The talented trombone player and band leader
Al Lirvat was born in Guadeloupe in 1916, but spent most of his life in France. Immersed in the rich jazz culture of Paris, he became a fixture in the nightclub scene. Inspired by seeing Dizzy Gillespie in the 1950s, as he explained in
this 2003 interview at the age of 87, he decided to fuse the traditional beguine of his homeland with bebop. The result was
beguine wabap, and this album serves as a perfect definition.
Rich in percussion and suffused with jazz improvisation, listening with headphones can place you in a cabaret. Lirvat lamented that his invention did not become massively popular as dance music, like zouk, but it is just fine music from a bygone age. I think I bought this record for its wonderful cover photo. I was not disappointed.
2 comments:
I'm listening to this right now, and it's loads of fun! Upbeat & jazzy. Thanks for exposing us to a rarely heard musical style. -john
Exactly how I feel about the music: fun! Thanks for your kind words, and you're welcome!
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