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Unusual stuff – a spoken word document on Haitian culture, presented entirely in French! Maurice Sixtoo has a pretty compelling speaking style – and the album features one long recitation, which takes up both sides of the record!

Ten years in for the Tabou Combo – and the group's sounding funkier than ever! The album's got a groove that's even tighter than some of their earliest records – and there's a definite funky feel to the music at times – not just Haitian styles, but a nice US influence too – yet one that's filtered through some really unique global influences too! Despite the date of the record, the instrumentation is mostly in a late 70s ensemble funk mode – with harder edges than usual from the combo, and almost a Kool & The Gang influence going on – but, with the Haitian elements thrown in, an overall sound that comes across with the vibe of Banda Black Rio. Really great stuff – with cuts that include "Hoola Hoop Disco", "Let Me Play That Funky Music", "Tabou Disco", "Tania", "Let's Do The Groove", and "Fausse Conception". CD also features bonus extended mixes of "Hoola Hoop Disco" and "Tabou Disco".

A tropical combo, but one with a definite Haitian bent – from the French-language lyrics, right down to the warm rhythms at the core! The album's got a really great blend of trumpet, guitar, and accordion – the last of which is used more like an organ, in ways that are slow-paced, without the solo flourishes you'd hear in other genres – so that the instrument has this cool space-filling quality that's mighty nice! All three group members sing – and titles include "Papa Loco", "Plasir Teenagers", "Anita", "Information", "Timan Man Fe'm Douce", and "Information".

Beautiful work from Haitian singer Toto Bissainthe – a live performance from the mid 80s, but one with a really timeless feel! Toto sings in French throughout – and backing is usually just a bit of guitar and percussion, used sparely so that Bissainthe's vocals ring out beautifully in the concert space – with a full, rich quality that almost takes us back to Parisian singers like Edith Piaf, with the acoustic core of a Georges Brassens album from the 60s. Lyrics are beautiful, and titles include "Rotterdam", "Rastaquette", "Ou Soti Post Machand", "Papa Damala", "La Manic", and "Les Vieux Amants".

Great rolling grooves from the mid 70s – a Haitian combo who work here with plenty of jazzy touches! Guitar is often layered strongly in the rhythms – in ways that link the music strongly to African highlife of the same period – with lots of lively interplay alongside the group's tight percussion, organ lines, and work on sax and flute. Some cuts have vocals, but the instrumental interplay is what really drives the record – and tracks include "La Fraicheur", "Reve Douce", "Souffrance", "Naked", "Relem Ta Rele", and "Good Vibrations".

Bouncing rhythms from Les Loups Noirs – great little grooves that still retain some of the rootsier elements of Haitian music! Percussion is quite heavy on most numbers, and has this bassy quality that you can really feel in the speakers when you turn the record up nice and loud – a nice contrast to the sax lines that pepper the top of some of the tunes, and the lighter keyboard bits too! Vocals are in French, and titles include "Nostalgie", "Haiti Mon Pays", "Ti Zoizo", "Donne Donnant", and "Dimanche".

Massive sounds from Scorpio – a group who've got just the right sort of sting you'd expect from their name! The album's got a Haitian music vibe at the start, but often shows some funkier American touches too – particularly in the way the rhythms come together on some of the harder tracks, in ways that get past some of the too-bright moods of other Caribbean records – with some excellent guitar and drums to sharpen things up! There's almost a 70s funk vibe to these best cuts – more than worth the price of the album alone – and titles include "Ensem Ensem", "Tacoumbe", "Min Cinga'Ou", "Pouissance Pam", and "Tande".

Four great albums from this hip Haitian group – all packaged together in one nicely-priced set! First up is Back To Stay – a set that features Haitian grooves, but from the New York scene – making for an excellent mix of modes that really keeps things interesting! The core sounds have that bouncy vibe you'd expect from the Caribbean, but there's definitely some horn arrangements that show some American influences from funk and Latin, and maybe even a bit of jazz – all well-recorded here with a style that avoids any of the too-polished modes that can sometimes hold back a record like this. Tony Moise handles most of the arrangements and music – and also plays lead tenor – and titles include "Haiti", "Mariage", "Devine", and "Boat People". The other three albums – Les Bibles De Orchestras, Original Shleu Shleu, and Creation – all have a similar feel – and the 2CD package features 25 tracks in all!

Two spoken word albums from Maurice Sixto – both representing a much deeper side of Haitian culture than you might expect, with a literate richness that feels more like some Parisian recordings of the 60s! French language throughout – and the package features two full length albums!

A pair of groovers from this legendary Caribbean ensemble – packaged together in one sweet set! On the cover of Message, the group is wearing some pretty sweet leisure suits – and the album's got some equally sweet grooves to match – the bouncy blend of horns, percussion, and guitars we've come to expect from Skah Shak #1! The group's got Haitian origins, but there's a fair bit of Latin in the mix as well – especially in the way the horns come together over the top of the arrangements, often with jazzy flourishes that really help add a new level of melody to the tunes. Most numbers build in long, hypnotic grooves – and titles include "Message", "Aide M Rele", "Pour Demain", "Manman", "Yaveh", and "Zanmi". Doing It features a great batch of funky Haitian tunes from Skah Shah – a group who seem to weave together many strands of music into one unified groove! The rhythms have this really bouncy sort of quality – almost an echo of cumbia, but with stronger African roots – and some of the percussion you'd expect to hear from Cuban music as well – a strong indication of the Caribbean crossroads that spawned the group and their style. Horn parts are especially nice – alto and tenor coming together in these lines that are sharp, yet gliding – and which really help give shape to the tunes. Titles include "Do It", "Racine Core", "A Sandy", "Zoute", "Vie Neg", and "Bon Tan".