Haut de gamme / Koweït, rive gauche

Couldn't get into it

Noncey Pedo-lomide

This was a STRUGGLE. Every song sounds the same.

Flog of a human and flog of an album!

This could have been better experience for me but hit me on totally wrong day.

better albums, please

African, or Congolese to be exact, salsa or cha cha is not really my thing. To be fair to Koffi, neither is any other countries or continents salsa. I hear the African vibes, I hear familiar rhythms from other songs I've not wanted to listen to, so I don't feel like missing out if I just listened a bit off of 3 or 4 songs and left it at that. I can appreciate the long career and the things he has done for the local pop culture.

I can only handle so much repetitive, middling, tinny guitar. This album was easily 25 mins too long. It seems like Koffi had been influential to the African music scene, however his history of both alleged and confirmed violence (toward women in particular) is frightening. All together I did not enjoy this one bit. 1/5

It’s got a nice beat, but it’s not my jam…

No va

Island music. Not my thing. No thanks. 1001 album worthy: no 103/192

1.75

Not my jam

I had a skim listen to this, and it’s very non offensive and I could probably have it on in the background. Though it’s difficult to know a time I would opt to put it on.

ÑE

Wtf is this!?

1.5 - Bad

Sounds like a cd you would find in a Congolese gift shop.

No m'ha agradat, m'ha costat escoltar-ho. Música africana en francès

Nichts für meine Ohren!

Wet Toast, nothing more.

I tried... but no

1.5

This album on this list makes absolutely no sense to me.

Not for me 1/5

No

African Soukus music for people who really hate African Soukus music, By Mbokomu, of all those 1000's of amazing albums the Congo has to offer, THIS is the one that makes the pick? THIS ONE?

Meh, danceable music, get outta my face

Nope

Huh

...

Some of these songs sound like the songs that would play during closing credits of an 80s movie that took place in a place that might have been "exotic" to Americans back then. Think Romancing the Stone, Jewel of the Nile, Weekend at Bernie's, Lion King, etc. Nothing really exciting about this. No real passion in the songs. Inoffensive background music at an outside beach bar at an all inclusive resort. Minus stars for his inexcusable behavior. Minus more stars for wearing white after Labor Day.

I seem to be having a run of duds at the moment on this project, so hopefully the new year will bring me back to some good stuff. This feels like it's such a low point, that literally whatever I get next is going to be an improvement in some way. It's almost an hour of someone moaning in French over a generic World/ Elevator muzak background. It's the sort of music I would expect to hear in an African-themed restaurant, where the owners were playing it safe and wanted the most bland music possible. It's not joyful in any way, and realising I'm listening to a guy who sexually assaulted a 15 year old just makes it all the more easy to give this only one star.

This was fine. Then I read about Koffi. And it wasn't fine anymore.

If you went to the Barbès quarter in Paris, and asked young Africans and French Africans there about their opinion on this album, they probably won't give a rat's ass about it. And if you asked old-timers with a distinctive sense of fashion (la sape), of course, they would say they love or loved Koffi Olomide's music. Yet my best guess is that they could select any of his albums, and not specifically this one. But what do I know? I should probably give a neutral 3/5 grade to this one, as it's out of my cultural sphere of reference. And yet it's hard for me to remain neutral ... a) Most definitely, this music does not sound as tight and intense as the one of Fela. b) Whenever Koffi sings or speaks in French (my native language), his lyrics reach cringeworthy levels I won't even address here. c) The r*pe allegations. Oops, my bad. French courts of law finally stated that Koffi's minor dancer might not have been the victim of SA from him after all. Koffi just kidnapped her, you see. Just as he kicked another dancer onstage, and didn't strangle her right away. We're all feeling better now, aren't we? 1/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums. 6 for more general purposes (5 + 1) Number of albums left to review: the 80-ish extra LPs listed on this app, included because different past editions of the book have mentioned albums that have since been dropped in subsequent editions. Number of albums I'll keep in my own list: half, approximately Number of albums I *might* keep: a small quarter, approximately. Number of albums I won't keep: a large quarter (including this one)

Songs i know: haha Songs 8 like: haha Koffi has been playing 4d chess with us all along, creating this app just to slowly feed us his weird French 80s disco pop. Every song on this album is a preset track from one of those old casio keyboards they had in school.

Overall: 2/10 I don't really connect with this, I don't think it has anything to do with it not being in english cause I listen to Rammstein lol I just found the music kind of boring and the singing wasn't good enough to elevate the material. Edit: Just read the wikipedia article about this dude and YIKES...I'm able to separate the art from the artist but it's a good thing my rating is already low Fav Song: Koweït, rive gauche Least Fav Song: Conte de fées

I officially do not enjoy this type of music unless I’m playing Mariokart. All of these songs are 3-5 minutes too long. Seems like dude’s a prick to boot.

Googled the artist. 1.

Just didn’t care for it at all. It’s not music I’d ever put on and i actually couldn’t wait for it to be over

I've never listened to anything like this, so I have no idea how to even review it. All I can tell you is that I really didn't like it.

It sounds like unused outtakes from a bad Disney animated movie. Have no clue why this made the list.

I guess this is technically music.

Look, let's get one thing straight: I review music, not musicians. If I wanted to just rant about how awful someone is, there's Twitter for that. I mean, consider Kanye West: these days, I hate that man with a burning passion, the divorced dad, Nazi-lovin' fuck. But despite that, I still gave MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY a 4 because the music still resonated with me. Sometimes, bad people make good art. That's not a rule, but it **is** a common fact of life. But I don't wanna sound like I'm pro-"separate the art from the artist," because let's make this clear as well: you can't. As much as people out there would want to, I personally believe you can't fully understand an art unless you take into consideration the artist. That's why, as much as I gave MY BEAUTIFUL DARK TWISTED FANTASY a 4, I'm never gonna listen to it again, because Kanye is a fuck and I don't wanna give him my time. Like, usually it's never enough to affect my rating (unless you're Kid Rock), but if you're gonna come in here and be like, "Well, if you just look past their past transgressions," I feel like you're being disingenuous, at best. So, look, this guy's a child rapist. He was found guilty of raping a 15-year old, and that was the first thing I knew about him (because despite this album's appearance in this book it's apparently still not even notable enough in the English world to get a Wikipedia page). I could easily give this thing a 1 and move on with my life just for that alone. I don't blame others for doing that, but, myself, I just had to dig deeper and know: what's this thing actually like? Boring. This thing is fucking boring. From the first second, all I could picture in my head was commercials for cruise lines and it never let up the whole time. That's what this thing sounds like: chintzy background music for advertisements. And I don't know if that's what all rhumba music sounds like, or just what this guy sounded like by 1992, but I sorta refuse to let **him** be the representative, so... And none of these songs have enough going on to justify them being as long as they are. A 7+ minute average for track? Jeez! What gives him the right? Trust me, if you've heard the first thirty seconds, you've heard the last thirty seconds, and every random cluster of seconds in-between. Where in the world does this thing get off? Now, of course, there **are** parts I like. There hafta be; nothing's 100% bad. Even Kid Rock's stupid album had at least one or two parts I could begrudgingly say I like. But then, here's a good question: "why would I listen to **this guy** for it? Why do I **have to**, when there **has** to be someone else doing this who also **hasn't** been found guilty of any heinous acts?" Like, don't tell me there's no other album in the world that could've represented rhumba music better; I doubt **this guy** is the only one worth considering. So, like, this shit's a 1. A big, fat 1. And I don't hand those out easily, lemme tell you: you hafta **offend me** on some level to get one. Kid Rock's, well, Kid Rock. MAXINQUAYE was such an intermittently boring waste of time that I couldn't help it. And Limp Bizkit... Well, I was kind of hard on that Limp Bizkit album, but that's besides the point. If this guy had made better music, I woulda grumbled and complained about it, but I still would've given him the credit. Or, hell, if he wasn't a guilty child rapist, this thing would've been a 2, at best. But I feel no desire to give him any benefits. All I hear when I listen at this is this man's crimes. And frankly, given that I didn't know about him yesterday and I'll forget about him tomorrow, that's **all** I'll ever hear. Allow me to rate this thing accordingly, then: it's a 1. He's not worth anyone's time.

This is just so goddamn boring. I'd give it 3 for that reason alone, but considering the artist was actually found guilty of statutory rape a couple years back, it's going all the way down to 1. Fuck this guy.

It’s a fucking 1. Even without the child rape this guy was accused of in 2019, which is already going to give it a 1 regardless, this is just such a fucking boring album, my god. This is comprised of 58 FUCKING MINUTES of music that sounds like what you'd hear when they're showing b-roll footage of the zoo on a kids show. The looping instrumentals that comprise the entirety of this album are not only egregiously long and tiresome and boring, but they’re just so fucking annoying to sit through. I talked about Kraftwerk sounding like an FL Studio loop once, but this literally IS one. I would wager to bet over half (if not all) of the backing instrumentals are like, 16 bars at most, on loop. Past that, he’s somehow delusional enough to think he can carry this album with his fucking vocals, while having not an inch of charisma to actually do it and while sounding like a constipated opera singer in training. Honestly, the 58 minutes might be the worst part. By the time I got to the last track, I wrote the following down, and I think it sums up the crux of my feelings on the album: “I truly do not care about any of this album anymore. The sooner I never have to listen to it, the better; it’s not even like it’s a bad album from a musical standpoint other than the obnoxiously obvious loops, it’s just painfully, painfully boring in a way that I haven’t felt since Maxinquaye, and honestly, the egregious nature of the looping may make this one even worse. However, at least this has a more positive and beachy upbeat tone throughout the runtime, so it doesn’t get like the depressingly sad type of “please end my suffering” boring. It just gets the ‘stuck at a 3-year-old’s birthday party with none of my friends & 7 other people in their 80s’ type of “please end my suffering” boring.” Yeah, this is worse than Maxinquaye. This is the worst one we’ve gotten yet. Even if I were so kind as to give the music like, a 1.5 bumped up to a 2 because it “sounds happy,” this dude was convicted of child rape in 2019, so I just don’t even want to entertain the idea of a 2. It’s a bland, boring 1. We better fucking get Dark Side of the Moon next or something.

1. papa - 1 2. dezepoir - 1 3. gauche - 1 4. cherche - 1 5. elizir - 0 6. porte - 1 7. conte - 0 8. obrigado - 0 9. dit - 0

While it is very joyful and fun music….it sounds so generic to me. Like something I would hear on a cruise or at a themed restaurant.

just…. no

Bro, fr?

An album as good as its cover.

this list needs an edit

Nope

Not my taste as all.

1 - This sounds like if you went to a nice island resort and they were playing a basic island music CD, but the CD got stuck looping track one and no one fixed it for like an hour. You sit there, going crazy. If I had to listen to it again, it'd probably give it a .5. I'm glad some people like this kind of music, but man, it drives me crazy...

102/1001 🌕🌑🌑🌑🌑

Pretty much unlistenable

Wow did I not enjoy this. The beats sounded like the intro to an african disney movie and the sing talking makes every track a slog. I kept skipping in hope for some hook or memorable something and it just never happened. Nothing memorable, nothing dance-able, and because of the language barrier, nothing to chew on lyrically. I just don't like it.

To those criticizing lower ratings for albums like Koffi Olomide's "Haut De Gamme/Koweit Rive Gauche" because they feel we can't separate personal opinions from an artist's potential, it's time to reassess. Unless you're culturally connected to this genre, you're no more knowledgeable than the rest of us on the album's influence or quality. People often downvote what they don't understand, but on the flip side, some upvote anything new or foreign to showcase their supposed understanding and tolerance. It's okay to admit that sometimes, you just won't connect with certain things because the cultural bridge is too far, and you may never truly understand—and that's okay.

Didn't grab me. Sorry Koffi :(

As the earth quaked beneath a sky turned the color of fresh bruises, an ancient, unyielding gate cracked open with a sound that melded thunder with the shattering of eons-old chains. From the abyssal depths, a light not seen by the surface world in millennia—ominous and gleaming with the promise of forgotten dread—poured forth, casting elongated shadows that seemed to writhe in anticipation. The air thickened, heavy with the scent of brimstone and the whispered fears of generations, as if the very atmosphere mourned the unleashing of ancient horrors. This was no mere opening of a gate; it was a rending of the fabric between worlds, a calamity foretold by prophecies etched in the hidden places of the world. Hell's gates had yawned wide, not to welcome the damned, but to unleash upon the earth the pent-up fury and darkness of untold ages.

no.

Rapist.

3/10 Every track is the same

The music is not all that interresting so would mean 3 stars, however you can not seperate the music from the artist and with several alligations and convictions of serious misconduct by the artist this gets 1 star.

This is a Congolese album from the '90s that is not in English, so I have no clue what he's singing about. I tried to keep an open mind, but I finished this just thinking it was pretty bad. I feel like he tried to pull in some western music sounds throughout, but everything he pulled in was like the worst parts of music at the time, so now it just sounds tacky and dated. There is very little written on this album that I could find, but Koffi seems to be one of the big names in Congolese music so I get wanting to include him on the list. From the little I found though it seems like this particular album isn't really considered his best, so I'm not sure why this is what got picked. His voice is perfectly good, but this left a lot to be desired for me. Also, the album cover is hilariously bad. Ugly grey background, three wildly different fonts that are all terrible, him off to the side goofily just pointing at the camera, and for some reason white pants that look 100% photoshopped. It's rough. Favorite song: Papa bonheur 2/27/24

Silly

Absolutely not my jam...

For a guy that has a massive feud and controversy list in Wikipedia, this tone of music is the last thing I expected. Statutory rape, kicking women on stage, stealing music and collab beefs, and a concert crowd crush, the list goes on. This music feels way too happy but I guess people in France and Africa like him that much? Controversy aside of course as I try to listen to the music for the music, this is still a hard pass.

Gladbinheatd it. But no thanks.

Tres gauche

Too safe. Too happy. Not my style. Appreciate the musicianship and at times the vocals. Hate the wal mart keyboard ambient treble sounding keys and predictable rhythms.

v chill but cmon like i dont listen to this music

Not a foreign language album that invites me to listen. Okay musicianship. Repetitive.

Thought that this would be a vibe, something with an atmosphere that could work as background music. Nahhh, not a fan.

🙄🙄🙄

I don't know if it's good or bad, but I do know I don't like it at all.

I really don't care for this, at all.

The power of music that is so intertwined into a certain culture is that it feels really authentic and true to that culture. When you start bringing in elements from other music that is completely separate from that culture, all that authenticity gets lost. In this particular case, all thats left is just an album with boring songs that go on for way to long. He is also apparently like the worst guy ever. It did not influence my score, but its worth mentioning.

Annoying rapist

Non-English

Album is good but listening to a rapist singing is hard.

hemskt

Listened Before? N ??? Couldn't even find this album. No. Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: none

Why is this in 1001? Not interested in his personal history. This is dross.

Didn’t make it past track one. Hard pass.

Nope

C'est la fiesta africaine, en français svp! Good vibes, pas pour moi.

Yeah, revered worldwide, I am sure but I just couldn’t get with the Congolese conga.

I'm repeating myself here, but: pretty much the only thing to celebrate about this entry is the rarity of non western entries. As for the music itself, I can't say it aged well nor can I say I find of interest for any other reason. Which is rather sad, because there is so much good music in this world that's completely ignored by this list here. And yes, the guy is no angel, either.

Yuck

Not a fan of Latin music, even if the musician is African!

This really sucks lol

Kofi Olomide??

Yeah. Washes over me tbh. Not helping that he is a convicted under age rapist.

The songs stay in the same place yet still last for 5 minutes each. Rating: 1.2

world, skørt, dog lidt intetsigende

It's OK but nothing remarkable. No standout tracks or themes. And then I read the wiki and this guy may be a terrible person. 1/5

French dance album

It’s my second album in a different language, but unlike the Suba one, it doesn’t feel interesting to someone who doesn’t speak the language. I love stuff like The Incredible Beat of Soweto - a compilation of real-feeling African music. However, this just feels tepid and too produced; it doesn’t get to the rawness that makes this type of music good, and it lacks the warmth. Probably a 2, but I’ll rate it a 1 because he sucks as a person.

nope

One could stretch and try to qualify it somewhat in the Yacht Rock zone if it didn't, you know, suck.

Couldn't get through it

No ty

Yeah I'm not bothering.

Well, some world music. Okaaaaaay.

Dunno

Didnt fell like listening to this but the artist is a pedo and i didn;t like the first 30 seconds of the first song so 2/10 (would be 1/10 but the album cover is funny)

From the time this album starts, I think I'm gonna watch some 90's sitcom. Then the vocals begins and it's apparent that I"m about to watch a Pixar short about a raspberry that fell off the vine and is about to get eaten by a worm, but manages to escape. Then I read his Wikipedia page and noticed that he was accused and found guilty of statutory rape. And I thought ... you know the music I've heard so far is enough to make a judgement on this album...

It's a no from me

en wat duren die nummers lang, pfoe

Ik ga op safari en ik neem mee... Nou in ieder geval niet deze plaat.

This is different. Bad different, all songs sound so similar with the synth and is just boring.

Huh?

I mean maybe a two but then I looked him up.

Tydzien francuzki na liscie, bo kolejny krazek z tego skrawka europy, tym razem cos calkowicie podziemnego i nietypowego, bo kongijsko francuzka muzyka w stylu soukous, ktora nalezy do gatunku okolo folkowych, ale samo nagranie brzmi bardziej jak polskie szlagiery z tv silesia w wersji dla ciemniejszego sluchacza, wiec prasne instrumentale, spiewanie przeplatane zawolaniami i chorkowaniami, pan Koffik to wyjadacz tego gatunku z tego co prezentuje jego dyskografia, ale jest to muzyka raczej dla specyficznego kregu sluchaczy, wiec jeszcze bardziej dziwi pojawienie sie na liscie takiej pozycji, prawie godzinna plyta, gdzie zrozumiec z tego nie idzie nic, granie nie cieszy ucha, wiec nuzacy odsluch, kolejny w tym tygodniu, nic na plejke i nic w glowie z takiego picka raczej na dlugo nie zostanie, jedynie sama sylwetka pana Kiffika, bo na okladce tego albumu z 92 wygladal jak wioskowy grajek, a na spotifaju ostatnie albumy prezentuje sie jak prawdziwy G, zrobil forme na starosc

What da

Not my cup of tea

p681. 1992. 1 star Well, the cheesy synths and arrangements haven't aged well on a lot of the tracks. Nothing much to like here. This was the first album on the list that I struggled to listen to all the way through. Not my thing at all.

Shite and Wikipedia suggests he’s a total prick.

In the interest of saying something nice if I'm going to say anything at all - it's the best French-language Congolese dance album I've ever heard.

0 stars. Not my genre not at all.

muhtesem

Dance music straight out of Africa! More specifically, it's French Soukous music from the Congo. Not my type of music at all, but it wasn't bad.

ой бля, да идите нахуй, это даже иронично воспринимать не получается. кто вообще способен это слушать, я хз, самая раздражающая музыка на свете. доставил только момент с 50:38 по 51:15 (я хз, какая это песня), где вокалист превращается в Пьера Вудмана и орёт «ААААААА», «СОСИИИ», «СУКА, СУКА, ПУТА, ПУТА»

Not for me. Very different from what I'm used to. Too poppy for my taste

Would give it zero if I could.

2.5

Nope. Just nope.

Didn't grab me.

What?