Ballet Exotic Du Robert "Caribbean Tropical Music: Martinique" (Arc Music, 2009)
A nice homage to the glory years of Antillean jazz and swing, from a revival band led by Fred Adelaide... The music is a fun mix of European, African and Creole culture, dipping into waltzes, mazurkas, boleros and -- of course -- the bouncy, giddy dance known as the beguine, which returned home to the Antilles after World War Two, following its European heyday on the 1930s. Admittedly, there is a fly-in-amber feel to these folkloric performances -- they don't have the kooky abandon of 1940s artists such as Sam Castendet or Stellio -- but it's still a fun record, and I imagine seeing this ensemble live would be a real gas. A nice introduction to a very diverse regional scene, and perhaps a good starting point for further explorations.
Sam Castendet "Integrale -- Festival Biguine: 1950" (Fremeaux, 2003)
Ernest Leardee & Andre Salvador "Rythmes Des Antilles: 1951-1954 Avec l'Integrale Andre Salvador" (Fremeaux, 2007)
Wapa Sakitanou "The Music Of Martinique" (Arc Music, 2003)
Raw, vibrant Afro-Caribbean percussion, presented by a lively folkloric ensemble that has been at the forefront of preserving Antillean cuture since its founding in 1990. A surprisingly engaging, powerful album... drumming fans will not want to miss this one!
Stellio "L'Etoile De La Musique Creole" (Music Memoria, 1991)
Stellio "Integrale Chronologique: 1929-1931" (Fremeaux, 2004)
Felix Valvert "Les Annees Cubaines: 1944-1948" (Fremeaux, 2004)
Various Artists "AU BAL ANTILLAIS: FRANCO-CREOLE BIGUINES FROM MARTINIQUE, EARLY RECORDINGS OF CARIBBEAN DANCE MUSIC" (Arhoolie, 1992)
Various Artists "BIGUINE A LA CANNE A SUCRE: 1946-1949" (Fremeaux & Associes, 1996)
The perky, irrepressibly cheerful rhythms of the beguine are explored in rich detail in this set of post-WWII recordings, made by several bands that clustered around the La Canne A Sucre nightclub, on the Antillean island of Martinique. The groups included Sam Castendet's and Denis Ancedy's "orchestras" (neither actually had more than eight members on any of these recordings), as well as the Orchestre Typique Antillais L'Exotique Jazz, all of which shared overlapping memberships. A female vocalist, Moune de Rivel, lights up several songs with Ancedy's band; she had been a teenage star in 1930s prewar Paris, back when the beguine was still in vogue in Europe. The liner notes include tantalizing pictures of other female singers such as Jenny Alpha and Marthe Alessandrini (who are not included on this compilation) -- another entire Fremeaux disc is devoted Sam Castendet, as well as one to bandleader Pierre Louiss, who also performed at the club in the 1940s. The music on this collection is alternately exhilarating and slightly monotonous and rough... It's fast-paced, virtuosic and unrelenting. All in all, though, it's a cool set, worth checking out if you want to explore the roots of Antillean popular music.
Various Artists "BIGUINE, v.1: BIGUINE, VALSE ET MAZURKAS CREOLES: 1929-1940" (Fremeaux, 2003)
Various Artists "BIGUINE, v.2: BIGUINE, VALSE ET MAZURKAS CREOLES: 1930-1943" (Fremeaux, 2003)
Various Artists "BIGUINE, v.3: BIGUINE, VALSE ET MAZURKAS CREOLES: 1930-1944" (Fremeaux, 2005)
Various Artists "CARIBBEAN VOYAGE: THE FRENCH ANTILLES - WE WILL PLAY LOVE TONIGHT!" (Rounder, 2004)
Various Artists "CARIBBEAN VOYAGE: MARTINIQUE -- CANE FIELDS AND CITY STREETS" (Rounder, 2004)
Various Artists "MUSIC OF MARTINIQUE: 1929-1950" (Flyright, 1996)
Various Artists "PARFUM DES ILES -- FLORILEGE ANTILLAIS DE L'APRES-GUERRE: 1946-1950" (Fremeaux, 2004)
Various Artists "SWING CARAIBE: PREMIERES JAZZMEN ANTILLAIS A PARIS" (Fremeaux, 2002)
Various Artists "TUMBELE -- BIGUINE, AFRO AND LATIN SOUNDS FROM THE FRENCH CARIBBEAN: 1963-1974" (Soundway, 2009)
More modern stuff in a variety of styles...
