To recall Balla Ovinogui's memory who left us few time ago (march 2011), lets share one of Balla et ses Balladins late LP from 1980.
This track shows great performance of the 2 singers Manfila Soba Kante and Emile Soumah, but horns and guitars are also just perfect. I think they reached the announced objective...
Balla Onivogui (trumpet player and director) was one of the great figures of Guinea "Authenticité" era, recording first with Orchestre du Jardin de Guinée and then with his group Les Balladins for governement's label Syliphone.
Wilikabo is a funk influenced (but deep and heavy guinean) song, with great drums and guitar solos.
Balla et ses Balladins - Wilikabo:
Sekou "le docteur" Diabate: lead guitar Pivi Moriba: alt sax Manfila "Soba" Kante: vocals Abdou Camara: drums Souleimane Sylla: sax Amadou Thiam: perc Bamba Kourouma: bass Kemo Kouyate: rythm guitar
Let's stay around Conakry... This "Musique Sans Paroles" (music without world/lyrics) LP is not the most representative of Guinean music from the Syliphone state label from the 70s, but one of my favorites.
Among the varied and great tracks, I selected 2, first is a kind of joyfull ballad by Quintette Guinéenne (not to be mixed with Quintet Guinéen playing with Myriam Makeba) with a nice bewitching guitar melody. Then comes a wicked sounds exchange between Momo Wandel (Sourah) free jazz style saxophone and exhuberant and explosive percussions. Momo Wandel continued his musical carreer joining Circus Baobab (guinean company including acrobats and musicians) and composing original soundtracks (check the CD: “Momo Le Doyen” African BO - saphir 2007 / soundtracks of various african movies).
I had a nice surprise discovering at the end of Syliphone's Guinée An X (SLP 09) a track reminding the famous "Armée Guinnéenne" from Bembeya Jazz National.
In fact it's just the same melody but recorded by the "Ensemble Instrumental de la Radiodiffusion Nationale" from Guinea.
Recordings are from 1968, so 10 years after Guinea independance. As several Syliphone productions, liner notes are from Sekou Touré himself, promoting african unity and universality...
Guinée An X - Ensemble Instrumental de la Radiodiffusion Nationale (SLP09) EIRN - Milice Populaire
Guinée An X - Orchestres Nationaux. Grand tierce musical. (SLP 08) Bembeya Jazz National - Armée Guinéenne
