CD Review no. 57 | All CD Reviews

Those who regularly read this Chronique know how much I complain about the lack of new releases from Haitian female singers. This situation still prevails, although I am happy to review this time Farah Juste's most recent release, Chans pou lanmou, pou lapè (A chance for love, for peace). If there is anything I can say about Farah Juste, it is that for the last ten years or so I have known her, she has been consistently committed to the defense, through her music, of the right of the downtrodden and the underprivileged. Her many albums give ample testimony of that commitment. It is therefore no wonder that her New Year's concerts in Miami have now become the main event in the area.

Farah Juste's music is not only about committed lyrics, but also nice arrangements by very competent musicians. On this CD, the excellent guitarist Bémol Telfort aptly arranges the music. Right from the first tune, also the title tune, we know we are in for a treat. I love the sound of Haitian saxophonist Didier Labossière who plays with a lot of feeling. He beautifully harmonizes his phrases. A nice chorus also supports Farah. Listen for example to the vocal harmony in tune No. 3 "Plante". Labossière's sax solo is excellent. Farah covers also a variety of themes throughout the album: the condition of women, the environment, Haitian history, and so on. And all this is done on a variety of rhythms also, from Haitian ballads through some calypso of particular notice is tune No. 9, "Militan", a beautiful arrangement of the famous "Concierto de Aranjuez". The lyrics are from Farah Juste and what a job she and Bémol Telfort do in that song! This is exquisite! It should also be noted that Farah Juste is a prolific composer. Of the ten songs on the album, she composed seven. On previous albums, she is the sole composer. She is supported by an excellent cast of musicians which enhance her singing. Bémol Telfort's arrangements have a quality that I admire a lot: they do not overwhelm the songs and one is not distracted from listening to Farah Juste 's voice and to the message in the song.

In sum, I found that the more I listen to the album, the more I like it, as I pick up more of the subtleties in the arrangements. This CD is a very nice combination of committed music coupled with excellent musical arrangements. I really like all the songs on the album. The mixing is very good amd all the above means simply that, in my book, this is a CD to be included it in your collection. It is entirely worth it.

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Changing gear now, we go to a totally different style. While I was rummaging around the CD stores in New York, I stumbled over a recently released CD, which I bought, by pure instinct. Muzik etc… by the A Team 2001 turned out to be a pretty good Konpa album. I told myself it had to be so upon reading the names of the musicians on the cover: Lionel Déjean (sax) , André Déjean, Anderson Cameau (trumpets). Laurent Cicéron (bass), Dadou Pasquet (guitar), Denis Nozile (guitar) and many more. To me, that was enough to guarantee quality. And my instinct was right. It is a pretty nice album.

I was also happily surprised to hear the voice of the legendary Joe Trouillot in modern interpretations of such classic tunes like "Oro Basso", "Sharp Shooter". After more than 30 years, the voice has not changed; it has remained steady and easily recognizable. I find the Konpa rhythm on this album enjoyable, lively and tight. There are some great tunes here. The arrangements on tune No. 4 "Gran'n" is particularly. This tune was one of the late Gérard Dupervil's great hits with the Jazz des Jeunes. The arrangements are very good. Listen to some of those fine chords on the keyboard by Harold St-Louis, Denis Nozile guitar solo and André Déjean's trumpet underneath and Anderson's Cameau's solo trumpet à la Miles Davis. This is nice music. As usual, Déjean's trumpet is subtle like in tune No. 6, sung by on of my favorite singers Raymond Cajuste. I also like tune No. 7, which contains a poignant message, embodied in the title of the tune: "Ayiti padone'm (Haiti forgive me)". And the big surprise is to hear the voice of Manno Charlemagne as the lead vocal on that particular tune.

Speaking of nostalgia, how about tune No.8, "Faux Serment". It features one of my favorite guitarists, Dadou Pasquet. This tune, sung by Joe Trouillot really takes you back. Listen to the lyricism of Dadou Pasquet's guitar underneath Joe Trouillot's singing. Pasquet's does such a good job of walking alongside Joe Trouillot throughout the song, playing from time to time some Wes Montgomery patterns, which makes his playing most harmonious. He has a way of hitting those nice chords, plucking the guitar in a very particular way, like just before introducing his solo and closing it. It is just pretty. He must have felt particularly comfortable playing with his excellent bassist from Magnum Band, Laurent Cicéron. Indeed, Cicéron's bass fits right in with every note Pasquet plays. The song sounds as fresh as ever.

I won't tell you which song is better than the other. Just like the Farah Juste album, I like them all. If you are looking for a solid Konpa album, I recommend this one. It has nice harmony, the mixing is very good and it features an excellent cast of musicians. One more good addition to your collection.

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Coming up

I heard through the grapevine that pretty soon, a nice album should be released; I am talking about this wizard of keyboard programming, Serge Duviella. You will remember the excellent work he did on such albums like Synthèse, Aganman, Bidjonel and many more. It has been a while since we heard from him, but trust me, this will be a nice album. I was privileged to listen to some of the songs and folks, Duviella does a pretty good job with this music from…..Stay tuned. I will keep you posted.

I also understand that Jean-Claude Eugène will be releasing a new CD. Working on this album is Fritz (Toto) Duval as arranger. I know he has been at it for a while. I also listened to some of the tunes and it should be another winner. I will keep you abreast.

Finally, this excellent group, Mozayik, is also working on the release of their long awaited second album. I cannot wait for this event either. As you see, we have a lot coming up; this is only a little bit of what is happening musically. So, keep reading the Chronique.

Serge Bellegarde
For Windows on Haiti