Chakachas
Chakachas - Belgian funk/groove band
Group from Belgium
Genres: funk, soul, latin, 70s, belgian
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The Chakachas
About Chakachas
The Chakachas were a Belgium-based group of Latin soul and Afro Cuban studio musicians. Also known as Les Chakachas, Los Chakachas, or Los Chicles, the group was founded in 1958 by bandleader Gaston Bogaert a.k.a. Tito Madinez (conga and tumba). The line-up featured Kari Kenton (vocals and maracas) from Cuba, Victor Ingeveldt (saxophone) a Dutchman from Liege, Charlie Lots (trumpet), Christian Marc (piano), Henri Breyre. All were native to Schaarbeek (a district of Brussels), or nearby Charleroi, Willebroek and Liège. They had a Belgian No. 1 in 1958 with "Eso es el amor", which was sung in Spanish. In 1959 they recorded "Rebecca" (a.k.a. "Rebekka"), which was featured seven years later in the film The Battle of Algiers. In 1962, they crept into the UK Singles Chart for the first time with "Twist Twist", which reached No. 48. After a musical eclipse in the mid-sixties, the band is reassembled a few years later, in a new line-up and with a different sound; this time, the band's made up of session musicians, who are also part of other bands or projects (see also El Chicles, Chicken Curry & His Pop Percussion Orchestra, Plus, The S.S.O. Orchestra, Superfunk Special). The new Chakachas go for a mix of Latin/Soul/Funk/Jazz/Afro. The bulk of the songs is provided by Willy Albimoor and Nico Gomez. Their biggest hit was "Jungle Fever" (1970), which sold over one million copies in the United States, and was awarded a gold disc by the R.I.A.A. in March 1972. It also reached No. 8 in the US Billboard Hot 100. In the UK it fared less well: despite some airplay soon after release it was later pulled from airplay by the BBC, which took exception to the song's moaning and heavy breathing. It peaked at No. 29.
Taken from Last.fm
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