TAMBOUR D'AFRIQUE TONIGHT

Tonight a brand new episode of Tambour D'Afrique will be broadcast @ 10pm to 12am, Eastern Standard time. Visit www.radiotriomphe.com for the link to the broadcast.

Today I have a brief english explanation of last weeks (Show #13 was a rebroadcast of Show #8) interview with Pepe Felly Manuaku Waku. For some odd reason since the show aired I've been calling Show #8, Show #9. So my Show numbers are lil' bit off. I'll have that all figured out soon. Anyway to hear the show I'm speaking of check out the playlist to the right, in the margin and click on Show #8. Sorry for the mix up. On with the show!



Guy started the interview off introducing Felix Pedro Manuaku Waku aka Pepe Felly.
They cover a little of his early history. His grandfather was a musician in the Congolese rumba scene so he was exposed to the music very early in life. The first band he joined before joining L'Orchestre Zaiko was in another band, L'Orchestre de Belky (named for an area) which went defunct after a month for reasons Pepe Felly doesn't know. The director of the band just quit.

Guy plays a portion of "Ce La Verité" and then talks about how he was introduced to Zaiko Langa Langa. Pierre Mbala and Guy grew up together in Thysville (now Mbanza Ngungu), Congo. When Guy would leave to go to school in Europe Pierre would send Guy tapes of Congolese music. One day, with much excitement, Pierre sent Guy a Zaiko Langa Langa tape and urged him to listen. From then on, Guy says, he was a Zaiko Langa Langa fanatic and particularly a fan of solo guitarist Pepe Felly.

In the United States Guy was in a band by the name of Diffusion. With his band he returned to his 2nd home-country Congo(Haiti being his first). He talks about how they met at a show at VICTOIRE and became cool right away. They were able to keep their friendship even though they would only see each other every few years. Pepe Felly then reminds Guy that he was the first to introduce him to super guitarist from the states, George Benson.

Guy Angrand singing lead for Diffusion @ Brooklyn College n 1976

...

I apologize because my french is pretty limited. I've reached a point in the interview where, well, I have no idea what's being said lol I understand the questions asked but the most important part, the answer, is going right over my head. I really want to continue with this though because Pepe Felly is such a great musician and this is a great interview because it's just 3 friends talking and questions that other interviewers may not ask are being asked. When I get the chance, I will have Guy help me translate the rest of the interview. Hopefully I will have the rest of this up by tomorrow night. Sorry for such an abrupt ending. I leave you with an MP3 of some of Pepe Felly's best work Chouchouna, check for the sebene!

Chouchouna 1 & 2

Until next time...PEACE and don't forget to tune into TAMBOUR D'AFRIQUE tonight at 10pm EASTERN time.