Cameroon Fever Vol. 1

Ken Abrams does it again with Cameroon Fever Vol. 1, a tasty collection of tracks from that country, mostly from the golden '80s, when Makossa, Makassy, Tchamassi and Bikutsi ruled.

A few notes about some of the artists here: Besides being a prolific artist in his own right, Isidore Tamwo in the '80s was the producer of Sam Fan Thomas, who achieved world fame with his smash "African Typic Collection," among others. Andre-Marie Tala popularized the Tchamassi rhythm and won a court case against James Brown for plagiarizing his hit "Hot Koki." Betuel Enola is better known as a backup singer for the likes of Manu Dibango and Lapiro de Mbanga, but she did make at least one solo recording, Propriete Privée, from which the song "Oa" is taken. The Golden Sounds, led by Jean Paul Zé Bella, are arguably one of the most influential African groups of all time, thanks to their 1986 smash "Zangalewa," better known as "Waka Waka," whose serpentine history is discussed by Uchenna Ikonne here.

Johnny Tezano acheived fame in the '80s with a synthesis of Camerounian and Congolese music that he called Ma-kwassa, while Ebanda Manfred is best known as the author of the song "Ami," made famous by Bebe Manga (and which you can download here). Jean Bikoko Aladin, who passed away last year, was one of the founders of modern Camerounian music, who popularized the Assiko style in the early '60s.

1. Emancipée Mariama - Isidore Tamwo

2. Celle Qui T'A Aime - Andre-Marie Tala

3. Oa - Betuel Enola

4. Maladie Difficile - Golden Sounds

5. Bobe Na Bongo - Cella Stella

6. S.O.S Mon Coeur - Marcel Tjahe

7. Balong - Maurice Njoume

8. Carreau Magique - Johnny Tezano

9. Baby Na Mamy Na - Ebanda Manfred

10. Humanisme African - Tonye Jackson

11. A Yiga Tchome - Jean Bikoko Aladin Et L'Assiko Rigueur

12. Pane Pane - Georges Seba

13. Mengabo Wo Dze - Alao Javis

Download Cameroon Fever Vol. 1 here. And explore Ken Abrams's artwork here.

From the Banks of the Oubangui River

The music of the Central African Republic is little-known. There are some excellent recordings of traditional music on the Ocora label (Empire Centrafricain: Musique Gbáyá/Chants à Penser [558 524, 1977] is a standout), but its "modern" artists are often overlooked in favor of those of the CAR's neighbors, Cameroun and the two Congos.

Some may have wondered if there is a serious music "scene" in the CAR at all, but as recounted in a fascinating post in Matt Lavoie's African Music Treasures blog, indeed there has been since 1954, when Prosper Mayélé founded Tropical Jazz, which became the house band at Bangui's Le Rex club. As is the tendency in African music, Tropical Jazz spawned splits and sub-splits, giving rise to Orchestre Centraficain, Vibro Jazz and Tropical Fiesta. A group called Zokela, founded in 1981, in 1999 split into four different Zokela permutations. For samples of music from several of the groups I've mentioned, I would refer you to Matt's well-researched article.

It has not been my practice to post more recent, commercially-available recordings on Likembe, but as it apparently has long been out of print, I am making available here RCA: Centrafrica Compil (Déclic 50 608, 1997), which is a pretty good overview of the Central African music scene, at least as it existed in the late '90s. I regret that I can't give you any information about the musicians. As you might expect, the sound owes a lot to Congo music, but there are plenty of uniquely Central African touches (take note especially of Francis Gon's "Caresse de Î Les"). Enjoy!

Musiki - Magalina

Super Stars - Molamogui

Melo Divine - Géné

Mobanza Ley - Troumba Lô

Jezu Lokota - Mama Ateka

Ouaka Stars - Ma Yvonna

Mayele - Wo Ti Mo Bè Mo

Canon Star - M.P.S.

Petit Tchadien - Pauvreté

Centro Mix - Sanza Nostalgie

Zokela - Injection

Francis Gon - Caresse des Î Les

Africa Musica - Tout Se Paye Ici Bas

Download RCA: Centrafrica Compil as a zipped file here. I suspect that some of the tracks on this CD were mislabeled. If someone has information about the correct track-listing, let me know and I'll make a correction.

Enjoy this video by Canon Star, one of the groups featured on Centrafrica Compil: