Allé Simp’ – Eric Virgal, 1988

🇲🇶 🎤 🎺 🎶 🌟 The Martinican singer began his career in the 1970s with several 45s released on labels like Debs, Hit-Parade, and the more obscure Aigle and Biabi. However, it was in the 1980s that success truly arrived. Eric Virgal produced several cutting-edge zouk albums, such as Allé Simp’ in 1988. For this project, he surrounded himself with the island’s finest musicians, including Dominique Bougrainville, Luther François, Ronald Tulle, Jacky Bernard, and José Zébina. Adding the legendary brass section Slominsky & Co. resulted in a flawless album, whether in zouk love or zouk chiré, clearly inspired by Kassav’s school. Eric Virgal later collaborated on numerous duets with singer Orlane and wrote and arranged for artists like Pierrette Adams, N’jié, and Jean-Luc Guanel, who also features on the backing vocals here.