By my records, baring some major event in the next week, this should be post # 1000. Whew. This was on the high end of the scale at $8. I do not get a whole lot of what ever I thought this was when I bought it. Turns out it is a bit calypso, a bit reggae. Pretty decent mix of both actually, straight from Haiti by way of Panama.
The singer on this post, Manno Antoine R Jean Baptiste or Ti Manno as he is better known, was born in 1953 in Gonaives, Haiti. He was a very popular singer, musician, and band leader among Haitians. With his avant-garde lyrics, he played in various bands before moving to the US in the 1970’s, first Boston and then New York. After a few ventures, Ti Manno formed the Gemini All Stars, who made 5 albums. In 1983, he became gravely ill from an undisclosed disease. His illness led to a huge outpouring of the Haitian community, raising money for his treatment. When he passed in 1985, a huge turn out of fans attended his service in Brooklyn. He was only 31.
This album was his first with the Gemini Allstars. Leading the band, the album features two songs written by Ti Manno, as well as three songs written by others. Pretty good stuff. Again it is heavy on the calypso side with a shout out to reggae and a bit of funk. I really liked both “L’Argent” and “Cantor”.
The highlight, however, is the ten minute plus “Hommage A B. Marley”, obviously, a tribute to the reggae legend, Bob Marley. The song contains a medley of Marley tunes, including “No Woman No Cry”. Pretty decent number in all. However, at the end of the tribute, To Manno breaks into Jacob Miller’s “Tenement Yard”. I am not sure why this was included in a Marley tribute , but I am not complaining. Ti Manno’s version is excellent. Well, as I do not like posting long songs, I excised Miller’s classic from the overall homage and have submitted it here as a sample.
Good little album. Satisfactory.