Souci Mady...

I was supposed to post this on Father's Day but the video I made was not complete at the time. I would still like to take the time out to thank ALL the fathers out in the world doing God's work by taking care of their children in a hands on capacity. I would like to of course thank my own father, Guy "Mwana Mboka..Mokonzi Ya Rumba" Angrand, for his role in our (my siblings and I) lives.

Thank you Daddy for always being there!! Thank you for giving us this appreciation for music and showing us the power it has to bring people together! Thank you for giving us a great life and continuing to help us through! We love you! You are an inspiration to us all!! WE LOVE YOU! :)

Now with no further ado, here is the video I made for the song Souci Mady that Guy recorded with Pepe Felly's band Les Yatoupas back in the mid 70s. I hope you all enjoy it. PEACE...

Emission 06.28.08: Franco & TP OK Jazz and Zaiko Langa Langa

EMISSION 06.28.08 - Franco & Zaiko Langa Langa Special

TELECHARGEMENT/DOWNLOAD:
PART I
PART II

Tracklist:

Bakwetu - Papa Wemba(Theme)
Tokoma Ba Camarade ya Pamba - Franco & OK Jazz
Meka Okangama
Mbanzi Ya Kamundele
Tailleur
Makambo Ezali Bourreau
Ndaya
Shout For Freedom - Jimmy Cliff w/Franco & OK Jazz
Love Me - Jimmy Cliff w/Pepe Felly & Grand Zaiko Wawa
Fololo Ya Nzembo 1 - Zaiko Langa Langa
Toli Ya Kulu
Ima
Elo
Zaiko Wawa (Closing Theme)

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.

Introducing PEPE FELLY

It seems I made a mistake. It seems the clip of Papa Wemba and band singing Monama is not Zaiko Langa Langa after all but Viva La Musica . Sorry about the mix up

...


Introducing: Pepe Felly Manuaku Waku






Pepe Felly is also an original band member. Those who write up on Zaiko Langa Langa tend to only mention the names of those who sang upfront at one point or another. But Pepe Felly has been a vital part of Zaiko Langa Langa from the beginning and is responsible for changing Congolese music by introducing the Sebene to the song format. The sebene is a melody on two or four measurements, looped to express what the singer cannot express with words. It's the expression of the songs emotion through melody. This part of the song allows the music to connect even more with the audience. No, Pepe Felly was not a singer but as lead guitar soloist, he was definitely a star in the Zaiko Langa Langa line up just like Papa Wemba or Nyoka Longo.

Pepe Felly was born, Felix Pedro Manuaku in 1954 in Congo-Kin. The bio on his official website (which is in french) doesn't specify a city or village. He was born second in a family of 7 boys and 5 girls. As a child he attended The Academy of Beautiful Arts of Kinshasa. He began his career with Zaiko at the tender age of 15 in 1969. By 1973, at only 19 years old, Pepe Felly was named the best guitarist of the third generation of modern Congolese music by the Congolese press. In 1977 he played with Tabu Ley at Festac of Lagos, Nigera, recorded "Love Me Love Me" with reggae sensation, Jimmy Cliff and the French singer, Jacques Higelin. His guitar dominated Zaiko's sound until he left the group in 1980 at which time he formed Grand Zaiko Wawa. From '85 to '88 he toured with Grand Zaiko Wawa through Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon, Rawanda, Burundi, Niger, Switzerland, Belguim and France. (Zaiko Langa Langa has splintered into several spin off orchestras by this time. These 'splinters' will be covered over time...)



In 1989 Felly relocated to Switzerland where he took part in workshops of The Lausanne School of Jazz and giving lessons of guitar at Hello Jazz with American saxophonist Robin Kenyatta.

2005 found Pepe Felly meeting Narcisse Okon, an event coordinator, concert programmer, and DJ from Ivory Coast. Together they form Pepe Felly & Band who bring forth L'Afrique C'est Chic. L'Afrique C'est Chic is a showcase of African music from across the continet which seeks to be an international annual music festival.




Today Pepe Felly still lives in Switzerland and continues to play music. Tomorrow I will transcribe Show #9, the interview between Guy Angrand, Pierre Mbala and himself which goes more into what he's doing at the present time and talks about the history of Zaiko from a first hand experience. Also a few mp3s to go along with it. Stay tuned. PEACE...