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Bembeya Jazz National

Bembeya Jazz National

Bembeya Jazz National has been played on NTS over 30 times, featured on 23 episodes and was first played on 22 February 2015.

Bembaya Jazz National is a Guinean jazz group that gained fame in the 1960s for their infectious Afropop rhythms. They are considered one of the most significant bands in Guinean music. Many of their recordings are based on traditional folk music in the country and have been fused with jazz and Afropop style. Featuring guitarist Sekou 'Diamond Fingers' Diabate, who grew up in a traditional griot musical family, the band won over fans in Conakry, Guinea's capital city, during the heady days of that country's newfound independence. Bembeya Jazz fell onto harder times in the 1980s and disbanded for a number of years, but reformed in the late 1990s and has toured Europe and North America in the early 2000s.

In the aftermath of the Guinean Independence in 1958 and the encouragement of cultural pride, numerous bands sprang up throughout the African country. The first dance bands were state-supported orchestras, and included popular groups like Lanaya Jazz, Keletigui et ses Tambourins and Super Boiro. The most popular was Bembeya Jazz National, formed by vocalist Aboubacar Dembar Camara in 1961. Specializing in modern arrangements of Manding classic tunes, Bembeya Jazz National won the first two national Biennale festivals in 1962 and 1964 and was crowned National Orchestra in 1966.

Initially a seven-piece group, featuring a Latin-flavored horn section of saxophone, trumpet, and clarinet, Bembeya Jazz National reached its apex with the addition of electric guitarist Sekou "Diamond Fingers" Diabate and lead singer Sekouba Mabino Diabate (no relation). Although prohibited from touring outside Guinea until the mid-'80s, Bembeya Jazz National continued to build a cult-like following in its home country.

Bembeya Jazz National's most ambitious album, Regard Sur Le Passe, released in 1968, was a musical tribute to the memory of Samory Toure, who founded the Mande kingdom in 1870. A live album, 10 Ans De Succes, was recorded during a 1971 concert.

A set-back for the band came in 1973 when Camara was killed in an auto accident on his way to a concert in Dakar. Although they remained together for another eight years, Bembeya Jazz National was unable to duplicate the success of their earliest years. The group disbanded in 1991 with Sekou Diabate and Sekouba Bambino Diabate going on to successful solo careers. However, it reformed in the late 1990s and has toured Europe and North America in the early 2000s.

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Bembeya Jazz National

Bembeya Jazz National has been played on NTS over 30 times, featured on 23 episodes and was first played on 22 February 2015.

Bembaya Jazz National is a Guinean jazz group that gained fame in the 1960s for their infectious Afropop rhythms. They are considered one of the most significant bands in Guinean music. Many of their recordings are based on traditional folk music in the country and have been fused with jazz and Afropop style. Featuring guitarist Sekou 'Diamond Fingers' Diabate, who grew up in a traditional griot musical family, the band won over fans in Conakry, Guinea's capital city, during the heady days of that country's newfound independence. Bembeya Jazz fell onto harder times in the 1980s and disbanded for a number of years, but reformed in the late 1990s and has toured Europe and North America in the early 2000s.

In the aftermath of the Guinean Independence in 1958 and the encouragement of cultural pride, numerous bands sprang up throughout the African country. The first dance bands were state-supported orchestras, and included popular groups like Lanaya Jazz, Keletigui et ses Tambourins and Super Boiro. The most popular was Bembeya Jazz National, formed by vocalist Aboubacar Dembar Camara in 1961. Specializing in modern arrangements of Manding classic tunes, Bembeya Jazz National won the first two national Biennale festivals in 1962 and 1964 and was crowned National Orchestra in 1966.

Initially a seven-piece group, featuring a Latin-flavored horn section of saxophone, trumpet, and clarinet, Bembeya Jazz National reached its apex with the addition of electric guitarist Sekou "Diamond Fingers" Diabate and lead singer Sekouba Mabino Diabate (no relation). Although prohibited from touring outside Guinea until the mid-'80s, Bembeya Jazz National continued to build a cult-like following in its home country.

Bembeya Jazz National's most ambitious album, Regard Sur Le Passe, released in 1968, was a musical tribute to the memory of Samory Toure, who founded the Mande kingdom in 1870. A live album, 10 Ans De Succes, was recorded during a 1971 concert.

A set-back for the band came in 1973 when Camara was killed in an auto accident on his way to a concert in Dakar. Although they remained together for another eight years, Bembeya Jazz National was unable to duplicate the success of their earliest years. The group disbanded in 1991 with Sekou Diabate and Sekouba Bambino Diabate going on to successful solo careers. However, it reformed in the late 1990s and has toured Europe and North America in the early 2000s.

Original source Last.fm

Tracks featured on

Most played tracks

Alalake
Bembeya Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1970
Regard Sur Le Plusse
Bembeya Jazz
Palmtree Music0
Armée Guinéenne
Bembeya-Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1974
Petit Sékou
Bembeya Jazz National
Stern's Africa2004
Beni Ibara
Bembeya - Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1971
Waraba
Bembeya Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1970
Petit Sekou
Bembeya Jazz National
Cantos2006
Armee Guineenne
Bembeya Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1968
Ballake
Bembeya Jazz National
Editions Syliphone Conakry1974
Whisky Soda
Bembeya Jazz National
Éditions Bolibana0