In Rumba circles, a band is said to be as good as its solo guitarist. The departure of a band's soloist is often more noticeable than that of any other member. The deserter’s replacement also becomes news across town, and his style and mastery define the trajectory the band’s music will take.

“Dino Vangu changed the style of Afrisa International when he took over from Dizzy Mandjeku,” Faugus Izeidi once opined. Faugus, a younger brother of Roger Izeidi, was himself a star mi-solo guitarist with the same band but quit years earlier to create his own band, Fiesta Populaire.

What makes a solo guitarist such a star member that some bands only pay solo guitarists, while others pay them more than any other ordinary members? Isn't music a collective effort? As such, is fame not supposed to spread fairly to all members?

Rumba music is a technical genre that runs on guitars. Of the three—bass, rhythm, and solo guitar—it is the solo that tracks the melody of the song, making it more noticeable, although this may not necessarily mean it is the most important. This means it is the lead instrument, while the rhythm guitar remains the most foundational. This is important in the sense that if one instrument fails to work and the band has no choice but to proceed crippled, they will use the instrument as a rhythm guitar and do away with the solo guitar.

Bill Alexandre, the proprietor of CEFA Studios in Kinshasa (then known as Léopoldville) established in 1955, is the person who introduced the electric guitar to Congolese music. Despite having the acoustic guitar and some other instruments like the bulky contrabass, the electric guitar henceforth became the engine of Congolese Rumba, with other instruments being relegated to mere spices or additional sweeteners.

A rhythm guitar is the oldest element in any song. In most cases, it is the very first, in the sense that it is used while the song is being composed. Composition in this context means the creation of the melody. However, the song only wears the complete face of a song once it has been given a solo guitar.

This unique aspect makes the solo guitarist a star in any band’s lineup. It is also worth noting that every solo guitarist is able to play rhythm guitar, but not every rhythm guitarist can play solo. In the path of learning, every trainee begins by learning the chords; rhythm guitar is acquired by striking patterns repeatedly, while for solo, the player roams the fretboard to follow the melody.

This means that in performances, the most vigorous guitarist whose hands roam the entire fretboard is the soloist. It also happens that most musicians who sing and play guitar are solo guitarists and not rhythmists. This does not mean all, but a few examples at hand include Mbaraka Mwinshehe, the soloist par excellence.

While Charles Ray Kasembe played rhythm and was less known, Mbaraka played solo and was the star personality in the Super Volcano band. Of course, this was for some other reasons as well. Mopero Wa Maloba of the Shama Shama fame also played solo while singing, and this made him the star of the Cavacha band, whose leadership he shared with Dona Mobeti before quitting to create his own.

Franco Luambo Luanzo Makiadi of OK Jazz began as a guitarist but could also sing. He was to become the band’s most recognized singer when he took to the microphone. Despite being the bandleader and the face of OK Jazz, he was still the most recognized member, of course, owing to some other reasons and the reality that he was the star solo guitarist.

The band’s other solo guitarists—Moses Fanfan, Mavatiku Visi (also known as Michelino), Papa Noel, Thierry Mantuika, and Gerry Dialungana—also got their fair share of fame, quantitatively more prominent than the rhythmists among them: Simaro Lutumba, Gege Mangaya, Petit Pierre, Armando Mwango Brazzos (who played the contrabass), and Ya Makoso Kindudi.

Having made a name as a master composer, doing philosophical songs delivered in figurative language, and having served long as Franco’s deputy, made Simaro (also known as Le Poète) more known than his rhythm peers. But still, in concerts, the solo guitarists always gobbled more limelight than him.

The same can be said of the Kalekezi duo, also known as the Kinyonga, of Simba Wanyika fame. Wilson, the eldest and the founder of Arusha Jazz, began as a little-known rhythmist for Jamhuri Jazz. He brought his brother into the fold, and when he left, he tagged along his younger brother, George Peter, who began as a bassist. Both were later to become solo guitarists and star attractions in Simba Wanyika, where they played interchangeably in the solo guitar role. They were the band’s most recognized members, more so than the rhythmists among them, including Omar Shaban and others.

In comparison, bands led by instrumentalists are more often led by solo guitarists than by players of any other instrument. Others like Tabu Ley and Nyboma were primarily singers, while others like Verckys of Veve, Kalombo Mwanza of Orchestra Basanga, Viva Makale, and Lola Shango of Boma Liwanza were saxophonists. Most, however—Franco, Bavon, Johny Bokelo, Mbaraka, Wilson Peter, and Habel Kifoto, among others—were solo guitarists.

Some rhythmists convert to solo upon becoming bandleaders. A classic example of this was Les Wanyika’s Ngereza Johnny. While a musician with Orchestra Bwambe Bwambe, he played rhythm and did it remarkably well. However, upon shifting camp to Les Wanyika, whose leadership he wrestled from Omari Shaban, he became a solo guitarist and a vocalist.

That the solo guitar is always the lead instrument in Rumba makes the player the most suitable lead singer because the roles interchange. When the vocals come up, the solo guitar, which takes the melody of the song, goes quiet. However, some rhythmists have also made names as top vocalists, as have other instrumentalists.

Yet again, some solo guitarists chose to remain just that, without venturing beyond. Examples include Dally Kimoko, Caien Madoka, Général Mandoza, Beniko Popolipo, and many others. Rhythmists who head bands include Vata Mombassa, Simaro Lutumba, and Bopol Mansiamina, among others.

Maybe fairly or unfairly, solo guitarists have always attracted more attention than any other instrumentalists in a band.

By Jerome Ogola

Jabulani Radio

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