Kassav'

Kassav'
OriginGuadeloupe, France
Genres
Years active1979–present
Labels
Members
Past members
Websitekassav-official.com

Kassav', also alternatively spelled Kassav, is a French Caribbean band that originated from Guadeloupe in 1979.[1][2][3][4] The band's musical style is rooted in the Guadeloupean gwoka rhythm, as well as the Martinican tibwa and Mendé rhythms.[5][6][7] Regarded as one of the most influential bands in 20th-century French West Indies music,[8][9][10] Kassav is often credited with pioneering the zouk musical genre.[11][12][13][14] Their musical evolution is a synthesis of cadence-lypso and compas traditions.[15]

Despite initial resistance from French record labels, which disparaged their early works as excessively "too ethnic," Kassav' tenaciously persevered, collaborating with various West Indian music producers and distributing their music through Sonodisc.[16] The term "kassav" in creole denotes a type of cassava pancake.[17][18][19] The band's inception can be traced to Pierre-Edouard Décimus and Fréddy Marshall, members of the Guadeloupean ensemble Les Vikings, who aspired to innovate the island's traditional music by amalgamating it with contemporary influences.[5][20]

The integration of Georges Décimus, brother of Pierre-Edouard Décimus, and Jacob Desvarieux, a guitarist and arranger, significantly contributed to the band's gradual formation, with additional musicians subsequently joining Kassav'.[5][20] Their debut studio album, Love and Kadance, released in 1979, heralded the advent of zouk and served as the archetypical exemplar for the genre.[21]

With a discography of over 50 albums, encompassing both band and solo projects from its members,[22] Kassav' has achieved significant international recognition. They were the first black group to perform in the Soviet Union.[23]

  1. ^ Manuel, Peter; Bilby, Kenneth; Largey, Michael (20 June 2012). Caribbean Currents: Caribbean Music from Rumba to Reggae. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States: Temple University Press. p. 173. ISBN 978-1-59213-464-9.
  2. ^ Bennett, Andy; Shank, Barry; Toynbee, Jason, eds. (2006). The Popular Music Studies Reader. Thames, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom: Psychology Press. p. 189. ISBN 978-0-415-30709-3.
  3. ^ Nkwi, Gam, ed. (16 March 2021). Singing Our Unsung Heroes: (Re)Membering Manu Dibango, Celebrating Cameroon Music. Mankon, Bamenda, North West Region, Cameroon: African Books Collective. p. 2. ISBN 978-9956-551-82-8.
  4. ^ Ndi-Shang, Gil (6 January 2020). Letter from America: Memoir of an Adopted Child. Denver, Colorado, United States: African Books Collective. p. 91. ISBN 978-1-942876-49-6.
  5. ^ a b c Melyon-Reinette, Stéphanie, ed. (24 March 2021). Memorializing and Decolonizing Practices in the Francophone Caribbean and Other Spaces. Newcastle upon Tyne, England, United Kingdom: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 978-1-5275-6771-9.
  6. ^ Mendez, Hugo (2 December 2015). "Zouk: An Introduction". Daily.redbullmusicacademy.com. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  7. ^ Kurlansky, Mark (18 February 1992). A Continent Of Islands: Searching For The Caribbean Destiny. Boston, Massachusetts, United States: Da Capo Press. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-201-52396-6.
  8. ^ Torres, George, ed. (27 March 2013). Encyclopedia of Latin American Popular Music. London, England, United Kingdom: Bloomsbury Publishing USA. ISBN 979-8-216-10919-8.
  9. ^ "Kassav' - Biographie, discographie et fiche artiste" [Kassav' - Biography, discography and artist profile]. RFI Musique (in French). Paris, France. 24 January 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  10. ^ Delhaye, Eric (11 May 2019). "Le succès international de Kassav' le prouve: le zouk, c'est du sérieux" [The international success of Kassav' proves it: zouk is serious]. www.telerama.fr (in French). Paris, France. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  11. ^ Hanly, Francis; May, Tim, eds. (1989). Rhythms of the World. London, England, United Kingdom: BBC Books. p. 12. ISBN 978-0-563-20790-0.
  12. ^ Berrian, Brenda F. (15 June 2000). Awakening Spaces: French Caribbean Popular Songs, Music, and Culture. Chicago, Illinois, United States: University of Chicago Press. p. 42. ISBN 978-0-226-04455-2.
  13. ^ "Jacob Desvarieux, guitariste du groupe antillais Kassav' et pionnier du zouk, est mort" [Jacob Desvarieux, guitarist of the West Indian group Kassav' and pioneer of zouk, has died]. Le Monde.fr (in French). Paris, France. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  14. ^ Monaheng, Ts'eliso (22 May 2024). "Kassav, and Jozi's love for zouk". Africasacountry.com. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  15. ^ Neva Wartell. "Zouk - Tracing the History of the Music to its Dominican Roots". The Dominican. Reprinted from National Geographic. Retrieved 10 August 2010.
  16. ^ "Kassav': podcasts et actualités" [Kassav': podcasts and news]. Radio France (in French). Paris, France. 1 January 1970. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  17. ^ Reiss, Timothy J., ed. (2005). Music, Writing, and Cultural Unity in the Caribbean. Trenton, New Jersey, United States: Africa World. p. 391. ISBN 978-1-59221-177-7.
  18. ^ Mandouélé, Doris (8 August 2021). "Quand la musique renoue les cœurs blessés: KASSAV, un groupe qui a pu relier les Antilles à l'Afrique!" [When music reconnects wounded hearts: KASSAV, a group that was able to connect the West Indies to Africa!]. Les Echos du Congo Brazzaville (in French). Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  19. ^ Dowrich-Phillips, Laura (18 November 2018). "Watch: Kassav heads to 40th anni with possible Machel Montano collab". Loop News. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Pierre-Edouard Décimus". guadeloupe.net (in French). Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  21. ^ Andrews, Adrianne R.; Adjaye, Joseph K., eds. (1997). Language, Rhythm, & Sound: Black Popular Cultures Into the Twenty-first Century. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States: University of Pittsburgh Pre. p. 209. ISBN 978-0-8229-7177-1.
  22. ^ Dowrich-Phillips, Laura (30 July 2021). "Kassav co-founder Jacob Desvarieux has died". Loop News. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  23. ^ "KASSAV: First group to represent the Seychelles". Domizik75.tripod.com. November 2000. Retrieved 23 May 2024.