The Syliphone Years

Amazon.com
When the West African nation of Guinea achieved independence in 1958, the new government hastened to encourage local art forms. Within a few years, each region had its own orchestra and Bembeya Jazz (named for a river flowing through their South-Western home province) was considered the best of all. Fronted by Aboubacar Demba Camara¹s visceral yet sensitively phrased vocals, the sinuous, glistening guitar of Sékou "Diamond Fingers" Diabaté and a full-blooded brass section, the band became a national institution and the first Guinean ensemble to perform outside Africa. These 26 tracks were originally released as 45 RPM singles and on LPs from the Syliphon label and if the sound quality varies, the music has held up remarkably well. Bembeya's nonpareil synthesis of slow-simmering Latin rhythms with otherworldly Islamic traditions constitutes a priceless legacy that simply must be heard. Fans of 1960s Congolese music and Senegal's Orchestre Baobab will adore them. --Christina Roden

The Syliphone Years,Bembeya Jazz National,Stern's Africa,African Folk,Afro-Cuban Jazz,Int'l & World Music,Pop

Average customer rating:

Authenticite - The Syliphone Years: Orchestres Nationaux and Federaux 1965-1980 Various Artists Manufacturer: Stern's Music ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Africa | International | Styles | Music General | International | Styles | Music Latin Music | International | Styles | Music | Compilations | Afro Brazilian | Bolero | Brazilian Jazz | Cuban | Flamenco | Latin Jazz | Mambo | Mariachi | Merengue | Salsa | Samba | Tango | Tejano Africa | Compilations | International | Styles | Music General | Latin Music | Styles | Music Similar Items: African Pearls, Vol. 1: Rumba on the River African Pearls, Vol. 2: Cultural Revolution African Pearls, Vol. 3: One Day on Radio Mali Urban Africa Club Aman Iman: Water is Life ASIN: B0000AVHAN Release Date: 2007-05-08

Tracks:

1. Keletigui et ses Tambourinis - Soundiata (5:51)
2. Balla et ses Balladins - Diaraby (6:11)
3. Kebendo Jazz - Soumba (4:14)
4. Horoya Band National - Karan-gbegne (4:04)
5. Bembeya Jazz National - Djanfamagni (4:08)
6. Orchestre de la Pailote - Kankan-yarabi (3:06)
7. Orchestre de Dabola - Semba (4:12)
8. Orchestre de Beyla - O.U.A. (4:52)
9. Palm Jazz - R.D.A. (5:07)
10. Bembeya Jazz National - Minuit (3:07)
11. Orchestre du Jardin de Guinee - P.D.G. (4:34)
12. Orchestre de Beyla - Koukou Befo (4:07)
13. Kebendo Jazz - Information (3:06)
14. Orchestre de Kindia - La Guinee Wodi (3:20)
15. Super Boiro Band - Mariama (6:46)
16. Bembeya Jazz National - Boiro (4:03)

Tracks:

1. "22 Novembre" Band - Kouma (5:02)
2. Keletigui et ses Tambourinis - Miri Magnin (5:01)
3. Pivi et les Balladins - Samba (5:48)
4. Bembeya Jazz National - Bembeya (5:25)
5. Horoya Band - Were Were (5:09)
6. Soumbory Jazz - Nana (6:55)
7. Palm Jazz - Zimai (4:41)
8. Syli Authentic - Fabara (5:25)
9. Camayenne Sofa - Karomoko (6:13)
10. Tropical Djoli Band de Faranah - Soko (5:07)
11. Nimba Jazz - Ziko (4:06)
12. Le Simandou de Beyla - Festival (5:05)

Album Description

When the French colonial administration pulled out of Guinea in 1958, they took everything: all their medicines, blueprints to the electricity grid, furniture, telephones, even the cutlery. It seemed that the passionate cry of soon-to-be president, Sekou Toure - made while addressing a public rally and standing right next to De Gaulle - of "We prefer freedom in poverty to riches in chains" had become more true than perhaps even he had hoped.

Undaunted and with optimism and vigour, the new government set about rebuilding the country. They established a campaign that encouraged artists to create new works, but based on traditional African roots. The policy was called authenticite, music was its focus and Syliphone its record label. Thus Syliphone found itself in the right place at the right time - a special moment in African history when a new nation asserted itself and placed music at the forefront of its identity.

This 2CD set "Authenticite - the Syliphone Years" features gems from their catalogue, most of which are on CD for the first time, and gives you an insight into the incredible energy of the times. All the great bands are here, with key songs from such legendaries as Bembeya Jazz National, Keletigui et ses Tambourinis, and Balla et ses Balladins. Also here are rare recordings from their contemporaries such as Syli Authentic, and Kebendo Jazz; groups that battled for honours against more than 30 others in Guinea's renowned arts festivals, where a 1st Prize could launch a band to stardom.

Times like these can't last - and they didn't. But while they did, the party was jumping and the music was glorious.

This deluxe package contains 2 CDs and a 44-page illustrated booklet with comprehensive notes by renowned expert on Guinean music Graeme Counsel.

Includes some of the most important recordings together with rare and previously unreleased tracks.

Average customer rating: Syliphone Years, Bembeya Jazz Natl The Original World Music

The Syliphone Years Bembeya Jazz National Manufacturer: Stern's Africa ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | Africa | International | Styles | Music Guinea | Africa | International | Styles | Music General | International | Styles | Music General | Latin Music | Styles | Music General | Jazz | Styles | Music Latin Jazz | Jazz | Styles | Music Similar Items: Legends of East Africa: The Original Recordings The Kings of Benin Urban Groove 1972-80 Golden Afrique, Vol. 1 Golden Afrique, Vol. 2 Congotronics ASIN: B0006SGFW8 Release Date: 2004-12-21

Tracks:

1. Republique Guinee
2. Sabor de guajira
3. Armee Guineenne
4. Dembaty galant
5. Air Guinee
6. Guinee hety horemoun
7. Montuno de la sierra
8. Waraba
9. Dagna
10. Doni doni
11. Camara mousso
12. Super tentemba
13. Mami wati
14. Alalake

Tracks:

1. Beyla
2. Fatoumata
3. Moussogbe
4. Sou
5. N'gamokoro
6. Ballake
7. Mussofing
8. Dya dya
9. Sina mousso
10. N'temenna
11. Telephone
12. Petit Sekou

Amazon.com

When the West African nation of Guinea achieved independence in 1958, the new government hastened to encourage local art forms. Within a few years, each region had its own orchestra and Bembeya Jazz (named for a river flowing through their South-Western home province) was considered the best of all. Fronted by Aboubacar Demba Camara¹s visceral yet sensitively phrased vocals, the sinuous, glistening guitar of Sékou "Diamond Fingers" Diabaté and a full-blooded brass section, the band became a national institution and the first Guinean ensemble to perform outside Africa. These 26 tracks were originally released as 45 RPM singles and on LPs from the Syliphon label and if the sound quality varies, the music has held up remarkably well. Bembeya's nonpareil synthesis of slow-simmering Latin rhythms with otherworldly Islamic traditions constitutes a priceless legacy that simply must be heard. Fans of 1960s Congolese music and Senegal's Orchestre Baobab will adore them. --Christina Roden

Customer Reviews:

Syliphone Years, Bembeya Jazz Natl.......2005-03-15

This is the perfect record to get your collection of Bembeya Jazz, and by extension, modern Mande swing music, started. These players listened to contemporary Cuban rumbas as well as Motown and funk, and drew from both, adding the rumba rhythms and funky orchestrations to a stew of subregional traditional music that featured long vocal lines, call-and-response techniques, and eloquent lyrics that drew from a long tradition of using music for moral instruction. But to describe Bembeya Jazz National in those dry terms hardly gets to the meat of the situation. This music swings like Count Basie in his prime, and takes all the tricks out of James Brown's bag and applies them to the rumba. It's a beautiful sound.

When you put the needle down on "N'gamokorô," for instance, you hear a beautiful horn-section introduction, then an eerie and intoxicating cowbell/bass drum rhythm takes over, underneath a spoken-word chant in Mandeng, then a leaping, bounding, rumba, where the main theme is stated. Demba Camara, the amazing vocalist, starts singing the verses, with the horns answering each line, and the guitarist dropping in obligatos everywhere. You can just imagine a crowd of sweaty, dapper Guineans bopping away at one of those open-air nightclubs in Conakry, the Paris of West Africa. As the guitar sets the rhythm with a hypnotic lick repeating over and over again, the trumpet, then tenor sax take tasty solos. That bleeds into the whole horn section playing in unison, then Demba Camara starts singing again in this amazing, hortatory call-and-response with the backup singers and the horn section, like Fela Anikulapo-Kuti in Mandeng language. It keeps brewing, until a sudden disco-type break, then the djembe drum leaps in for a mind-blowing solo, with the vocalist shouting alongside and the trap drums keeping time with the brushes. At the climactic moment, the horns hop back in and restate the theme, with the guitar lick in the background. Of course, that's not enough! Demba Camara comes back in and starts singing again, while the guitar and drums settle down into a kind of sedate rumba. He takes a break while the guitar unleashes a soulful, keening single-note solo, while the rhythm guitar comps behind. It ends on a sudden shout, then silence, as the dancers wipe their brows and go get a lemonade.

A lot of the best tracks on this record, such as "Armee Guineenne," "N'Borin," and "Moussogbe" are also featured on Bembeya Jazz's "Hommage A Demba Camara" and the compilation "Syliphone 40eme Anniversaire," so if you have either one of those amazing records, you may have some duplication. This one is worth the additional purchase, however, because it comes with a discography and nice explanation of where the group came from and where it fit into the overall politico-cultural situation at the time.

For those of you just starting your collections, however, this 2-cd set includes enough booty-moving, earth-rattling music to get you hooked.

The Original World Music.......2005-03-13

Guinea's Bembeya Jazz is, by any calculation, one of the greatest African bands of all time. As far as I am concerned, in fact, they are one of the greatest popular music bands ANYWHERE in the twentieth century. They also are among the most influential, at least in Africa, since their popularity spread far beyond their Guinean borders. This collection documents their greatest period during the 1960s and 1970s when they enjoyed the lavish if capricious patronage of the Guinean state. Like the wonderful Congolese bands of the same period, they had it all -- amazing, really amazing, guitar playing; mesmerizing singers; a scorching (if not always in tune) brass section. Their sound is hypnotic, funky, swinging - Africa meets Cuba meets U.S. rock; world music before there was world music. While this set is of great historic interest, it also is a complete pleasure to hear. The music still sounds fresh and creative and the tinny recording quality evokes tropical nights, sea breezes, and perhaps one too many beers at an open-air bar. . .

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