REMI: ANOTHER SIMARO?

REMI: ANOTHER SIMARO? 

Music is just music. Great vocals, great rhymes, and great instrumentation, maybe expertly done guitar works by extremely creative musicians, great saxophone, etc., etc.

Music is also meant to be danced to, which explains the void of logic in some lyrics. In fact, some music, like Jazz, does not even have lyrics at all; instead, it is an instrumental conversation between the percussions and the wind instruments.

Music remains just that until, one introduces the late Congolese music legend, Simaro Lutumba who introduced a unique aspect of rumba Congolaise, with compositions that are philosophical and analytical.

Despite equally having inspiring instrumentation by creme de la creme of Congolese music, within OKJ, his music was tailored to be listened to by a quiet and sober man, to absorb the contents of the long poems and not an intoxicated reveler who only wants to dance in response to the "msambwa" (effect) of alcohol and so can dance to anything that comes out as music.

In this pool of being erudite and esoteric, the late Le Poet didn't play alone. These waters have other shrewd swimmers, though they may not be or may not have been in the same league with him.

In my experience, as a talented music listener, in as far as rumba Congolaise is concerned, the runners-up in this category is none other than the late Remi Ongala, also referred to as Sura Mbaya.

Dr Remi, as he was popularly known did dozens of songs with metaphorical interpretations that go far beyond the narratives he was giving. Like Simaro, he often veered far away from the theme of any particular song, just to capture aspects that you had not imagined would come from the songs.

Some of his compositions are unrelated aphorisms and axioms and don't talk about any single or particular thing, but the chain builds up to a particular narrative, as the case was with "Kipenda roho", composed for his European wife.

Simaro also thrived in the same style, in his songs.

Some of his popular songs are 'kifo', 'carola', 'mama', 'bibi wa mwenziyo’, ‘Kipenda roho’, ‘asili ya muziki’, ‘Ngalula’, ‘mwanza’, 'narudi nyumbani' ‘mama nalia’, ‘harusi’, ‘hamisa’, ‘mnyonge hana haki’, ‘ndumila kuwili’ na ‘mtaka yote’ etc etc.

Remi whose official name is Ramadhani Ongala, was born in Kindu, the DRC, in 1947, near the boundary of DRC and Tanzania. He was quoted saying he was born with teeth, which made his parents view him as unique and possibly an indication of a great future.

His two elder siblings had died at infancy, and this made the mother visit a medicine man who advised the mother that for her third born to survive, she shouldn't shave his/her hair at any point. Remi grew into adulthood with the hair, forming trademark dreadlocks.

It is on record that he shaved the hair later in life when he "got saved" and converted to Christianity, later in his life while living in Tanzania. Remi's parents died at childhood forcing young Remi to fit into their father's shoes, as a firstborn child to fend for the siblings.

His father who died in 1953, while he was six, had introduced him to music, and at the tender age of 13, Remi was an extremely good drummer and guitarist.

He played with several bands in DRC, Kisangani to be precise, before crossing over to Tanzania in 1978, on invitation from his uncle, Kitenzogu Makassy, popularly known as Mzee Makassy of Orchestre Makassy which was then a well-established band in Tanzania.

Remi performed with the band for three years, but when Mzee Makassy shifted his band's base to Nairobi, Remi declined to tag along and remained in Tanzania. He joined a little-known band called Matimila, named after some village in Tanzania.

Remi rebranded the band to Super Matimila and achieved great success with the outfit which was among Tanzania's finest for two decades. All his songs were hits.

He styled himself as a 'Mnyonge' a weak person, of little means. In a documentary, he is heard telling a hawker to consider reducing the price of the shirt he intended to buy, because "Mimi ni mnyonge" he is a man of modest means.

Politics was dear to Remi's heart, as well. In the same documentary, the fearless Remi converted some concerts into a political rally, and as instrumentalists play on, he changes the song lyrics to preach politics, condemning the country's (Tanzanian) leadership for squandering Nyerere's dream and mismanaging the country.

His fame outgrew the continental boundaries and in the late 80s, he toured in Europe and also had a recording deal, where he even recorded some English songs.

In his hit song 'Kifo', Remi had requested death to be courteous enough to inform him in advance, of its intentions of visiting him. He said, he would die comfortably and would even walk himself to hospital when the moment comes, only if death gave him an opportunity to.

On the night of December 13, 2010 death arrived for Remi, while in his home. Kenya's Swahili publication, Taifa Leo ran a headline "Kifo chakosa kumhurumia Remi" in response to Remi's appeal that death should be a little lenient to him, in his song 'Kifo'

The uniqueness of his music wasn't limited to the poetic lyrics. He adopted Franco's four guitar style that featured two solos, a rhythmst and a bassist. This guitar style was brought to East Africa by the late Mose Fanfan, whom they had played together in Orchestre Makassy.

The OKJ touch was further cemented in his style by Adamo Kadimoke Seye, an ex-OKJ trumpeter, who found his way in Tanzania playing for Orchestre Makassy, as well.

Unlike other Congolese musicians whose Swahili remains sketchy even after living in East Africa for a long, Remi was very fluent and his mastery of the language gave his poems a flawless lusture.

His slow tempo style provides the listener with ample time to sample the lyrics. Before his death, he converted to Christianity, which saw him shift from secular to gospel and even recorded a few songs.

Among my friends are Douglas Paterson the man who has really helped East African music penetrate the world and Pauly Becquart who can give a more detailed and more accurate account of Dr Remi.

Undoubtedly, Remi was a smaller Simaro. Having declared Simaro Shakespeare of African music, I also seek to be alone to declare Remi the Shakespeare of East African music.

By Jarome Ogola

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