Dove

Here is one of my favorite among the many brilliant songs by Cymande. Cymande were an electric funk band who released several albums throughout the early 1970's. The group was formed in 1971 in London, England by musicians from Guyana and Jamaica. The name Cymande is derived from a Calypso word for dove, which symbolizes peace and love. The group developed a subtle and complex deep funk style influenced by calypso rhythms, jazz, African music, American soul and UK rock of the time. Cymande can now be seen as one of the most sophisticated of the funk acts that evolved in the early 1970's. By the mid-70s the band members were going their separate ways and the group was disbanded in 1974. It wasn't until 20 years later that they reaped any financial rewards, as their music became a popular source of samplers. Cymande's original albums are still widely sought-after by DJ's and funk aficionados. Perhaps the band's best known recording is the soulful dance floor filler called "Bra", which was later sampled by the American hip-hop group De La Soul and used as a break beat record by the godfathers of hip-hop Kool Herc and Grandmaster Flash. "Dove" is one of their most beautiful songs from their 1972 debut self titled classic LP. This song always put me in a peaceful and meditative mood and exemplifies their sophisticated range which tends to begin slow then rises to a subtle beat and then finishes with the intro. This sound was very popular with the Deep House movement during the mid to late '80s. Enjoy

Dove - Cymande