I think that Donkey Kong Country is a mix of Sonic ( gameplay ) speed and Mario platforming.
It has an enjoyble gameplay overall and fantastic music and graphic ( although I prefer Yoshi's Island artistic graphic ).
Plus DKC had an english style/humor that is different from Japanese's.
Overall I think that DKC is a really great platform.
Yoshi Island showed at that time the limits achieved by the genre ( 2D platforming) , IMO.
So althought be an improvement overall of Super Mario World I prefer the later ( or Super Mario Bros 3 ) thanks to his simplicity.
However, Miyamoto later retreat his statement about DKC. He said that he was underpreassure by Nintendo to deliver a worthy sequel to SMW 
OT : Someone has played to DK Jungle Beat ? How is it ? I'm just curious because it was developed by EAD Tokio , maker of SMG 
“In the entertainment business, there are only heaven and hell, and nothing in between and as soon as our customers bore of our products, we will crash.” Hiroshi Yamauchi
TAG: Like a Yamauchi pimp slap delivered by Il Maelstrom; serving it up with style.
