FRANCO & LE TPOK JAZZ - Francophonic

Franco was apparently underwhelmed when James Brown played on his home turf of Zaire (now Congo) for the famous "Rumble In The Jungle" fight between George Foreman and Muhammed Ali. In a time when many African nations were embracing independence, many African bands were proudly strutting their authenticite (modernized sounds combined with authentic African roots) and for Franco, James was just not real enough! Twenty years after the death of this giant of African music, Stern's has scored with this massive collection spanning his earliest Congolese rhumbas in 1953 to being awarded Grande Maitre by his country in 1980. Repeated listens reveal an artist who had a masterful command of various idioms and would often shift through a few in the space of one track. A long-awaited double-disc collection and absolutely essential listening.