Manu Chao is a French-Spanish singer. He sings in French, Spanish, English, Italian, Arabic, Catalan, Galician, Portuguese, Greek, and occasionally in other languages. Chao began his musical career in Paris, busking and playing with groups such as Hot Pants and Los Carayos, which combined a variety of languages and musical styles. With friends and his brother Antoine Chao, he founded the band Mano Negra in 1987, achieving considerable success, particularly in Europe. He became a solo artist after its breakup in 1995 and since then tours regularly with his live band, Radio Bemba.
French rock is a form of rock music produced in France, primarily with lyrics in the French language.
Mano Negra was a French music group active from 1987 to 1994 and fronted by Manu Chao. The group was founded in Paris by Chao, his brother Antoine and their cousin Santiago, all born of Galician and Basque parents with partly Cuban roots. Their songs were mostly in Spanish, English and French, often switching from one language to the other in the same song or in the middle of a sentence or title. They also had a hit song in Arabic. They are considered pioneers of world fusion.
Puta's Fever is the second studio album by Mano Negra, released in 1989. The French edition of Rolling Stone magazine named it the 8th greatest French rock album.
King of Bongo is the third studio album by Mano Negra, released in 1991. The French edition of Rolling Stone magazine named it the 61st greatest French rock album.
Amerika Perdida is a compilation album by Mano Negra, released on 28 October 1991.
In the Hell of Patchinko is a live album by Mano Negra; it was recorded on 2 November 1991 in Club Citta, Kawasaki, Japan with mobile studio "Sound Creaters" and released on 9 November 1992.
Best of Mano Negra is a compilation album by Mano Negra, released in 1998. It included their greatest hits from 1988 to 1994.
Mano Negra Illegal is a tribute album to the French world/punk band Mano Negra, released in 2001 on the Big Mama label.
Hot Pants is one of the numerous groups involving the French singer-songwriter of Spanish descent Manu Chao and his cousin, drummer Santi. As with all of Chao's music, the group had many influences, most notably The Clash, which contributed to their rockabilly sound. The group sang in English and Spanish. The group released a demo tape in 1984 entitled "Mala Vida," and in 1985 they released a 45 with the single "So many nites". They released a full-length album entitled Loco Mosquito in 1986, which was re-released in 2000.
Radio Bemba Sound System is a live album by Manu Chao that was released in 2002. It is the accompanying CD to the performer's live DVD Babylonia en Guagua, filmed over two nights in 2001 during the tour for Proxima Estacion: Esperanza. Many of the songs found on Radio Bemba Sound System, such as "Machine Gun", "Peligro","Mala Vida","King Kong Five" and "The Monkey", are songs originally recorded by Manu Chao's previous band, Mano Negra. However the arrangements performed with Radio Bemba Sound System are more reggae-, ska-, and rock-oriented. The album is sequenced and edited in such a way that there is very little audience noise and cheering between the tracks, thus giving the impression of an all-night happy party - which calms down in the penultimate track only to explode again in the last one ("Promiscuity"); the cheering at the end of "Promiscuity" is cut short by a very early fade.
Todos Tus Muertos is a rasta-punk band from Argentina formed in Buenos Aires, in 1985. The longtime line-up comprised by a young vocalist Fidel Nadal, Horacio "Gamexane" Villafañe on guitar, Felix Gutiérrez on bass, and drummer Pablo Potenzoni. They achieved international success throughout the 1990s. The band was part from the second Argentine punk movement that emerged during the mid-1980s. By 2015, a reunion show was announced with Fidel Nadal, Felix Gutiérrez and Pablo Molina at the Jamming Festival in Bogotá, Colombia on 5 June 2016, and more recently three more show in Chile and Mexico.
Les Wampas are a French punk rock/psychobilly band, who refer more exactly to their music as "Yé-yé-punk". The band was formed in Paris in 1983.
"Bongo Bong" is the first solo single by Manu Chao, from his debut album, Clandestino. It is a remake of "King of Bongo", a track from Manu Chao's previous band, Mano Negra. The title and lyrics are taken from the 1939 jazz song "King of Bongo Bong" by Black American trumpeter Roy Eldridge. It also uses the background music from Black Uhuru's song "Bull ina di Pen", from their 1984 album, Anthem. The song is part of a medley with "Je ne t'aime plus" on Clandestino. Moreover, the music has been reused for other songs, such as "Mr. Bobby", which was first released on this single before being re-recorded for Chao's second album, Próxima Estación: Esperanza, and "Homens", from the same record.
Les Satellites is a French alternative rock band that was formed in 1985 and split up in 1994.
Karamelo Santo is a Latin rock band from Mendoza, Argentina. Formed in 1992 for Goy Karamelo, they released their first album, La Kulebra in 1995. Since then, they have released nine more albums. The single "Que No Digan Nunca" is probably their best-known song. It was used on the soundtrack for the movie Caño Dorado.
Red Cardell is a French, Breton rock band, that mixes Breton music with rock, folk, blues, world music and chanson réaliste.
"Mala Vida" is the second single by French rock group Mano Negra, appearing on their 1988 debut album Patchanka. Written by lead singer Manu Chao, the song also appeared on a 1984 demo tape of the same name by Hot Pants, a predecessor to Mano Negra. "Mala Vida" was an early hit for Mano Negra and became a staple of the band's live shows and has been covered by several artists. The song has also been performed by Chao as a solo artist; a live performance of the song by Chao was recorded for his 2002 album Radio Bemba Sound System. Boucherie Productions, who published Patchanka, financed a music video for the song, which received airplay on national radio stations and TV channels in France. Mano Negra's success with the release of "Mala Vida" led the band to a contract with Virgin.
Gambeat is the stage name of Jean Michel Dercourt, a French bass guitarist and DJ, best known for his musical collaboration with Manu Chao. As a member of the Parisian group French Lovers, Gambeat travelled with Manu Chao and his band Mano Negra during their famous rail tour through civil war-racked Colombia in the early 1990s. The tour was later commemorated in Ramon Chao's book The Train of Ice and Fire.
