(Reunion) Island Charm, Nostalgia and Swing

Claude Vinh San (a.k.a. Bao Vang) is the son of the last Emperor of Annam (Vietnam), Duy Tân, who was exiled to Reunion. As is briefly noted in Vinh San's Wikipedia page, he is an accomplished musician, and a little Reunion label named Takamba have just beautifully reissued his early (1960's) musical output.


"Claude Vinh San et le Jazz Tropical" is a winner of a disc, recommendable to those with an interest in French music (lovely musette and chanson here...), African music (plenty of tasty rhythms), 1960's music, or indeed music with charm and swing to spare.

This is the latest in a series of discs from Takamba devoted to the patrimoine musical of the Indian Ocean. The dics's packaging is fantastic - a small book containing great archival photos (including a comprehensive set of album covers), plus liner notes in English and (in far more detail...) French. I've sometimes been annoyed by Takamba's audio restoration efforts - too much clean-up can rob old recordings of body - but such problems are hardly in evidence here.

Sound samples (and mp3 files for download) are available here. If, like me, you're still hooked on those little shiny discs, buy this from Discorama on Reunion.