Les Sessions Cubaines - Philémon Chante
Philémon Chante was not feeling too well. What do you do when feeling under the weather? Why travel to Cuba and record an album in the famous Egrem studio where the Buena Vista Social Club recorded their now classic album. What else would you do?
Je voulais enregistrer mon album en février, mais, pour des raisons diverses, je n’étais pas en grande forme. Un ami m’a dit de partir au loin durant un mois. J’ai pensé à Cuba. J’avais depuis longtemps envie d’y aller, avant que ça explose, et puis on dit qu’il y a d’excellents musiciens, enfin, le soleil, l’espagnol, La Havane.
I wanted to record my album in February, but, for various reasons, I was not in great shape. A friend told me to go away for a month. I thought in Cuba. I had long wanted to go before it explodes, and then they say there are excellent musicians, finally, the sun, Spanish, Havana.
Once there he assembled musicians for violin, double bass, Cuban tres guitar, piano, percussion, muted trumpet and, on backing vocals, a woman who had to learn the French lyrics phonetically, as she only spoke Spanish.
The result was the beautiful, haunting Les Sessions Cubaines, an album of 11 chansons.
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