Cafe Noir

構成数 : 1枚
合計収録時間 : 00:52:33
Personnel: Papa Noel (vocals, guitar); Papa Noel; Niurka Galarraga Piquero, Stella-liv Makasso, Pierre Belokos, Abby Surya (vocals); Osnel Rodriguez Othero, Adam Pedroso (guitar); Coto-Antonio Machin Garcia (tres); Osmil Ordonez Garcia, Miguel Angel Valdez De La Oz (trumpet); Palma-Ernest Reyes (double bass); Minel Westmelende (bongos); Tomas Dyani Akuru (percussion); Jorge Luis Torres (unknown instrument); Sultan Zembellat (vocals); Manu Dibango (alto saxophone). Recording information: Jonathan Recordings, Bristol, England; Studio ICAC, Havana, Cuba; Studio Marcadet, Paris, France. Photographer: Mo Fini. Arranger: Ray Crespo. About seven years ago, Congolese guitarist Papa Noel visited Cuba for the first time. It was a deeply emotional experience for him, because Cuban music had been hugely popular in the Congo of his youth and it was the music that his mother played for him at home as a child. That experience led to Noel becoming one of the major players in a Congolese rhumba revival in his home country, and led also to the Cuba-Congo musical summit meeting documented on this joyful, gorgeous album, Cafe Noir, The music is unbelievably danceable with ever being aggressively funky, or really, aggressively anything. The rhythms pile up in layers until they achieve an irresistible combination of complexity and earthiness. The horn arrangements are sometimes astoundingly pretty (notice them in particular on "Africa Mokili Mobimba") as are the vocal harmonies (notice them in particular on "Democratic") and there are moments when the groove seems completely unbound by gravity, as on the charmingly light "Soleil." Almost every track on this album is a complete joy -- only the harmonically static "Sandokan" and the slightly too self-referential "Soukous Son" fail to really take flight. Very highly recommended overall. ~ Rick Anderson
録音 : ステレオ (Studio)