KASSAV
All You Need is Zouk
Biography
Kassav'
(Antillean Creole for a local dish made from cassava)
is a Francophone zouk band which was formed in 1979. The core members of
the band are Jocelyne Beroard, Jacob Desvarieux, Jean-Philippe Marthely,
Patrick St. Eloi, Jean-Claude Naimro, Claude Vamur and Georges Decimus
(who left the band to create another band, Volte Face, before returning
to Kassav' later) along with several other, more minor members. Kassav'
have issued over 20 albums, with a further 12 solo albums by band
members.
Kassav' was formed in 1979 by Pierre-Edouard Décimus, a
long-time professional musician who worked with Freddy Marshall.
Together, the two of them decided to take carnival music and make it a
more modern and polished style. It was the leading band to emerge from
the formative years of Zouk.
Kassav' continued to grow more popular, both as a group and with several
members' solo careers, finally peaking in 1985 with Yélélé, which
featured the international hit"Zouk la sé sèl médikaman nou ni"
(meaning "Zouk is our only drug" in French Antillean Creole) With this
hit, zouk rapidly became a widespread dance craze in Latin America and
the Caribbean, and was popular in Europe, Africa, and Asia. Zouk
performers became known for wildly theatrical concerts featuring special
effects spectacles and colorful costumes.