JEAN-BOSCO
MWENDA AND FRIENDS: KATANGA ACOUSTIC GUITAR - 1950s
Jean-Bosco Mwenda (known later in
life as Mwenda Wa Bayeke) was the most famous and influential of the
virtuoso fingerstyle guitarists who flourished in Southeastern Congo,
near the Zambian border, in the 1950s. His first recording, "Masanga,"
was imitated throughout sub-Saharan Africa, and he went on to make more
than 200 records, both in the Congo and during a stay of over a year in
Nairobi, Kenya, as well as performing in Europe and at the Newport Folk
Festival. These recordings were from a series of reel-to-reel tapes in
the library of Radio Zaire in Lubumbashi, and represented the station's
vanished collection of 78s. Be warned: Although the music is wonderful,
the sound quality on some cuts is pretty rocky -- some of the 78s had
been played a good deal, and there were two tape transfers between the
78s and the CD. However, these include many of Bosco's finest records,
as well as songs by his frequent partner Losta Abelo and other local
players, none of them available elsewhere. For lagniappe, there are two
wonderful vocal group sides by the Zambian star Alick Nkhata (sometimes
spelled Nkatha). This CD has been slightly revised in 2007, since a friend provided me with four better-sounding tracks. To buy this CD, go here.
1. Mwendo tulikwenda
2. Vijana wapuuzi 3. Kuwowa pasipo kumwaza 4. Pauline Mubaya 5. Benya kwenda
kwetu (Losta Abelo) 6. Mtoto wa nkanga mu kiliyo 7.
Kupokelea wageni 8. Kubudongo 9. Abalumendo (Alick Nkhata) 10. Kitu gani ku mulango 11. Mapendano ya ku macho (Losta Abelo) 12. Bibi twende kwetu (or
"Pension") 13. Mtoto Kidogo 14. Singa tumbo ya wandumba 15. Pauline
(Paris Kabongo) 16. Lucia 17.
Kupendana twapendana 18. Nasikitika bumbalaka (Losta Abelo)
19. Bibi mupenzi 20.
Kupokelewa 21. Sikiliza pendo lako 22. Na mokolo
Mwa Lelo (Leon Bukasa) 23. Station Ya Mweo (Alick Nkhata)
24. Mukwenu wajima majimi 25. Mama kilio 26. Vijana
wengi (Losta Abelo) 27. Namlia |
JEAN-BOSCO MWENDA AND EDOUARD
MASENGO: KENYA AND BACK AGAIN including cds by Edward Masengo In the late 1950s, both Jean-Bosco and his cousin
Edouard Masengo went to Nairobi, where there was a more active music
scene. Bosco got a radio job advertising a headache remedy, Aspro, but
after a little over a year he decided to go home to Lubumbashi (at that
time Elizabethville). Masengo stayed in Nairobi, where he remained a
popular performer through the 1960s. (There is an interesting article
on the promoter who worked with Masengo and brought Bosco to Kenya in
the East African.) As a result,
alhough in the Congo he was not considered as important a figure as
Bosco or Losta Abelo, Masengo is far more popular in Kenya. His style
is lighter than Bosco's, and his guitar work less virtuosic, but there
is a lovely lilt to his singing, and he prided himself on his varied
repertoire. The interview that finishes this CD, apparently recorded in
Kenya in the early 1960s, finds him singing such oddities as "Paper
Doll" and a Swahili "Jamaica Farewell" along with his own compositions.
The other tracks are largely Kenyan commercial recordings from
1959-1960 (I have assigned credits by ear, and welcome corrections).
The last three Bosco tracks are from a tape he had in his home,
recorded I believe in the late 1970s, and I recorded the last
pre-interview Masengo track in 1990. Overall, the sound on these
recordings is much cleaner than on the Radio Zaire 78s. To buy this CD,
go here.
1. Tajiri
Na Mali Yake -- Masengo 2. Pita Mama Wakuone -- Masengo
3. Pilipili Usiyokula -- Masengo 4.
Bembeleza Mapendo -- Bosco 5. Ulofa ni Mabaya -- Bosco
6. Mke Mzuri (Kijana muke) -- Bosco (tablature)
7. Bibi Teresa -- Bosco 8. Chekelea Na Machekeleo -- Masengo
9. Kabwebwe Kikambala -- Masengo 10. Bwana Alisema -- Masengo
11. Usimsubue -- Masengo
12. Bibi Sofia -- Bosco 13. Leo Ni Furaha -- Bosco
14. Fundi Konde -- Masengo 15. Safari Taabu -- Masengo
16. Bibi Mpenzi -- Bosco 17. Kuolewa -- Bosco 18.
Wezi ni wabaya -- Bosco 19. Masanga -- Bosco 20.
Josephine -- Masengo 21-27. Masengo interview and songs,
including "Les Trois Qualités d'une Femme" and "Jamaica
Farewell."
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