LA COMPAGNIE CREOLE

"« Zouk for whites » is one description of La Compagnie Créole’s output, which is a little unfair given that their first album was issued in 1982, very early in the zouk craze in the French Caribbean. However, mainstream French producer, songwriter and arranger Daniel Vangarde formed the group in order to tap into what was, then, seen as a potential market. He brought together five singer/ musicians from Martinique, Guadeloupe and Guyana and for that first set – included here alongside the five following albums - had them perform songs closely associated with the islands, in a style perfectly midway between Kassav’ and a rootsier Boney M. Success was not immediate but after a couple of years and albums, they had a strong following, based on generally happy-go-lucky Caribbean-tinged sounds-not just zouk, but also salsa, reggae, soca, calypso and occasionally the older sounds of biguine and mazurka. The sixty-five tracks of this four-CD set may not entirely be for the purists (though some most certainly will be) but the group’s bright, breezy sound helped prepare the francophone world for the harder sounds coming out of the eastern Caribbean."
By Norman Darwen  -  ROCK’N’REEL