La Sirene

Issa would be proud of this one! A lively rendition of "La Sirene" which I blogged about here, a beautiful song based on the Vodou lwa. Perfect for a 'fun' Friday night! 

Paulette

This song is quite good, avoiding some of the schmaltz of a lot of Caribbean music centered on the electric keyboard or synthesizers. In my opinion, much of African and Caribbean popular music lost its charm following the widespread adoption of synthesizers and electric keyboards (sadly, the case of Ethiopian music illustrates this quite well, though of course the new instruments were cheaper and I suppose more convenient for the musicians themselves, rather than continuing to rely on full bands with horns and other acoustic instruments). "Paulette" also features the voice of Roger Colas, a man I must admit I never heard of until about 2 years ago when visiting relatives in Miami and southern Florida. He has a great voice, and the band's accompaniment, horn section, and restrained yet jubilant percussion (often some of my favorite in Caribbean and West African highlife music) thrill me endlessly. Somewhere about halfway through, the song's structure shifts and recalls Cuban music, perhaps a result of Cuban influence or the general 'lazy' and smooth jazzy atmosphere of the tune. It's undeniably Haitian or French Caribbean. One final reason I may like this version is that it sounds like the same "Paulette" of folk or meringue fame, though it's unquestionable that Weber Sicot recorded the same "Paulette" in 1961 (listen here).