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Jay Lou Ava – Progressive Afro Jazz

29 January 2005 No Comment

Born in Cameroon, Africa, guitarist Jay Lou Ava first emerged with a spiritual, gospel-influenced sound that was partially inspired by his upbringing. His father often wrote religious songs when he was a child, and the presence of an organ in his house led to an early exposure to music…

He began to play the organ for his school band and developed chops during his early teens. When his oldest brother, a brilliant jazz guitarist, turned him onto Duke Ellington and Wes Montgomery, he understood what he wanted to do with his life for the first time. He began jamming with local jazz musicians, picking up the guitar along the way and becoming quite the virtuoso. He began starting bands and traveling the country. To fulfill his father’s requirement, he graduated as a Computer Science Engineer in Paris before starting his ongoing musical career.

Composer-arranger, collaborating most notably with Donny Elwood in the 90’s, playing with Manu Dibango he also began releasing his own material, starting with 1997’s Prelude. Since then, his independent albums have included 1998’s “Remember J.L. Ava Ava” African gospel album, and 2002’s “Spellings”.

Jay Lou’s style is a real fusion between jazz and modern African melodies, what he calls himself “Progressive Afro Jazz”. Some of his compositions are now used for credits and commercials on TV and radio.

"Spellings", Jay Lou’s opus is a ride in the heart of good music, the kind we expect from a contemporary African artist: mature, smooth, harmonious and delicately mixed. This album is original in that it uses a guitar lead on African rhythms, which is seldom the case. The guitar, moving easily from a binary rhythm to a highly complicated 6/8 beat, surprises us, while the player does not lose himself in long and complex monologues.

The twelve tracks on Spellings include “Caribbean Tag” and “Tara,” both composed by Jay Lou, with Rebecca Arrouvel and Avline as lead vocalists: sweet and tender at the edge of over-excitement. Among the guitar player’s other compositions, you will find the surprising “Ozila’n Groove,” in which Jay Lou sensitively mixes 6/8 beat with hip hop. ”Unforgettable Soweto,” “Bantu Serenade,” and “Mbidambani Feeling” are colourful tracks in which Africa’s sweetness arises. The album ends on the eclectic “Oneiros,” where the artist plays the piano and offers subtleness and harmony in a burst of elegance! Beyond Jay Lou’s thourough compositions, you will find a tribute to Cameroon’s musical glories of the past, such as Anne Marie Nzié (”Sarah”), Prince Nico Mbarga (”Nico Selection, Medley”), Charles Lembe (”Mota Benama”), and Elvis Kemayo (”Te Revoir”): a pure touch of nostalgia and feeling.

Through Jay Lou’s Spellings, modern Africa seduces the Western world. The album is meant to reconcile styles and people and to bring them hope and peace. Smooth African ambiance mixed with jazz… you can listen to the album continuously from the first on to the last track and wonder why the artist has not had more media coverage—knowing that Africa is in need of such personalities that take risk—which would reveal another face of what modern Africa could be without the burden of complex suffering and poverty.

Here is an artist with pure talent. Jay Lou’s Spellings is a sea of notes that moves the soul with its very rare fragrance. Recommended as a must to those who want to discover soft and refreshing African rhythms where all impurities have been suppressed.

Jay Lou Ava website: www.jaylou-ava.com

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