Sakesho We Want You To Say. CD

Sakesho: Mario Canonge (vocals, piano, Fender Rhodes piano); Michel Alibo (vocals, bass instrument); Jean-Philippe Fanfant (vocals, drums); Andy Narell (steel pan).
Additional personnel: Angélique Kidjo (vocals).
The casual listener might be forgiven for hearing Sakesho's second album as Caribbean-inflected lite jazz. There's certainly never an unpleasant (or even aurally challenging) moment on these nine tracks, and the instrumentation is about as straight-ahead as you can get and still include steel pans: drummer Jean-Philippe Fanfant, bassist Michel Alibo and pianist Mario Canonge support leader Andy Narell's virtuosic pan playing with wit, grace and elegance. But those familiar with the more esoteric dance music traditions of the Caribbean will hear much more. The foundation of Sakesho's music is biguine, the intensely syncopated and polyrhythmic music of Martinique. Canonge and Alibo are both natives of Martinique, and their effortless grasp of this highly difficult music is part of what makes the songs on We Want You to Say sound so deceptively light and simple. Listen closely to "Ewa Belia" and you'll hear four or five different layers of complex polyrhythm going on at any one time, each of them shifting and adjusting from moment to moment. "Dance Ska La" sounds like a cross between the Skatalites and Ruben Gonzalez, while "Jou La Pli" combines a five/four rhythm with mysterious vocals to stunning effect. Very highly recommended. ~ Rick Anderson