As guitarist Dizzy Mandjeku said in noting the cabaret seating front of stage, nobody in the Congolese capital would dream of sitting down to the music that pays homage to his late boss and inspiration, Franco Luambo, rumba master, guitar innovator, songwriter and general African music business dynamo.
It was a gentle warning. Presently, Mandjeku’s trumpeter left no doubt that he was having none of this reclining while the 12-piece worked up a sweat with a whole catalogue of moves. Quite right, too, although the view from the second row of tables did allow close appreciation of brilliantly fluent, punchy bass playing – right-handed guitar, left-handed style, thumb, fingers and even pinkie picking and dampening the strings – and Mandjeku and his guitar playing colleague playing tight unison lines and taking solos that were like finger-tip controlled cascades.
There are two of everything, guitars, saxophones, trumpets, female vocals and male vocals, all performing with teamwork that coalesces in the big picture with intuitive understanding. Songs come in rapid-fire choruses, delivered in exuberant voices and peppered with trumpet commentaries.
Star rating: *****
