Franklin Boukaka à Paris

A beautiful jazz record by an underrated giant of Congolese popular music, composed and arranged by none other than Manu Dibango. Recorded in Paris in 1970, the album isn’t  typical Congolese rumba, but you can hear some of those familiar rhythms and the influence of Cuban music throughout. Floating over Dibango’s arrangements, Boukaka’s baritone voice is passionate and compelling as he decries the state of Africa and the failure of African leaders to deliver promises of post-independence liberation. He has a remarkable ability to marry delicate, sweet melodies with scathing political lyrics. A few years after the album was released, Boukaka was assassinated for his politics, joining the list of martyrs he celebrates on “Les Immortels.”