CD Review no. 43 | All CD Reviews

On the night of January 13, 2001, in a huge ballroom at the Bethesda Holiday Inn in Bethesda , Maryland, the group Strings released its third CD entitled "Island Follies". It was well worth the wait. The five hundred people who packed the ballroom thoroughly enjoyed the music and were among the first in the area to get their hands on what promises to be another hit for Strings.

The mood is set right from the start with the title tune "Island Follies" a piece which starts on a happy note of percussion, whistle and quickly merges into a ferocious blend of Konpa, Flamenco and other Latin rhythms, all of which creates a whirl of happy sounds which will make you lose your senses (in the good sense of course): the band is happy, the sound is happy and you can sense that feeling through the play of the musicians. Strings has managed to create a distinct sound rapidly becoming known as the "Strings sound". It is quite fascinating and immensely enjoyable to listen to the interplay on one hand, of the guitars (solo, second guitar and bass) and on the other hand, of the percussion section. This is precision at its best as you listen to the play of Serge Laguerre (conga, djembe, bongos) Arus Joseph (maracas, congas) and Robenson Jean-Baptiste (drums) . Listen for example to tune No.1 "Island Follies", tune No.2 "Springtime" or any other. The transitions are crisp, accurate and disciplined.

Discipline is also the word which applies to the play of lead guitarist Jacky Ambroise who plays nylon, steel and 12-string guitar with such ease, Ralph Blanchard who provides steady support with expert strumming, and Philippe Augustin on the bass who shores up everything.

Listen to the bass line on tune No. 4 "Ceto", composed by Jacky Ambroise. This is a perfect example of how the Flamenco sound blends so nicely with Haitian Troubadour music and Coupe Cloue sound. To those who are familiar with it, the bass sounds like a Haitian "Manoumba", with this deep sound. Tune No. 6 "Ain’t no sunshine" a well-known composition by Bill Withers, is brought back to life with a wonderful, soulful interpretation by Strings, with a strong percussion interlude right in the middle. This is simply exquisite. Tune No. 7 "Beach party" is again another tune which will put ants in your pants, in the words of James Brown.

Of particular notice is tune No.9 "Pos machan", a well-known Haitian ballad. The group does a wonderful job with this piece. The violin arrangements are just sublime and, in the tradition of the "Strings sound", they are tailored on the Mexican Ranchera sound.

If you want to listen to pure Flamenco music, then tune No. 10 "Rayssa", is exactly that. Close your eyes and you will feel transported to Spain, with the"castagnettes", the guitar sound, the maracas, the guitar box used to produce sound, the phrasing and everything.

That is what makes Strings so original on the Haitian music scene . To be able to so effectively blend Flamenco, Konpa, Haitian Troubadour and Haitian Roots music all in one is no small feat. Yet, after two very successful albums, and yet a third one which will most likely, follow the same pattern, Strings has managed to achieve a remarkable ….string of accomplishments, bursting on the Haitian musical scene by imposing a new style, creating for itself an enviable niche and maintaining quite a standard in the face of stiff competition. Judging by the response of the hundreds of people on that night who bought "Island Follies", you should rush to get your own copy. You will thoroughly enjoy each one of the ten tunes it contains.

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Back in December 2000, a momentous musical event took place in Haiti. Haitiando – Vol. 2 was officially released. Do you remember Vol. I? Well if you do, you are in for another exquisite treat with this one. For starters, the same musicians are here to provide excellent musicianship to a nice collection of Haitian traditional ballads played on traditional Cuban rythms. Eddy Prophète on the piano and Boulot Valcourt as lead vocal make you feel so at ease.

As was the case with Volume I,. Eddy Prophète’s arrangements are a model of finesse, subtlety and underhanded complexity. Listen to each one of the tunes carefully, over and over again, to pick up those subtle phrases. And this is what makes Vol. II a perfect follow-up to Vol. I. Playing violin this time on this CD is Federico Britos Ruiz. What a job he does on tune No. 3 "Caridad", a composition by Ulrick Pierre-Louis . You will love it!.

A wide array of Haitian composers is featured on the CD: Rodolphe Legros, Gérard Dupervil, Jean Benjamin, Ernst Léandre, Guy Durosier and others. The more, the merrier!. In fact, when you look at the wealth of music that our predecessors left us, I think that Fred Paul, the producer, has enough material for quite a few more albums of the genre, each with potential as a collector’s item. I hope this is part of his future plans.

As usual, Boulot Valcourt is at his best . Listen closely to how he phrases the lyrics. Hear the original melodies and you will better appreciate what Boulot does with those melodies. This is the mark of an experienced singer. Raymond Cajuste, another one of my favorite singers, does a wonderful job on tunes Nos. 6, 7 and 11. I also like tune No. 8 "Manzè Rosa", in which Eddy lets loose a little bit, but just enough, so as not to overwhelm the song. If you listen carefully, you will hear him uttering the notes he is playing during his solo, something common to many jazz pianists. Tune No. 9, a Creole adaptation of "Guantanamera", is a very imaginative interpretation of a song which manages to remain fresh, no matter how many times it is played. The lyrics are quite meaningful. Listen to the melodic lines of the piano in tune No. 10, Guy Durosier’s Pamela. This is just wonderful harmony. And what about tune No. 11 "Léogâne" sung by Raymond Cajuste? Guy Durosier’s famous tune receives a catchy cha cha cha treatment by the group.

Now if you ask me which one of those 11 tunes is my favorite, I might say: Tunes No. 3, or 5, or 7, or 10, or 2 or…..In short, all of them. It is imperative that you add this album to your private collection. You will be sorry if you don’t!.

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From Strings and Haitiando, we move on to a different genre. At the end of the year 2000, a number of excellent Konpa albums were released and among them, X-tra, by Brutus – Still the Zenglen Connection will probably be considered as one of the best Konpa albums released for the holidays.

The first thing that struck me with this album is the sound of the band. The band does not make noise. The music projects a kind of calmness and steadiness. This is the type of Konpa that you dance without getting tired. The background vocal is very well harmonized and contributes to the feeling of steadiness and tranquility in the music. I also like the style of both guitarists Ralph Ménélas-Phanord and Jean Brutus Dérissaint. They have a soft sound, which reminds of Makarios Césaire and fit well in the band. Listen for example to tunes No.1, or 4 or 5. They are quite enjoyable.

I also like the fact that there is a real brass section on the album that is one which does not come from a synthesizer. I always preferred the real sound. The mixing is pretty good and all instruments come out clearly. Actually that is not surprising when you read that Welmyr Jean-Pierre was at the helm. The presentation of the CD is also quite original, colorful and very catching.

The lyrics are more or less acceptable. While they are not the best, they are better than those of quite a few other bands out there. After the success of Zenglen’s previous album, this CD is a worthy successor. The style is different, but I found it quite enjoyable. Make a dash to your CD provider and add this one to your collection.

Serge Bellegarde