that I will. If you enjoy this CD, check out other soukous gems like Kanda Bongo Man's "Kwassa Kwassa" or "Zing-Zong", and another Loketo recording featuring Aurlus Mabele and Diblo Dibala called "Soukous Trouble", all of which are guaranteed hip-shaking music! Also check out the soukous guitar party groove on a compilation called "Lightning Over the River", a superb collection and a great follow-up to further explore Diblo's Loketo sound.