You don’t necessarily know all their repertoire, but you have already heard of the group Kassav’. But yes, the interpreters of Zouk la se mel medikaman nou ni, which you must have danced to one day in your life. There was Patrick Saint-Eloi, Jacob Desvarieux, Jean-Philippe Mathély, Jocelyne Béroard, Georges Décimus and the discreet Jean-Claude Naimro.
Arrived on keyboards as a replacement in the mythical West Indian group in 1981 during the recording of their third album, Kassav’ n°3, he became one of its emblematic members. “I often compare musical groups to a football team. When you are a coach and you have a star, you have to find the right elements to play with him, both ”football” and humanly speaking. In a group, it’s exactly the same. », philosophizes the artist from Martinique.
With a fifty-year career, the pianist, author, composer and performer has also written melodies for many artists and accompanied musical stars in the studio or on stage such as Gene Page, Barry White’s arranger, Céline Dion, Miriam Makeba or even Michael Fugain. He even went on a world tour with British artist Peter Gabriel between 1993 and 1994.
At 71, he embarked on a new musical experience: making his first solo tour, despite eight solo albums to his credit. An adventure that is not easy for this fan of West Indian, jazz, classical and South American music. Two days before his big Parisian stage at the Trianon, he received us in his Parisian apartment to retrace his career, the preparation for his tour, and talk about the future Kassav’ tribute tour to its co-founder who died during the Covid-19 pandemic, Jacob Desvarieux, which begins next May.
After half a century of career, you embarked on your first solo scenes, while your first album dates from 1985. What was your trigger?
I never intended to do a solo scene. I had my little warm place in Kassav’ and I didn’t like putting myself forward any more than that. But my relatives convinced me to get started, saying “you have enough titles to do a concert on your own”. I knew it wouldn’t have been a cakewalk and I had the proof after the two dates in Martinique, but it allows me to have more experience in my career. I try to take it philosophically, and then I’ll see if I have the desire and the strength to do more than that.
As I said to those around me, you see me like that, but I’m still a certain age. And there aren’t many who go on stage for two hours at my age. Not to mention that it’s not just about singing: I also have to remember my lyrics. We no longer have the same memory at that age. I also have to take care of my look, take care of rehearsals, my musicians and their looks. As I don’t have a special assistant, I do everything myself so it’s complicated. But well, I take things with hindsight, keeping in mind: “Do your experience, see in the future if you continue or not. »
How has it been to be part of the same group for forty years?
Kassav’ has become my family, my second family. I think I spent more time with them than with my own family. We really spent forty years traveling the world, without really stopping. The rare times during which we stopped, it was to prepare an album. And preparing an album means that you’re in the studio every day until 4 am, polishing the tracks. It’s a real family, it’s not just a word like that.
In 1996 you released the album Digital Dread, today you are on tour as part of the “Digital Tour”. Is there a link between the two?
Yes. There is more than one link. Digital Dread, it was an album in which I wanted to mix two things. On the one hand, the generations: there were artists aged between 20 and 50-60. On the other hand, I also wanted to mix music styles. Moreover, I had mixed up the performers. Each piece was interpreted by a singer or a singer, this is perhaps what explains why the album did not work, because at the time, the radios seized a title to promote it . When a dozen radio stations play ten titles with different singers, listeners do not necessarily know that they are from the same album. It was an experience I wanted to do. I don’t really like to do like the others. But I’m still happy with it because there are titles like Bèl pawòl pou an fanm which was a hit.
Almost thirty years later, I come back to this idea to conceive the concert in this way, mixing generations and performers. I have five guests who are not of the same generation. There is the daughter of Jean-Philippe Marthély [également membre de Kassav’]Cindy, Gregz [ex-chanteur du groupe Trade Union] who is a bit older Tony Hunter, Ralph Thamar, Jocelyne Béroard and me. I also wanted to mix styles, because I haven’t only done zouk in my life and I wanted to show everything I’ve had the chance to do in fifty years.
Precisely, you have accompanied artists like Manu Dibango, Eddy Mitchell or even Peter Gabriel… So what can we expect on stage this Saturday?
I learned a lot from these personalities. Some, like Henri Guédon [qui faisait de la salsa] or Manu Dibango, brought me swing, experience in my musical and rhythmic baggage. Others, like Peter Gabriel, brought me more than music. By his side, I also saw how the world tour of a big star goes, saw the side star system. When you have worked with all these people, you are better able to put on your own show. These are the experiences of a lifetime that allow me today to make as few mistakes as possible.
You are very demanding in your compositions, Jocelyne Béroard says so in her book, Far from bitter. Is it hard for you to write for other people and see them perform a song you’ve written?
Very good question. When we compose, very often, we can start with an idea and then over time, the piece can take another turn. Well, it depends. Either the person at the start has an idea towards which they want to go. I take the case of Ralph Thamar, I composed a mazurka for him. I am more inspired by the voice and the way he interprets his titles to project myself on the title that I will compose. Or, I compose a title which is initially for no one and then I think about who to attribute it to.
That’s how, for example, when I composed the title SOS Grandma. Once it was done, I asked who could interpret it and I offered it to Edith Lefel who wrote the text. Even in Kassav’, when we decided to make an album, I start by composing what comes to mind, without knowing who is going to sing what. I compose and if it’s a ballad, I know it will rather go to Patrick [Saint-Eloi, décédé en 2010] who will more interpret a zouk love. If it’s a title with a higher tempo, I know it will be Jacob or me. The title must also go to the person.
Sometimes we do a title that doesn’t correspond to the performer you had in mind, either because the singer doesn’t feel it or he doesn’t interpret the melody as we think, so you offer it to someone another. It happened to me once to make a title – I had completely forgotten this anecdote – for an album of Kassav’. And when I played it to others, they told me it doesn’t sound like the band. At first, it’s quite vexing because you’re convinced that you’ve made the hit of the century and you’re told that blah, it’s not terrible. Well, that title landed at La Compagnie Créole. These are the coincidences of life. Would we have thought, for example, that Kole Sere, when I composed it, was going to be sung by Philippe Lavil? A title, it lives from the beginning to the final mix. And nothing comes to predict how it will be in the end.
A documentary is being produced on your career, how is it progressing?
At the moment, we are looking for funds, aid and sponsors. It is difficult to find the budget. Everything is already largely written with director Miguel Octave. We would like to address four aspects: first my birth in Saint-Pierre, and my youth and adolescence in Martinique. It will thus highlight my island. Then Paris where my career as a professional musician began. Then we want to shoot in London, because that’s where Peter Gabriel lives.
As I am also a Formula 1 enthusiast, we would like to have Lewis Hamilton. We have contact with his management, but there is a one in 1,000 chance that the opportunity will arise. Finally, the last part would be on Cameroon. I was very much considered a Cameroonian since I worked with practically all the Cameroonian artists before Kassav’. I hope that in 2023-2024, it will see the light of day. Pierre-Edouard [Décimus] just made his. He’s very beautiful. I admit that it made me want it even more.
You have announced the first dates of the ” Kassav’ tribute tour to Jacob Desvarieux ». How do you apprehend it?
For the moment, I haven’t had much time to ask myself the question, because I’m right in my concerts. Now, as soon as the 18 [ce samedi soir] will be over, I’m going to focus on the first date we’re going to give in Saint Lucia, on the repertoire, the way we’re going to pay homage to Jacob. I can’t fight two battles at the same time. Especially since things are complicated, because we have to find a guitarist, we have to know how Pipo’s health is [Jean-Philippe Marthély] to know if he will be part of the concert or not. These are a lot of questions that we will have to resolve between now and May.
The stage, the tours, the tributes… Do you see yourself doing this for a long time?
Life has shown us that anyway, whatever we decide, things never turn out the way we want. Did we know two years ago Jacob was going to leave? That Pipo was going to be sick? I think we shouldn’t project ourselves too much into the future at our age. You have to take things one after the other and tell yourself that it’s only happiness when you add a little icing on the cake.
You have no other desires? Motorsports, for example…
Yes, I am almost retired. I have already been to the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, a few years ago. It had done me the greatest good. I admit it’s more than a hobby, I’m really an F1 fan. I never saw myself as a 24/7 musician. The older I get, the less I want to make music and the more I want to have fun elsewhere. Well, it’s a little late for motorsports. (Laughs)
I am also a great cooking enthusiast. I had the chance during forty years of Kassav’ to visit so many countries. Every time I went to a country, I always wanted to take recipes, write them down and try to make them again in Paris. I have a whole book in which I wrote down about fifty recipes such as ndolé from Cameroon, rougail from Réunion. Cooking allows me to get away from music, it soothes me a lot.