Babeti Soukous

By 1989 Tabu Ley Rochereau was living in exile in France, trying to break into the European music scene. Back at home though he’d been a superstar for decades, ever since playing on the seminal pan-African hit Indépendance Cha Cha and later leading immensely popular bands such as African Fiesta with fellow soukous pioneer Dr. Nico, African Fiesta Flash, and Orchestre Afrisa International. But Babeti Soukous, his 1989 studio/live album part of the first “wave” of records released on Peter Gabriel’s Real World Records, catapulted him into the international limelight. Most of the tracks are re-recordings of old hits, so it gives a real feeling of his style over the years, from the older, more rumba-like soukous, with stronger Latin influences and jazzier arrangements, to the faster, dancier rhythms of later years.