🎺🌴🥁👯♂️🕺 Since his debut in 1970, Henri Guédon has been the herald of Latin groove in the French West Indies. He started out with the boogaloo wave, and by the end of the decade had become the ambassador of salsa, culminating in a Latin all-star concert at the Olympia. In the early ’80s, Henri Guédon himself published his own compilation, going back to his earliest records. “10 Ans de Musique Caraïbe” (10 Years of Caribbean Music) features tracks that are virtually impossible to find today, from early recordings with La Contesta to the emblematic Cosmozouk. In other words, the list of musician credits is more than adequate, from Vico Charlemagne to Jacky Bernard, from Claude Vamur to Jo Maka, via Michel Pacquit, Freddy Nkounkou, Marc Stecklar, Alain Candela and countless others. So it’s a gamble that’s bound to be lost to try and pick one track rather than another from this album. Ten years apart, for example, we’ll remember the unmissable low tempo of Guajira Contestation on one side and the irresistible salsa Bomba Misicien on the other, but the whole selection is to be enjoyed without moderation, and even on repeat!
10 Ans de Musique Caraïbe – Henri Guédon, 1980
