Bahamas Goombay 1951-1959 (blind Blake, George Symonett

Just off the Florida coast, Bahamian Goombay music is a succulent hybrid, somewhere between rhythm and blues, Trinidadian calypso and Jamaican mento, yet it comes from The Bahamas, where it lives on as a separate style. The presence of world-class, English-language composers and performers Blind Blake Higgs, George Symonette or Charlie Adamson made the sounds of Nassau a Golden Age, filled with unique charm and tropical dreams. The sound fell into oblivion for half a century, but Bruno Blum (with the help of Fabrice Uriac) has finally reunited these gems of authentic goombay music, a magical concentrate of this island paradise. Patrick FREMEAUX