Francis Bebey
Nandolo/ With Love: Francis Bebey, Works: 1963-199
Original Music, 1995
If the name Francis Bebey doesn't ring a bell, blame this country's promoters of modern African music for overlooking a veteran innovator. Born in Cameroon in 1929, Bebey grew up playing western music and developed an early passion for jazz, especially Louis Armstrong.. Bebey concentrated on guitar and led a jazz band in Paris during the '50s--he gave his more famous countryman Manu Dibango his first gig in that city. Bebey went on to compose and play his own idiosyncratic songs, but also to study and write books about African music. He headed up UNESCO's traditional music department during the '70s, and later incorporated sanza (thumb piano) and the Pygmee's one-note bamboo flute into his work.
This representative set of 18 tracks includes early gems, like Bebey's lilting acoustic guitar, bass, percussion and voice number "O Bia" ("Be Careful"), and later explorations as well, such as his 1988 high-tech blowout "Ndolo" ("Love"), which combines bass, balafon, voices and drum machine to make a tough-to-pigeonhole fusion. Think Ray Lema, or Manu Dibango in one of his rougher, rootsier moments. Bebey's vocal work stands out consistently. His big, easy baritone warbles and growls effortlessly through a folksy gospel number, "Maloba" ("Gods"), laced with intriguing, dark vocal harmonies. Bebey's plays fingerstyle, nylon string guitar and reveals many influences--the rolling, lullaby tonalities of West African palm wine music, Spanish guitar, the original makossa rhythm--which swings like old South African jazz--and classical guitar. Bebey's 1963 "West African Suite #3" suggests his reported fascination with Andre Segovia even as it segues gracefully through loving renderings of folksy, palm wine-like melodies. This 1990 recording of the piece is both rare and beautiful, but it's one of a few tracks here where Bebey should have passed on the drum machine and used the kind of live percussionists that grace his '70s-era tracks. The collection also includes examples of Bebey's hypnotic sanza and flute playing.
Contributed by: Banning Eyre for www.afropop.org
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