Gigantafrique!

Kalle, Pepe

album cover

The Towering Giant of Soukous

As he tells his listeners on the staggering nine-minute dance "Pon moun paka bouge," Pepe Kalle (1951–1998) developed his singing style as a very young man: His first experience with music was singing hymns in the choir of the Catholic primary school he attended in Léopoldville, Zaire (now Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo). Then, in high school, he "apprenticed" with the father of modern Zairean music, Joseph Kabasele, who taught him how to treat a melody with great care and humility. By the time Kalle was twenty, he'd had more training than most African singers ever get.

"Pon moun paka bouge" suggests that Kalle is aware of and grateful for the unusual properties of his voice, which is distinguished by its commanding power as well as an inescapably woeful twinge. On the refrain, Kalle—a big man with a massive baritone—cautions dancers to stay where they are, because he and guitarist Diblo Dibala and the rest of the Empire Bakuba band intend to blow their minds. The final three minutes or so find them making good on the promise: The music is an eruption of carefully threaded electric guitar arpeggios, vocal chants, and keening Kalle entreaties, each one more riveting than the previous.

Kalle's voice is a marvel—the brief, wriggling prayer that opens "Tiembe raid pa moli" will tell you that—but his reputation rests as much on the surging rhythmic intensity of his band, which takes the calypso-like dance style called soukous to high levels, and keeps it there. This recording combines material from two sessions with two sets of musicians; the three tracks featuring Dibala, the great genius of guitar as embroidery, rank among the all-time great examples of effortless loose-limbed African dance music.

Genre: World, Congo
Released: 1990, Afro Rhythmes/Ace
Key Tracks: "Tiembe raid pa moli," "Bilala-lala," "Pon moun paka bouge."
Catalog Choice: Larger than Life
Next Stop: Tabu Ley Rochereau: Babeti soukous
After That: M'bilia Bel: Bameli soy
Book Pages: 417–418

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Comments:

#1 from David - 12/30/2010 9:04

Will this music ever come back into print ?It’s very expensive right now.

#2 from Tom Moon - 01/06/2011 12:07

thanks for your note.

A few of these great Pepe Kalle recordings have disappeared over the last year or so, and I don’t know why.

I looked quickly for an anthology, in hopes that one might include some of this record, but didn’t immediately find. I will post here if I encounter one.

happy exploring!

TM

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About 1,000 Recordings

Celebrate the joy, the revelation, the mystery, the fun, the sheer shivers-up-the-spine pleasure of great music.

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