Mwana Molokai

Description

Product Description

2004 release. In the 20 years that these two discs span, 1977-1997, Papa Wemba rose from a cult following in Zaire (Congo) to global stardom. Mwana Molokai is a collection of Wemba's most outstanding recordings, featuring tracks that were never previously available on CD or outside Africa, including several rare singles. In addition to duets with Pépé Kallé, Wendo Kolosoy, and Koffi Olomidé, the album showcases Wemba's celebrated band Viva La Musica. With Papa Wemba's death in 2016 at the age of 66 after collapsing on stage during a concert in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, this compilation is the best retrospective of the trendsetting soukous songwriter, singer, and bandleader.

Review

Papa Wemba has been more or less the voice of soukous since it took off, known as much for his fashion style as his remarkable singing. Starting in 1976 when he formed his first band, Viva la Musica, he's done a great deal not only to popularize the style, but also to shape the form of soukous. These cuts, taken from the first 20 years of that career, show just what he's achieved, moving from the rawness of the early tracks, where gospel and soul remain discernible influences, to later material, more polished and ambitious in execution and imagination. His musicians have always been the cream of the crop, and it's a delight to hear the welter of polyrhythms and guitar work behind his energetic, committed performances. There's an interesting choice of songs here, mixing the well-known with the more obscure to offer a very complete picture of Wemba's sound, and even a harking back to the golden age of Congolese rhumba in a duet with the legendary Wendo Kolosoy. –Chris Nickson, AllMusic.com