My introduction to the music of the Congo-Zaire actually happened in Beijing, many years ago….(sometime around 1981, but the memory grows foggy….). There, a group of young Brits met a group of recently arrived Zairois. The Zairois very soon were thrashing us at football (we blamed the pitch, of course), and, feeling sorry for us, invited us to a party at their Embassy. Best dance music I ever heard. When I left at the end of the year, one kind friend (Luru)  pressed a cassette into my hand, and on my return to Edinburgh, I set about trying to find some of the lovely stuff. It soon became clear that Stern's in London was the only place, so on the rare occasions I ventured south, I would raid that blessed place, and come away with an arm-full of albums. I also discovered that what I really loved was the old Rumba Lingala from the 60’s and the first rush of soukous blood to the head from the 1970’s, and bought mainly in those areas. 20 years later I still never tire of listening to those albums by the great masters -  Grand Kalle, Franco, Nico and Rochereau, Les Maquisards, the Vangu brothers, and so many others - and luckily they aren’t too scratched to play. You can see a list of some of my favourites here.

The music from that era is remarkably rich, yet it still does not seem to be that well known (do prove me wrong!), despite the development of the African and World Music scene in the last decade or more. So, while my colleages at Calabash roam far and wide in their efforts to keep your dancing feet moving on a Tuesday night, I like to stick to those delicious guitars and delightful tunes from a bygone age. Oh, how they could sing. If only someone could teach me how to dance the Kiri-Kiri!

Rumba John (aka The Librarian)

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