The Quebecois music scene of the 1970s is still one of the most underrated of the time period. While much attention has been rightfully given to reissues highlighting music from Turkey, Hungary, Wales, and Persia, and the scenes in Germany, France, Italy, and Japan have long been valorized, the music from Celine Dion's homeland has largely flown under the radar.
The Ville Emard Blues Band ("VEBB") was something of a Quebecois rock supergroup or, perhaps more accurately, a collective. Sometimes expanding to over 20 members, most of the musicians in VEBB were either members of other established bands on the Quebecois scene or would go on to form important bands of their own. Several of these related bands included Contraction, Harmonium, and Toubabou. With so many cooks in that proverbial kitchen, it isn't surprising that the group's sound could be more than a little heterogeneous, with folk, funk, psych, hard rock, jazz and even African sounds flowing through the mix.
"Yama Nekh" features VEBB at their funkiest. Hand percussion sets the groove. Lise Cousineau (now Lise Vachon) joins in with a Senegalese traditional song. Then the bass haltingly snakes its way in. Soon, some tasty and crunch rock guitar takes over, with a snapping drum kit behind it. Lise and the band then ride the unstoppable rock-strut groove to the end.