🇬🇵 🎷 🎺 🌅 📜 When Germain Cécé established the Caraïbe Jazz Ensemble in the early 1980s, he already had a long career behind him. Since the 1960s, he had notably performed with Fred Fanfant’s Fairness Jr (alongside Christian Fanfant, Gaby Moustache, and others). In 1980, he took part in two major projects: the album Butterfly Island by the Fabiano Orchestra and the experimental Doubout Pou Gadé by José Manclières. In 1983, he gathered a group of talented friends to produce Son Epi Coulé, the first album by an essentially Guadeloupean band, except for trumpeter Happy Lewis, who, though based in Saint-François, was originally from Antigua. The orchestra beautifully blended Caribbean roots with the jazz currents of the time, steeped in the smooth and West Coast wave, with a frequently Latin flavor (26 novembre). It showcased a generation of musicians who would remain closely connected in the years to come. The youngest member was none other than Raymond d’Huy on bass, just twenty years old and already brilliant. Alongside him were seasoned musicians: Gilbert Coco, Charly Chomereau-Lamotte, and Raymond Grego. The six musicians shared composition duties, creating a vibrant and warm Creole jazz that proudly claimed its avant-garde status. Alongside exhilarating tracks like Sabel Sabel or Beyond The Horizon, there was also the fleeting melancholy of Cristal. The copy presented here is Raymond d’Huy’s personal one, signed by all the other members of the group.
This album is also the 700th album reviewed on this blog!!
