Soul Makossa is a song released as a single in 1972 by Cameroon saxophonist and songwriter, Manu Dibango. It is often cited as one of the first disco records. In 1972, David Mancuso found a copy in a Brooklyn West Indian record store and often played it at his Loft parties.[2] The response was so positive that the few copies of Soul Makossa in New York City were quickly purchased.[2] The song was subsequently played heavily by Frankie Crocker, who deejayed at WBLS, then New Yorks most popular black radio station.[2] Since the original release was so obscure, at least 23 groups quickly released cover versions to capitalize on the demand for the record.[2] Later in 1972, American-based Atlantic Records licensed the original Manu Dibango version from French record label, Fiesta, and released it as a single (with the side-two track being Lily). The single would peak at #35 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1973; at one point, nine different versions of the song were on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart at the same time.[2][3][4] The song would also become an international hit leading to even more cover versions by various groups around the world.[4] The song is probably best known for the chanted vocal refrain ma-mako, ma-ma-sa, mako-mako ssa, which was adapted and used in songs by many prominent artists such as Michael Jackson on his track Wanna Be Startin Something from his 1983 smash album Thriller and Rihanna on her 2007 hit single Dont Stop the Music from one of her most successful albums, Good Girl Gone Bad. Soul Makossa was originally recorded as the B-side for Mouvement Ewondo, a song about the Cameroon national football team.[4] Manu Dibango later recorded a new version for his 1994 album Wakafrika. In 2011, a second version of the song entitled Soul Makossa 2.0 was recorded in France by Manu Dibango and Wayne Beckford and was issued as the first single from Dibangos album, Past Present Future. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soul_Makossa
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 06:09:18 +0000
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