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Manu Dibango: Mboa' Su (Kamer feelin')

 A l b u m   D e t a i l s

Artist: Manu Dibango
Title: Mboa' Su (Kamer feelin')
Released: 2000
Label: Groupe JPS
Time: 41:48
Producer(s): Noel Ekwabi
Appears with:
Category: World Music
Rating: **........ (2/10)
Media type: CD
Purchase date:  2001.01.09
Price in €: 12,99
Web address: www.manudibango.net

 S o n g s ,   T r a c k s


[1] Mboa' Su (Manu DiBango) - 4:26
[2] Ayé Africa [Le Bucheron] (Franklin Boukaka / arr. Manu DiBango) - 4:22
[3] Ohi Kohi (Manu DiBango) - 6:35
[4] Wéya Mouna (Manu DiBango) - 5:44
[5] Big Blow / Abelé Mood (Manu DiBango) - 7:33
[6] Maya Ma Bobé (Manu DiBango) - 7:56
[7] Sango Yésu Cristo (Manu DiBango) - 5:11

 A r t i s t s ,   P e r s o n n e l


anu DiBango - Vocals, Saxophone, Piano, Hammond Organ, Arrangement

David Taeb - Platines
Xavier Desandre - Percussion
Thierry Galion - Programming
Jerry Malekani - Guitars
Jaques Djeyim - Guitars
Valery Lobé - Drums
Noel Ekwabi - Bass, Background Vocals
Mario Canonge - Piano
Frèdèric Gaillardet - Piano

Mimi Felixine - Background Vocals
Estha Dobong'na Essine - Background Vocals
Gino Sitson - Background Vocals

 C o m m e n t s ,   N o t e s


In 1973, Cameroonian Manu Dibango took Afropop worldwide with "Soul Makossa," a global hit - even Michael Jackson used the rhythm on his Thriller album. Almost 30 years later, Dibango remains a giant in the genre with a massive catalog. And the quality of Mboa' Su puts this latest release among his best. Whether it's the lovely gospel of "Sango Yesu Cristo" or the heartfelt tribute to the late Fela Kuti on "Big Blow," Dibango remains a musical master: laid back, letting the beat percolate around him, and adding his sax or deep vocal like Isaac Hayes. The sound might have a smoothness born of age, but he's never slick, nor does he allow the sound to dissolve into cheap drive-time jazz. When he wants to, Dibango can wail on his tenor horn and turn as funky as Maceo Parker. But he keeps an edge on the proceedings and always brings it back to Cameroon. Afropop might have a whole new generation of stars such as Femi Kuti, but this new album reminds us that Dibango's still the master.

Chris Nickson, Amazon.com



Eine der schönsten und wohltuendsten Stimmen Afrikas meldet sich zurück: der über zwei Meter große Saxophonist und Sänger Manu Dibango, dessen Platten seit Mitte der 70er Jahre (von "Big Blow" bis "Electric Africa" und deren mehr) positive Gefühle vermitteln. "Mboa' Su" ist keine Ausnahme, im Gegenteil: nach zwei, drei eher durchschnittlichen Veröffentlichungen liegt hier ein schlicht grandioses Sieben-Stücke-Werk vor, das -- erraten -- einfach Spaß zum Hören macht. Der einprägsame Rhythmus, Dibangos raue Schmeichelstimme, sein stets präsentes Saxophon sowie die kompakten Choräle dringen tief ins Herz und bleiben mittendrin stecken. Faszinierend, wie Ideen und Melodien leichtfüßig umgesetzt werden. Unprätentiös und keinerlei Vorgaukelungen werden auf "Mboa' Su" präsentiert, sondern einzig und allein die Emotionen eines Kollektivs von 13 Musikerinnen und Musikern, allen voran ein spielfreudiger Manu Dibango, der seinen gefundenen Stil ausleben kann und sich darin hörbar wohl fühlt. Mit ihm die Hörer. Versprochen.

[mh]



No review of a Manu Dibango album is complete without the now clichéd reference to "Soul Makossa." Dibango fused jazz and African rhythms, with his funky saxophone to produce a single that launched his career worldwide. The record climbed global charts, including American popular music-in 1973 no less-serving as another milestone for African music. To some "Soul Makossa" defined the concept of world music. It also serves as a benchmark for Dibango's later works. Even the tepid remake of the song on his Wakafrica CD cannot compare to the original in its raw energy. On Mboa' Su, the 67-year-old Manu Dibango returns to his musical roots, back to the night clubs of Cameroon, returning to the youthful energy that lives timelessly on his older recordings. Part of his success is due in part to a studio full of young African musicians, that give his direction a fresh interpretation. Although Dibango crosses nicely to Afro-Cuban style, as on "Maya Ma Bobe," or American gospel, like "Sango Yesu Cristo," he feels right at home with Franklin Boukaka's "Aye Africa," or "Weya Mouna." His tribute to the late Fela Kuti, "Big Blow," is respectful, accurate, and fun. While Dibango could easily rest on the success of his past works, he continues to earn respect by re-launching his career in new directions. This voyage home shows that the old master never lost his way.

Wayne Whitwam, www.rootsworld.com



An Afro-jazz saxophonist whose 40-year career has fluctuated with the times, Cameroon's Manu Dibango is still known primarily for "Soul Makossa," a funky bit of African pop that went top 10 in 1972. But while the makossa - a folk dance from the Cameroon port city of Douala - may have been Dibango's original bread and butter, an appetite for rhythmic diversity has informed his career. The Paris-recorded Mboa' Su distills Dibango's influences and experiences - an early apprenticeship in the Congo with Joseph "Le Grand Kalle" Kabasele's Africa Jazz ensemble, jam sessions with salsa's Fania All-Stars and Afro-dub riddim experiments with Jamaica's Sly and Robbie - into a panglobal party of ecstatic proportions. Whether infusing the giddy highlife exaltation of "Maya Ma Bobe" (RealAudido excerpt) with Mario Canonge's Cuban-esque piano runs, or leading his Fela Kuti Afro-beat tribute "Big Blow/Abele Mood" (RealAudio excerpt) into time-altering jazz breaks, Dibango effortlessly blends a planet's worth of musical colors into a fusion that begs for a better term to describe it. His tenor saxophone floats rather than solos, mirroring Noel Ekwabi's bouncing bass and Jerry Malekani's sprightly rhythm guitar, particularly on the joyous makossa tune "Oh! Koh!" (RealAudio excerpt). Throughout the disc, Dibango maintains a firm, guiding hand over the proceedings via his basso profundo spoken singing. When all is sung and done, Mboa' Su makes a convincing argument for one-world dance music.

www.afrodicia.com
[Fri., June 16, 12:00 AM EDT]



De la ferveur, de la danse, de la fête et de la bonne humeur tels sont les ingrédients distillés dans cette musique. Le roi du beat, docteur en musique africaine, le saxophoniste du groove, autant de qualificatif pour Manu Dibango qui vient de nous pondre son dernier opus qui suit une longue série de succès (Soul Makossa). Hommage, cet album essentiellement composé de standards chauds assure le bien-être et l'optimisme. Pour réaliser ses désirs, le sieur Dibango s’est entouré d'une multitude de musiciens montants comme le batteur Valéry Lobé et le bassiste Noël Ekwabi. Citons également la présence du pianiste Marion Canonge qui apporte une aura antillaise aux compositions du maître camerounais. De nombreux hommages sont discernables comme celui à Fela par une superbe interprétation rendu au maître de l'Afro Beat. Saxophone oblige. De la ferveur, de la danse, de la fête et de la bonne humeur tels sont les ingrédients que Manu Dibango distille dans sa musique. Je vous fais une ordonnance ?

Thierry Demougin



Mboa' Su, the latest by perennial world beat stalwart, Manu Dibango, features his soulful saxophone leading a top-flight rhythm section. Dibango is one of those world music superstars who has finally realized that what he does best is craft simple, funky and uplifting music for the masses.

CMJ New Music Report Issue: 671 - Jun 19, 2000  
 

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