Nico, Rochereau, Roger & L'African Fiesta - Volume 1 (1962-1963)

Nico, Rochereau, Roger & L'African Fiesta - Volume 1 (1962-1963) played a crucial role in developing the careers of Tabu Ley Rochereau and Docteur Nico, and more importantly, the genre of Congolese rhumba music.The extraordinary Congolese musicians Nicolas Kasanda aka "e;Docteur"e; Nico (1939-1985), guitarist, together with Tabu Ley Pascal "e;Rochereau"e; (1937-2013), singer, songwriter, and bandleader, first worked together under "e;Le Grande Kalle"e; Joseph Kabasele and what has been considered the first truly great Congolese orchestra, l'African Jazz. They are considered among the pioneers of Congolese rumba, a genre that originated during the 1940s and has been enormously influential worldwide. The album Nico, Rochereau, Roger & L'African Fiesta - Volume 1 (1962-1963) also featuring Mwamba Charles "e;Dechaud"e; on rhythm guitar and Roger Iziedi on vocals, contains some of their first Vita Label studio singles, recorded after the musicians left l'African Jazz to form L'African Fiesta. Subsequently re-released on SonoDisc, this collection of songs (curated by Iziedi) represented a significant new direction for Congolese rumba as the literal soundtrack for the heady and hopeful years of post-Independence life for much of Sub-Saharan Africa.