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Jou a Rive

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Jou a Rive
Studio album by
Boukan Ginen
Released1995
StudioAudiotek
GenreMizik rasin[1]
LabelXenophile[2]
ProducerYvon Cinè
Boukan Ginen chronology
Jou a Rive
(1995) 		Rèv an Nou
(1996)

Jou a Rive is the debut album by the Haitian band Boukan Ginen, released in 1995.[3][4] It was originally released in Haiti in 1993. Most of the lyrics were sung in Creole.[5] "Pale Pale W" had been voted Best Carnival Song at Haitian Carnival.[6] The band supported the album with a North American tour.[7]

Production

[edit]

Singer Eddy Francois and drummer Evens Seney had been members of Boukman Eksperyans.[8] Produced by Yvon Cinè, the album's music was arranged by guitar player Jimmy Jean-Felix.[9][10] Boukan Ginen included 10 members at the time of the recording.[11] "Ede M Chante" is an a cappella song.[12]

Critical reception

[edit]
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[13]
DownBeat[14]
MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide[9]
The Sydney Morning Herald[5]

The Chicago Reader stated that "Eddy Francois' Bob Marley-esque vocals, guitarist Vladimir 'Jimmy' Jean-Felix's psychedelic flourishes, and slices of straight-up reggae combine with the album's slick production and pop glosses to temper the Haitian ra-ra rhythms and voodoo chants with an overt crossover appeal."[15] The Washington Post wrote that Francois "delivers the group's anthemic songs with the political/spiritual fervor of a Bob Marley... Seney and his four fellow drummers organize their patterns around a definite groove, and the gifted Jimmy Jean-Felix adds North American rock guitar licks."[6]

The Gazette noted that "the very fact that Boukman Eksperyans and Boukan Ginen invoke more dangerous voodoo and rara rock rhythms is a defiant political statement... Their lyrics merely fan the flames."[16] Guitar Player thought that the album "presents their driving, effervescent blend of folkloric Haitian trance rhythms with rock, R&B, and reggae, all arranged by Jean-Felix."[10] The Chicago Tribune determined that, "in places, Boukan Ginen seems to be practically folksy even as it infuses its hypercharged vodoun celebrations with scorching guitar licks and near-solid walls of percussion."[17]

AllMusic wrote that "BG's mix of rock and funk and compas and rara-derived rhythms is much hipper and less self-conscious than [Boukman Eksperyans's]."[13]

Track listing

[edit]
No.TitleLength
1."Nati Kongo" 
2."Nèg Anwo" 
3."Jou a Rive" 
4."Ede M Chante" 
5."Pale Pale W" 
6."Tande" 
7."Sa Rèd" 
8."Lib" 
9."Travay" 
10."An n Ale Wè" 
11."Boukan Tou Limin" 

References

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  1. ^ Strauss, Neil (25 July 1995). "In Celebration of a Brightly Shining Future". The New York Times. p. C13.
  2. ^ Hebblethwaite, Benjamin (September 30, 2021). A Transatlantic History of Haitian Vodou: Rasin Figuier, Rasin Bwa Kayiman, and the Rada and Gede Rites. Univ. Press of Mississippi.
  3. ^ "Boukan Ginen Songs, Albums, Reviews, Bio & More". AllMusic.
  4. ^ Vilsaint, Fequiere; Hall, Michael R. (August 21, 2021). Historical Dictionary of Haiti. Rowman & Littlefield.
  5. ^ a b Elder, Bruce (October 16, 1995). "Fascinating journey – World". The Guide. The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 12.
  6. ^ a b "Spiritual Fervor of Boukan Ginen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 21 April 2022.
  7. ^ Katz, Larry (July 21, 1995). "Boukan Ginen Jou a Rive". Boston Herald. p. S16.
  8. ^ Denselow, Robin (3 Mar 1995). "World music". The Guardian. p. T14.
  9. ^ a b MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 2000. p. 104.
  10. ^ a b Birnbaum, Larry (Nov 1995). "Jimmy Jean-Felix: The voodoo Van Halen". Guitar Player. Vol. 29, no. 11. p. 22.
  11. ^ McCallister, Jared (July 23, 1995). "Roots-rockers to play Central Park". Suburban. Daily News. p. 16.
  12. ^ Sweeney, Philip (14 July 1995). "Fire down below". Pop. The Independent. p. 12.
  13. ^ a b "Jou a Rive". AllMusic.
  14. ^ Birnbaum, Larry (Jun 1995). "Third World exotica — Jou a Rive by Boukan Ginen". DownBeat. Vol. 62, no. 6. p. 58.
  15. ^ Margasak, Peter (February 8, 1996). "Spot Check". Chicago Reader.
  16. ^ Feist, Daniel (30 July 1994). "Out of Haiti's horror comes great music". The Gazette. p. D7.
  17. ^ Preston, Rohan B. (9 Feb 1996). "'Echoes of Africa' Tells It Like It Was—and Is—with Verve". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 6.
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