Carrousel (2)

Loy Ehrlich, a multi-instrumentalist, was invited to Reunion in 1977 to join the Caméléons. This group, made up of René Lacaille, Alain Peters, Bernard Brancard, Joël Gonthier, and Hervé Imare, was in charge of the recordings and productions of the Royal studio in St Joseph, which had just been set up at the time. In 1979 the group Caméléons ceased its activities and, under the motivation and the musical direction of Loy, the group Carrousel was born at the Etang St Leu with Alain Peters on bass and vocals, Loy Ehrlich on keyboards and vocals, Bigoun on drums, Joël Gonthier on percussion, Bruno Leflanchec on trumpet and Zoun on flute. As a newcomer to Reunion Island's musical panorama, Carrousel stood out from other bands of the time, which were still under the influence of local balls, by offering concerts of original music stamped "tropical rock" with instrumentals and compositions in Creole laying the foundations for a fusion between maloya, séga, rock, jazz, and reggae. To make themselves known, they organized a tour with free concerts across the island and notably performed as the first part of the group Téléphone at the Stade de l'Est in 1980. In 1981 the group separated from Zoun and Alain Peters. A second formation of Carrousel was then born with Teddy Baptiste on guitar, Kiki Mariapin on bass, Jean Claude Viadere on vocals, and Tot on saxophone. The recognition of the public was done little by little and in 1982 they released their first and only album « La vie est un mystère » followed by many concerts on the island. A last concert at the St Gilles theater marked the end of the group in 1983 before Loy returned to France. In 1994, on the occasion of the reissue of the LP on CD, the Carrousel group reformed for two exceptional concerts with Alain Peters as a guest, whose comeback to the stage was a memorable event only a few months before his death. Despite a relatively short period of activity, Carrousel remains a reference to this day. Over the years, it has become a cult group in Reunion and all its members are major and recognized artists who have contributed through their many projects to the shaping of the musical identity of the island.