WorldBeatUK (30th Show) - Broadcast Notes (12/10/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Piers Faccini Lil Nathan DJ LK Trio Juriti Pedro Ramaya Beltran Beatriz Aguiar Marcelino Azaguate Martin Alvarado Fernandez Fierro Earth Wheel Sky Taraf de Haidouks Dorantes Ana Sofia Varela Zulu 9.30 Karamelo Strut Congotronics
WBUK30 (12/10/11) - SHOWNOTES
1 “Intro-Mat” (1:47) - Matchatcha - “Nyekesse” (Melodie) - Soukous
“Welcome to another two hours of great world music on WorldBeatUK!
[Pause]
I’m Glyn Phillips and you’re tuned into Rhubarb Radio and the two hours of transcultural audio joy that is WorldBeatUK. Stay with me from now until 9pm tonight whilst I bring you songs of love, lust and longing!
Find out why Ieye wants Johnny, Ali Chukwumah is singing about Henrietta and why Zulu 9.30 are raving about Carmelita.
Lil Nathan and the Zydeco Big Timers are begging their girl to come back, but Miss Mama just want to call a taxi.
And what on earth does Memphis Minnie mean when she says her Butcher Man can slice her pork chops and grind her sausage too . . . ?! Ooh er Missus!
[PAUSE]
Yep, tonight we’re going to dance with firemen, give thanks to life, plant naughty herbs with Marlon Asher, get covered in gypsy dust, buzz and rumble in the urban jungle, school the duke and take Bucovina to Barranquilla.
We’re also going to mix bossa with 90s hip-hop, funk-up the cumbia, cumbia-up the balkan and balkan-up the dancehall...
... as well as roam the southern cone to tonadas, chacareras and tangos, float away with fateful fado and beautiful bulerias, and come down to earth with earthy cumbias, feisty forros, zesty zydeco and pioneering blues.
Finally we end up discovering that unconditional love makes for a wonderful world. Stick around for the ride of your life…”
I’m going to ease us into tonight’s very eclectic offerings with some gentle, wistful country music, or is it blues, or is it world, or is it . . . ?
Dunno, it’s nice though!
This is Piers Faccini (at times sounding like a young John Martyn) from his brand new album on the 6 Degrees Record label. This is the title track: “My Wilderness”
2 “My Wilderness” (3:23) - Piers Faccini - “My Wilderness” (6 Degrees Records) - Country/Blues
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Here’s another laid-back mix of styles that works really well - sort of 21st century RnB meets Zydeco! Unusual? Maybe, but very good too. Love the groove on this one.
This is Lil Nathan and the Zydeco Big Timers and a track from the newly-released “Rough Guide To Cajun and Zydeco” that I was talking about last week on the World Music Network label.
This one’s a love song called “Come Back To Me”
3 “Come Back to Me” (5:57) - Lil Nathan And The Zydeco Big Timers - “The Rough Guide To Cajun & Zydeco” (World Music Network) - Zydeco
Now, the Brazilians have long been famous for their laid back music in particular bossa novas and one of the great names of the 1960s MPB period there was none other than Vinicius de Moraes.
Here he teams up with Toquinho for De Moraes’s classic “Canto de Ossanha” a song about love and the need or otherwise of involving the orixas (the gods and goddesses of afro-brazilian religions such as candomblé and umbanda) in getting it.
But here’s the twist: in this version the Brazilian remixer DJ LK has mashed-up the original with a version by the 1990s Californian hip-hop crew Jurassic 5!
As ever with DJ LK it’s all deliciously done!
4 “Canto De Ossanha (DJ LK MASHUP)” (3:23 - Vinicius de Moraes & Toquinho vs Jurassic 5 - “DJ LK Mashup” - mashup
[CONTINUOUS]
5 “My Butcher Man” (3:01) - Memphis Minnie - “Hoodoo Lady: 1933-1937” (Sony) - Blues
Yeah, and that was a little slice of blues history there from the mid 1930s. That was the woefully ignored female blues singer Memphis Minnie and a rather naughty song called “My Butcher Man”.
As I said at the top of the show what on earth does she mean when she says her Butcher Man can slice her pork chops and grind her sausage too . . . ! Ooh er Missus!
You can find that on the Sony release “Hoodoo Lady: 1933-1937”.
I just want to take a moment to talk about Memphis Minnie, because she ought to be known at least as well as Bessie Smith and Ma Rainey in the annals of pioneering female Blues singers - and since October is Black History month all over the UK, now’s the right time to put the records straight.
Minnie was born Lizzie Douglas in 1897 in Algiers, Louisiana, and learned to play both guitar and banjo whilst a little girl. She ran away from home aged 13 and went to live in Memphis, Tennessee where she earned a living playing in nightclubs and on the street under the moniker “Kid” Douglas and a year later she joined the Ringling Brothers circus.
Over the years Lizzie built up a fiery reputation both as a performer - where she was considered to be the equal of any of the male bluesmen both in terms of her guitar playing, singing and songwriting, once wiping the floor with Big Bill Broonzy at a blues competition - and as a flamboyant character who took no nonsense from anyone. She was an incredibly prolific artist having recorded hundreds of tracks over her 30 year career.
Now with her stage name changed to Memphis Minnie, she was billed as ‘the woman who plays guitar like a man’ and although she performed a large repertoire and not just blues, it was her risqué lyrics and double-entendres that gained her both a large following and much notoriety.
As her fame spread she would turn up at concerts in posh cars, wearing bracelets made of silver dollars and would incongruously spit tobacco juice with great accuracy whilst performing in beautiful dresses. She was married about three times to other blues guitarists, but it was always Minnie that was the main attraction, pioneering the use of the electric guitar and leading country blues into urban blues long before it became fashionable.
To give some idea of her influence, she has been cited by both Maria Muldaur and Bonnie Raitt as a musical hero (Bonnie actually paying for Minnie’s headstone when she died) and wrote the blues song “When The Levee Breaks” - made famous afterwards by Led Zeppelin (although with a different melody and slightly altered lyrics).
So there you go, Memphis Minnie - go and find out more about her for Black History month.
Ok, if that all sounded like a bit of a lecture then that’s quite appropriate for the next track.
Jamaica’s Don Drummond and “Schooling the Duke”!
6 “Schooling The Duke” (2:38) - Don Drummond - “The Best Of Don Drummond” - Ska
Ok, for the next six tracks or so we’re heading over to South America.
Firstly, we’re going to land in Brazil’s smallest state Sergipe in the North-East of this vast country and the home of forró music and here the three young musicians of the Trio Juriti play accordion, triangle and a drum in a jaunty little number entitled “Forró de Plic Plac”
7 “Forró de Plic Plac” (2:54) - Trio Juriti - “Music from Sergipe” - Forró
If you like Brazilian music, then don’t forget that from next Friday (that is the 21st October) there’ll be a brand new Brazilian music night in Brum hosted by myself and my old DJ partner Zuppa Inglese. The night’s called “Amazonas Groove” and takes place at the beautiful Brazilian churrascaria restaurant Amazon Brazil at 197 Broad Street, Birmingham from 10pm till 4am. Loads of highly danceable authentic Brazilian music, including forró!
And from the North-East of Brazil we are going North-West again all the way round to the Caribbean coast of Colombia to hear some traditional cumbia courtesy of Pedro Ramaya Beltran and a track played on clarinet, tambores and maracas alone. Wonderful!
This is from the album “El Rey de Millo” and is called “La Peluca”
¡Güeeeeepaaaa! ¡Pura Cumbia!
8 “La Peluca (El Rey del Millo)” (4:46) - Pedro Ramaya Beltran - “El Rey del Millo” - Cumbia
Well-known as cumbia now is across the world, you don’t often get to hear traditional cumbia like that! Excellent.
And as a contrast here’s a South American music form that is very little known (yet one of my favourites) but here played in a very modern style and setting. The rhythm is known as chacarera and is to be found from Northern Argentina through Bolivia and Paraguay and into Southern Brazil.
Here it’s given a jazzy treatment by the Uruguyan singer Beatriz Aguiar who is now based in Holland.
This is called “Agua” (water).
9 “Agua” (3:18) - Beatriz Aguiar - Sampler (2010) (MeloMusic.NL) - Chacarera
Next to Uruguay of course is the very much larger country of Argentina - a country in fact that is as large as the whole of Western Europe. And you’d be wrong if you thought it was all about tangos and milongas. Argentina’s folklore is deep and rich.
So, here’s an offering from the little known Western border where the Andes Mountain range runs all the way down the length of the country. Roughly in the middle of that you’ll find the city of Mendoza and from there the musician Marcelino Azaguate.
This track has been produced by the rather more famous Mendocino Goy Karamelo (who usually sports a huge set of dreadlocks and whose music and remixes I’ve often featured on the programme); however here Goy just allows Marcelino to do what he does best.
The music form is called tonada and this beautiful track is entitled “Soy La Tonada”.
10 “Soy La Tonada” (2:26) - Marcelino Azaguate Huarpe (prod. by Goy Karamelo) - “Tejedora” - Tonada (Huarpe Folclore)
Lovely. In fact it might be argued that Western Argentina shares more in common with its neighbour on the other side of the Andes range, Chile, than with its own capital Buenos Aires. Certainly tonadas are prevalent all over Chile, a country that loves its folklore.
And so this leads me on to another Argentine-Chilean link for the next tune. During the 1960s Chile underwent something of a folk revolution (or certainly a counter-culture) where young Chileans started to really appreciate the music forms and instruments of the Andes and of the different regions of this long thin country. They started by collecting and learning the old songs and tunes and later by incorporating what they’d learnt into new songs.
One of the greatest folk-artists of that time - and in fact one of the greatest of all Latin America in the 20th century - was the singersongwriter Violeta del Carmen Parra Sandoval - commonly known as Violeta Parra, who is credited with being one of the driving forces behind the concept of ‘Nueva Canción’ which spread across South America and up to Cuba and even echoed via the likes of Joan Baez in the USA.
And from the great Violeta what else but what is probably the most famous of all the Latin American nueva cancion genre: “Gracias a la Vida”.
This song is one of the most covered latin american songs ever written. Personally, I knew it from the great Argentine folksinger the late Mercedes Sosa who I was lucky enough to see twice in the 1980s and even now has the ability to bring tears to my eyes.
Here it’s sung by the Argentine singer Martin Alvarado - who I’ve been featuring over the last few weeks since he’s coming to the UK on tour in November and will be performing at the mac on Sunday 19th November.
This is a starkly beautiful version of the anthemic “Gracias a la Vida” (Thanks to Life)
11 “Gracias A La Vida” (3:34) - Martin Alvarado & Horacio Avilano Trio - “Mas Alla” (Fonocal) - Canción
Gorgeous. Martin Alvarado there - as I say he’ll be at the mac in Birmingham on Nov 19th so put that in your diaries.
Now that was what is known as a canción but Martin is more famous for singing tangos and milongas. And so I’m going to follow that with a couple of tangos.
First of all is the Tango Orchestra Orquesta Típica Fernandez Fierro and a track that is originally not a tango at all but a zamba. Yes, life’s never straightforward on my show is it!
Zamba with a ‘z’ (not to be confused with it’s Brazilian neighbour samba with an ’s’) is a musical form mostly found in Northern Argentina - and I’m much enamoured of it. It’s more connected to the Andean gauchos than the porteño gangsters and this is one of the most famous, written by the great Argentine classical guitarist Eduardo Falú, but here given the Fernandez Fierro tango treatment.
Confused? Don’t worry, just enjoy!
From the album “Mucha Mierda” this is “Zamba de la Candelaria”
12 “Zamba de la Candelaria” (3:54) - Orquesta Típica Fernandez Fierro - “Mucha Mierda” - Tango
And now from Argentine Tango to European Gipsy Tango!
This is the Earth Wheel Sky Band and a track called “Tikno Luludi”
13 “Tikno Luludi” (1:58) - Earth Wheel Sky Band - “Gipsy Tango” - Gipsy Tango
[CONTINUOUS]
14 “Dance Of The Firemen” (1:30) - Taraf De Haïdouks - “Band Of Gypsies” (Crammed Discs) - Balkan
Ha ha! That was the Romanian gypsy band Taraf de Haidouks and a short track called Sirba Pompierilor (or Dance of the Firemen) featuring the 77 year old Neculae Neacsu on creaking, croaking violin string accompanied by the double bass, accordion and cymbalom.
I enjoyed that, so here’s another from the same album “Band of Gypsies” on the Belgian Crammed Discs label. This is Taraf again and “Cacurica Dances”
15 “Cacurica Dances” (1:31) - Taraf De Haïdouks - “Band Of Gypsies” (Crammed Discs) - Balkan
[CHANGE CDs!!!]
[You’re listening to ….]
Now a real treat - well, I reckon so anyway.
This is from an album I picked up about four years ago but have only just got round to listening to! Yes I know, hard to believe isn’t it! But I’m a busy man and sometimes they just slip out of your consciousness.
I’m so glad I found it and took the wrapper off - if only for this one track alone.
It’s from Spain, from the promotional album “Flamenco Por Andalucía, España Y La Humanidad” on the Szena Records label and is simply entitled “Bulerías” (which if you not familiar with it, refers to one of the many different forms of flamenco as opposed to an actual song-title itself).
What I like about it is that you usually only hear flamenco played on guitar, but here it’s played on piano.
This is Dorantes, here accompanied by singer Esperanza Fernández.
Lush, romantic, understated. I love this!
1 (16) “Bulerías” (4:21) - Dorantes Y Esperanza Fernández - “Flamenco Por Andalucía, España Y La Humanidad” (Szena Records) - Bulerías
Aah! Wasn’t that beautiful?
And what to follow that with?
Well, more beauty of course. And one of my favourite songforms of all time: Fado!
So, from Portugal, this is the wonderful Ana Sofia Varela and from her album “Fados de Amor e Pecado” (fados of love and sin) the title track.
2 (17) “Fado de Amor e Pecado” (4:40) - Ana Sofia Varela - “Fados de Amor e Pecado” (iPlay Music) - Fado
What to follow that?
Time for something different.
Still in the Iberian peninsular but North-East to Barcelona and Zulu 9.30’s “Carmelita” remixed here by Rude Hi-Fi from Zulu 9.30’s “Remixes” album on the Kasba label.
3 (18) “Carmelita” (3:42) - Zulu 9.30 (Rude HI-FI remix) - “Remixes” (Kasba)
Now, earlier on I played you a piece of Argentine tonada by Marcelino Azaguate from his album produced by veteran Mendocino musician and punk-reggae artist and mixer, Goy Karamelo.
Well, here’s a really interesting track from Goy’s old band Karamelo Santo from their album “La Gente Arriba” - it’s a reggae cumbia version of a track made famous by Old Satchmo himself, Louis Armstrong!
Not guessed yet? Well, this has got be one of the most uplifting of songs, and a really whimsical version of it too.
Imagine if we were all as happy and as chilled as this: it’d be a wonderful world, wouldn’t it!
4 (19) “Wonderful World” (4:10) - Karamelo Santo - “La Gente Arriba!” - (Sony BMG 2006; K Industria 2011) - Reggae-Cumbia
[CONTINUOUS]
5 (20) “Unconditional Love” aka ‘Ganja Farmer’ (3:57) - Marlon Asher - “Cultural Lovers' Rock” (ERNI 2009) - Reggae
Yeah, first you heard Karamelo Santo’s version of “Wonderful World” and that was followed by a track that was heard all over Birmingham in the last couple of years - at least in my part of it.
That was Marlon Asher’s “Unconditional Love” (aka Ganja Farmer).
That one went out to Silvalili as a special request. Not that we condone any activities of that kind, I hasten to add! But it’s a great tune anyway.
As is this next one. From 1970s Nigeria a sublime piece of Ibo Highlife from Ali Chukwumah and his Peace Makers International.
Re-released this year on the fabulous Strut Records album “Sweet Times: Afro Funk, Highlife and Juju from 1970s Lagos” as part of their Nigeria 70 series, this is “Henrietta”.
6 (21) “Henrietta” (4:40) - Ali Chukwuma & His Peace Makers International - “Sweet Times” (Strut Records) - Nigerian Ibo Highlife
[CONTINUOUS]
7 (22) “Wa Muluendu (world)” (4:00) - Masanka Sankayi & Kasai Allstars - “Congotronics 2” (Crammed Discs) - African (Congo)
Yeah, what a great groove!! That was a piece from the Congo recorded in Kinshasa and was from album “Congotronics 2: Buzz’n’Rumble from the Urb’n’Jungle” on the Crammed Discs label from Belgium (who put out some great stuff).
The track was called “Wa Muluendu” and the band was Masanka Sankayi and the Kasai Allstars featuring Mutumilayi.
And since we’re firmly in some very funky, urban territory now how about this?
This is the Spiritual South Remix of the Ska Cubano cover of the classic Lito Barrientos cumbia from the 1960s “Cumbia en Do Menor” (still with me?).
Like one of Dr Bach’s homeopathic herbal remedies there’s precious little of the original left to be heard, but it’s a great groove anyway . . .
Stick with it ‘cause afterward we’re going to hit up some mad balkanic cumbia and balkan dancehall - don’t go away!
8 (23) “Cumbia En Do Menor” (5:20) - Ska Cubano (Spiritual South Remix) - “Ajiaco! The Remix Album” (Absolute UK, 2008) - Ska Cubano
[CONTINUOUS]
9 (24) “Bucovina en Barranquilla” (3:07) - Danochilango - Balkan Cumbia
Yeah, that was Danochilango’s Balkan Cumbia “Bucovina en Barranquilla”.
Sticking with that balkan vibe as promised this is another mad mashup - balkan dancehall styleee from France’s Watcha Clan vs Mims, Cham & Junior Reid all mashed together by the Balkan Hotsteppers.
This is called “Gypsy Dust is Hot!”
10 (25) “Gypsy Dust is Hot (This Is Why We Hot)” (4:24) - Watcha Clan vs. Mims, Cham & Junior Reid (Balkan Hotsteppers) - Balkan Dancehall mashup
Ok, got time for about another one or two that’s all, so this is the gorgeous Jamaican singer Ieye (no relation to Brummie Rocksteady crew 1EYE btw!) and a track from her album “Fever Grass” entitled “Johnny”
11 (26) “Johnny” (4:10) - Ieye - “Fever Grass” - Reggae
OK that’s it.
[Shoutouts, Reminders, etc - Amazonas Groove and Arriba]
I’m going to leave you with a French Reggae band singing a song in English written by a Brummie.
The band is called Miss Mama and from their live album “T’as Raison” this is a track written by Steel Pulse’s David Hinds called “Taxi Driver”.
.
.
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See ya’ll next week.
Taxi!!!!!
12 (27) “Taxi Driver” (3:58) - Miss Mama - “T’as Raison !” (Douzetafs) - Reggae
WorldBeatUK (19th Show) - Broadcast Notes (6/7/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Colombiafrica Professor Elemental Zeca Pagodinho Zulu 9.30 Lisandro Meza Etubom Rex Williams Strut JuJu Ikebe Shakedown Shazalakazoo Slamboree Goy Karamelo Tommy McCook Letta Mbulu Supa Bassie Joe Claussell Nuyorican Soul Tea Sea
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WBUK19 (6/7/11) - SHOWNOTES
1 “Intro-Mat” (1:47) by Matchatcha from the album “Nyekesse” (Melodie)
Hi there, you’re listening to WorldBeatUK on Rhubarb Radio, transmitting around the world from the Custard Factory in Digbeth, Birmingham - all done through the magic of digital technology. Such times we live in! My name’s Glyn Phillips and for the next two hours I’ll be playing you my own idiosyncratic collation of the best in world music from around the globe; from the past and present - and looking toward the future.
This week it’s all about the soul and the funk, the grist and the groove - and there’s a definite African and Colombian flavour to much of tonight’s sonic banquet. So, just grab hold of yer eating irons and get stuck into the musical feast that awaits you . . .
In fact this week’s show is slightly different from normal - there’s very few new releases this time, so I thought I’d rustle through some interesting oldies, almost-newies and the ‘ones that got away’ - and in doing so I’ve managed to dig up some seriously funky-ass grooves to get you shaking yer tushes to!
But let’s not rush it, we’ll just put the pot on to boil, gently warm up the pan and put the pulses in to soak. You can’t rush good food. We’ll just get you nicely simmered up for the first part of the show and, indeed, first up is the point where the South American country of Colombia (bordered by the Pacific Ocean, the Caribbean Sea and the Amazon Jungle) meets Africa (culturally speaking anyway).
Colombiafrica - The Mystic Orchestra is a project that takes some of the best afro-colombiano musicians Viviano Torres, Luis Towers and Justo Valdez and teams them up with African musicians such as Dally Kimoko, Nyboma, Sekou Diabaté, Rigo Star and the brilliant Diblo Dibala (who, incidentally is the man behind my theme music for this show!). The album is called “Voodoo Love Inna Champeta-Land” and this track is called “No Habla Na’” (Don’t Say Nuthin’!)
2 “No Habla Na’” (4:43) by Colombiafrica - The Mystic Orchestra from the album “Voodoo Love Inna Champeta-Land” (Riverboat Records/World Music Network)
Well, that was all rather splendid, don’t you think? Professor Elemental certainly thinks so!
3 “Splendid (Tom Caruana remix)” (3:02) by Professor Elemental from the album “More Tea (Remixes)” (Tea Sea Records)
Yes that was the wonderfully eccentric Englishman Professor Elemental and a track from his recent album “More Tea (Remixes)” called “Splendid!” - check the video out on YouTube if you can, and remember you can get his tracks direct from his website:
And if you’re listening Prof, hope the baby’s coming on a treat! And stay tuned for more Elemental eccentricity later on in the show!
Last week I had a little bit too much to say (as usual!) so unfortunately I ran out of time and had to drop a track from my playlist. Well don’t say that I don’t try and put things right straightaway. Here’s that track a great feelgood samba tune called “Vai Vadiar” by the great Zeca Pagodinho from his album “Sem Limite”. Goza os meus amiguinhos!
4 “Vai Vadiar” (4:07) by Zeca Pagodinho from the album “Sem Limite” (Universal Import)
OK, let’s nip across to Barcelona for the first of two visits tonight. This is the home of the really talented Spanish band Zulu 9.30 who are amongst the current wave of European mestizo music - a style that often mashes up latin, Jamaican, flamenco, folk, jazz, rock, punk and, well, all kinds of stuff into a danceable world groove. It’s all grist to the mill! This is from their album “Huellas” (which means ‘footprints’) on the Kasba label and is a salsa-based piece called “Te Llevo Conmigo” (I’m taking you with me!).
5 “Te Llevo Conmigo” (3:36) by Zulu 9.30 from the album “Huellas” (Kasba)
And that sets us up nicely to go back over to South America for a lovely slice of 1980s cumbia from the great accordionist Lisandro Meza - probably the first cumbiambero I ever came across when I first pitched up on the shores of South America over a quarter of a century ago. What a great sound he has. So slap on the sombrero, sharpen your machete and mount up your burros because Lisandro is taking us to meet “Las Africanas” . . .
6 “Las Africanas” (2:18) by Lisandro Meza from the album “Lisandro’s Cumbia” (World Circuit)
[CONTINUOUS]
7 “Illusion de Amor” (4:13) by Los Chapillacs (Listen Recovery RENZ mix)
First you heard the sound of Colombian cumbia from accordionist Lisandro Meza and that was followed by psychedelic 1970s Peruvian chicha music (which is based on cumbia) by Los Chapillacs subtly remixed by Listen Recovery RENZ.
Let’s follow that with some more old school sounds - this is from a wonderful recent compilation of old Nigerian tunes from the 1970s.
The album is on the Strut Records label and is called “Sweet Times…”; from that is this sublime slowburner “Ama Mbre Ewa” by Etubom Rex Williams & His Nigerian Artistes. Just kick back and let this one flow over you . . .
8 “Ama Mbre Ewa” (5:38) by Etubom Rex Williams & His Nigerian Artistes from the album “Sweet Times” (Strut Records)
Wasn’t that good? Very trance-like feel - and talking of which this next track is from a recent album on Real World Records called “In Trance” by the Anglo-Gambian duo of Justin Adams and Juldeh Camara.
And please note Justin and Juldeh will be performing right here in Birmingham the day after tomorrow at the mac, in Edgbaston, in the open air arena. That’s going to be a real treat indeed! I saw them a couple of weeks ago down in Devon at the HOME Festival doing an acoustic set - a real mindblower!
Juldeh is from Gambia in West Africa and is a real virtuoso on the ritti or nyanyeru (the traditional one-string fiddle of West Africa). Doesn’t sound very inspiring? Trust me, this guy really knows what he’s doing! Amazing licks and he can make it sound like lots of different instruments too - all on just ONE string and no fretboard!! He also sings really well and has real presence.
Justin’s no slouch either - he’s served time with Jah Wobble and has also produced and co-written with Robert Plant. Justin plays some mean blues guitar and banjo and sings too.
If you want to hear where the blues comes from, where the Gambia meets the Mississippi, where West Africa meets the Celtic World, then check these guys out. Highly recommended!
So that’s this Friday at the mac (7.30pm and the support band is the African Roots Fusion Band)
OK, so here’s a taster for that - a laidback bluesy piece called “Halanam”
9 “Halanam” (7:09) by JuJu (Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara) from the album “In Trance” (Real World Records)
So, from the ethereal sound of the one-string fiddle to the simultaneously ‘in-yer-face’ but ‘so-laid-back-it’s-almost-horizontal’ sounds of afrobeat-funk band Ikebe Shakedown from Brooklyn, New Yoik! Love their sound!
And that cowbell! That’s exactly how I’d play it too . . . Hmmmm! Not so much ‘music in the key of life’ as ‘groove to the universal pulse’.
This is the “Kumasi Walk” from their album also called ”Ikebe Shakedown” on the Ubiquity label.
10 “Kumasi Walk” (4:42) by Ikebe Shakedown from the album “Ikebe Shakedown” (Ubiquity)
OK, WAKEY-WAKEY!! Balkanbeat madness to the max! This is “Marock” by Shazalakazoo.
11 “Marock” (3:54) by Shazalakazoo
[CONTINUOUS]
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12 “Moon Monkeys” (1:15) by Professor Elemental from the album “More Tea (Remixes)” (Tea Sea Records)
[CONTINUOUS]
13 “Prokofiev” (3:20) by Slamboree
I bet that cleared yer sinuses out! OK first of all in that little medley you heard a modern piece of Balkanbeat madness from Shalakazoo followed by a little interlude of Professor Elemental lunar monkey business and then, no it’s not those tossers from The Apprentice - it is of course the Russian genius Prokofiev’s “Dance of the Knights” from Romeo and Juliet - given a peculiarly British Dubstep treatment by Slamboree, a collective that includes Rhubarb Radio and Birmingham’s very own DJ Marc Reck (AKA DJ Narrative).
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So in true WorldBeatUK fashion, from the ridiculous to the sublime...
From the 1980s a glorious fusion of Andalusian flamenco with a Moroccan orchestra - Juan Pena El Lebrijano and the Orquesta Andalusi de Tanger.
I first bought this album “Encuentros” on vinyl and fell in love with the album sleeve, the rather dapper looking silk-cravatted Paco Cepero on guitar, the open-shirted, medallion-chested singer Juan Pena El Lebrijano both seated in front, and behind them two Moroccan women and five blokes in neck-to-ankle pure white shifts and - joy of joys - each one wearing a red fez! It was better than a Tommy Cooper convention!
Aah, but you think I jest too much methinks! Let me tell you however the music is fabulous! Here’s the opening tune from the album. It’s called “Vivir Un Cuento De Hadas” (living a fairytale) and I think you’ll see what I mean
14 “Vivir Un Cuento De Hadas” (5:08) by Juan Pena Lebrijano and the Orquesta Andalusi de Tanger from the album “Encuentros” (Ariola)
[CHANGE THE CDS OVER!]
Wasn’t that sumptuous! Ok, let’s take it up again a notch. This is a cumbia-based track with a reggaeton feel and andean folkloric overtones mixed with hip-hop; originally written by the Argentine band Karamelo Santo and featured in the Latin American film “Caño Dorado”; here it’s remixed by Goy Karamelo (now a solo musician). I’m really loving some of the stuff that’s been coming out of Argentina recently and this is no exception. “Que No Digan Nunca”
(1) 15 “Que No Digan Nunca” [Ends at 3.48] (4:03) by Karamelo Santo (Caño Dorado film music - remix by Goy Karamelo) from the album “Mi CD”
[BEWARE: Ends at 3.48!!]
OK, two in a row now; same song but for some reason with different names. I’ll tell you after, what the details are, but if any of you say Lily Allen I’ll never talk to you again!
(2) 16 “Reggae Merengue” (2:16) by Tommy McCook & The Supersonics
And now another version . . .
(3) 17 “Cójeme La Caña” (3:00) by Pedro Laza Y Sus Pelayeros (Mixticius)
So, first one was an old version by Jamaican saxophonist Tommy McCook and the Supersonics called - for some bizarre reason on the version I’ve got - ‘Reggae Merengue’ (although it’s obviously a cumbia to me!) and that was followed by the Colombian bandleader Pedro Laza y sus Pelayeros and the same tune but called “Cójeme La Caña” - and that was a remix by Mixticius; you can find more of his work on Soundcloud.
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Well, a real treat now - I absolutely love this! From the “Gilles Peterson in Africa - The Soul” album this is South African singer Letta Mbulu and some tasty, tasty funk called “Mahlalela”. Brilliant!
(4) 18 “Mahlalela” (4:45) by Letta Mbulu from the album “Gilles Peterson in Africa - The Soul” (Ether)
[CONTINUOUS]
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.
(5) 19 “Original Cumbiamuffin” (4:57) by Supa Bassie
Ha ha ha! Love that one!! That was reggaeman Supa Bassie from Valencia and a tune called “Original Cumbiamuffin” - a cumbia reworking of his hit “Original Raggamuffin” from the “Crónicas de un Viaje” album.
And since I’m in that remixing mood how about this little mashup from young Mexican mixer Outsider8301 - this is Sidestepper’s groovalicious “Papaya” vs Wreckx-n-Effect’s 1992 butt-wobbling “Rumpshaker”, with a little MIA thrown in for good measure. You can start bouncing now ladies!
(6) 20 “Papaya vs Rumpshaker” (5:29) by Wreckx + M.I.A. vs Sidestepper (Oscar Outsider 8301)
[Talk over intro to next track]:
OK, we’re definitely in the groove now, brothers and sisters! And time to lay this one on you. This is where latin meets soul, meets jazz meets funk. Eddie Palmieri is both a giant and a living legend in the annals of New York latin jazz and here his amazing “Mi Congo Te Llama” gets a very liberal deconstruction by Joaquin “Joe” Claussell from the brand new album “Hammock House - Africa Caribe” on the Fania label. 7 minutes of stone-solid groove, babies!
[BEWARE - LONG QUIET START!!]
(7) 21 “Mi Congo Te Llama” (Joe Claussell Remix) (6:59) by Eddie Palmieri from the album “Hammock House - Africa Caribe” (Código/Fania)
OK and that’s the end of the show . . .
[SHOUT-OUTS TO ALL AND ANNOUNCEMENTS - reminder about Justin and Juldeh at mac]
I said at the top of the show that tonight was all about the funk and the soul, the grist and the groove. Well, I’ve tried to give you that tonight and I hope you agree. If you don’t feel so, then at least you should be able to with this final track.
This is the fantastic Jocelyn Brown and Nuyorican Soul and a track from the Masters At Work album “Nuyorican Soul”. Turn up your speakers as loud as they’ll go and say after me: “It’s Alright, I Feel it!”
(8) 22 “It’s Alright, I Feel It!” (3:22) by Jocelyn Brown & Nuyorican Soul from the album “NuYorican Soul” (Talkin Loud)
WorldBeatUK (15th Show) - Broadcast Notes (8th June 2011)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips JuJu Frigg Kadialy Kouyate Gnawa Super Khoumeissa Doa Bonovo Balfa Brothers Timbalada Juçara Marçal Kiki Dinucci Luna Itzel Imam Baildi Goy Karamelo Poly Rythmo Rob Roy Ikebe Shakedown Mixticius Songhai Pedro Laza Strut Analog
WBUK15 (8/6/11) SHOWNOTES
1 “Intro-Mat” (1:47) by Matchatcha from album “Nyekesse” (Melodie)
Hi, this is WorldBeatUK, I’m Glyn Phillips and you’re listening to Rhubarb Radio - coming at you loud and clear from The Custard Factory, Digbeth, Birmingham. Welcome to the show that brings the sound of a planet to your living room.
Lots of goodies on the show tonight, including: some classic world fusion from the 1980s - courtesy of Ketama, Toumani Diabate and Danny Thompson’s Songhai project.
Notwithstanding: kora - a 21-string Senegalese harp, gimbri - a 3-string guitar and ritti - a one-string fiddle.
And how can you resist when Michael Jackson goes Cumbia, Pedro Laza goes Swing, and The Big Apple goes Afrobeat.
As well as all that we’ve got music from Beninese vodoun afrobeat maestros Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo’s last album in 2010 and from their first ever album in 1973, Ghanaian afro-funk from 1977, remixed Greek rembetiko and Serbian hasaposerviko, Mexican waltz, Brazilian rumba & carimbó, samba-reggae from Timbalada, and some classic cajun from the Balfa Brothers.
Sprinkle all that with Medieval tales of Arthurian romance from Spain’s celtic corner as well as contemporary Galician fusion, traditional Takamba music from northern Mali, Gnawa Sufi trance music from Morocco, and some Nordic fiddling and you’ve got the basis of tonight’s show.
However, I’m going to kick off with a band I played last week called JuJu which includes English guitarist/composer Justin Adams (who amongst other things was a member of Jah Wobble’s Invaders of the Heart, produced Tinariwen’s first and third albums and co-wrote Robert Plant’s 2005 album) along with the Gambian singer and one-string fiddle player Juldeh Camara (who has previously been part of Ifang Bondi, has played with the Blind Boys of Alabama and also been part of Tunge Jegede’s African Classical Ensemble).
JuJu also includes Billy Fuller on bass and Dave Smith on drums. This is from their new album (“In Trance” about to be released on Monday 13th June by Real World Records) and it’s a suitably trance-like blues called “Jombajo”:
2 “Jombajo” (6:58) by JuJu (Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara) from album “In Trance” (Real World Records)
And continuing in a suitably laid-back vein I offer you this piece by the nordic string band Frigg (named after the Scandinavian mother goddess and wife of Odin and incidentally where we get the name of Friday from in English) made up of musicians from Norway and Finland, playing between them four fiddles, mandolin, guitar and bass. From their album “Grannen”, this is called “Amurin Tiikeri”:
3 “Amurin Tiikeri” (4:53) by Frigg from album “Grannen” (Frigg00007)
As I said last week, the Celebrating Sanctuary Festival 2011 will be taking place in London on the 19th June on the South Bank, as part of Refugee Week (which is the 20th-26th June) and to flag that up I’m featuring some of the artists involved this week and next. Last week I featured Rory McLeod and this week it’s the turn of Bravo Bravo. Normally this is a duo formed out of the Trinidadian steel pan maestro Fimber Bravo and the Senegalese kora player, Kadialy Kouyate.
This next track is from their album “Small Talk”; however it features just Kadialy on his own on one of his own compositions called “Kilonding” (which means ‘orphan’). The song tells how shortly after giving birth to a son a mother is killed by the King Manfati when she is caught stealing his water. Years later the son goes from village to village searching for the king to take his revenge . . .
4 “Kilonding” (4:22) by Kadialy Kouyate from BravoBravo’s album “Small Talk”
We’re going to go North from Southern Senegal, past Gambia and North Senegal, Mauretania, and Western Sahara to Morocco, where we find the Gnawa musicians of Essaouira. The Gnawa follow a branch of mystical sufi Islam that also incorporates elements of much older West African divinity.
The Gnawa musicians are famous for practising healing rituals and holding ceremonies on the night of the Leela which involve deeply hypnotic trance music led by a master musician or ‘maallem’ and his troupe, assisted by a ‘moqadeema’ female healer, to the melodies of the 3-stringed gimbri, the clapping of hands driving the rhythm forward, the rising and falling chants and the relentless clash of the ‘krakeb’ (the large metal castanets).
In this recording - made during one such healing session in 2003, you can hear the maallem Mokhtar Gania and his ensemble performing “Arrahb Alahmar Essaouria”, part of a much longer piece called “Sidi Hamou”, which represents the butcher who leads the sacrifice, his colour being, of course, blood-red . . .
5 “Arrahb Alahmar Essaouria” (3:14) by Maallem Mokhtar Gania from album Gnawa “Sufi Trance - Music Of Morocco” (Standard Records)
[BEWARE!! ENDS ABRUPTLY! FADE after 3 mins ie about 15 secs before end]
And from one trance-like piece to another - this is Super Khoumeissa a group of six musicians and four dancers from Gao on the banks of the River Niger in Northern Mali. They’ve been around in various formats for around 20 years but this is their first official release. The music they play is known as Takamba (the commonest musical form in Northern Mali) and refers also to the graceful dance which accompanies it. Super Khoumeissa play the heavily amplified three-stringed tahardent, also known as the ngoni (and also very similar to the gimbri of the previous track) alongside huge calabash gourds which they strike a bit like the Indian ghatam pot and are fronted by a female singer, Zerena Maiga.
This track is from a 12” Limited Edition album on the FatCat Records label called “Split Series No 21” due to be released on the 21st of August this year. It’s called the Split Series because they share the album with the LA based vocal and percussion quartet Foot Village who will be touring the UK this July (including Brum’s Hare and Hounds). We’ll have to wait a bit to see Super Khoumeissa who should be accompanying the singer Khaira Arby, but in the meantime this is a track by them called “Khoumeissa”.
6 “Khoumeissa” (6:32) by Super Khoumeissa from album “Split Series #21” (FatCat Records)
[FADE AROUND 2-3 mins max!!]
OK, so far tonight I’ve played a rather laid-back show - which is fine, it’s good to take time to listen to stuff that I could never play in a club situation. So here’s one more reflective piece, before I start to change the gears musically speaking. This is from a new release on the Spanish Fol Musica label (part of the bigger Boa Music España group) which specialises in the music of the Galicia region of North-Western Spain.
Followers of this show will have heard me play plenty of music from this vibrant Celtic region, both traditional and contemporary fusion. So I’ve got two tracks lined up to represent both ends of the musical arc there.
First up is the group Doa who have been around for over 30 years now and tend towards exploring the traditional and ancient musical history of Galicia. They’ve just released a new album called “A Fronda dos Cervos” (The Horns of the Deer) which is entirely devoted to medieval Galician poetry set to music. No don’t run away! It’s good, honestly! This track is based upon the breton lays which deal with the Arthurian legends - in this case the story of Sir Tristan the Irish king Malhout. This track is called “O Maroot”.
7 “O Maroot” (3:28) by DOA from album “A Fronda Dos Cervos” (Fol Musica)
And now the other side of Galician folk music - some fusion from the trio Bonovo - which incidentally was formed by the zanfoñeiro Oscar Fernandez, one of the current members of the last band we just heard, Doa. Oscar plays the zanfoña - a galician hurdy-gurdy - and this is teamed up with accordion and drums and samplers to create a sort of electro-acoustic dancefloor folk reminiscent of early Afro-Celt Sound System, but with a more defined Galician sound.
The track is called “Sexta”, from the self-titled album “Bonovo” (also on the Spanish Fol Musica label). It’s like a cross between folk-rock, prog-rock and jazz-fusion - and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that in my book!
8 “Sexta” (4:03) by Bonovo from album “Bonovo” (Fol Musica)
Well, we’ve had lots of fiddlers already on tonight’s show and this next one is no exception. It’s not a new band or even a new album - I’m just playing this for the sheer love of it - this is for Dylan coz I know he loves cajun music: The Balfa Brothers from Mamou, Louisiana and the “Acadien Two Step”.
9 “Acadien Two Step” (3:09) by Balfa Brothers from album “World of Music Sampler” (Nascente)
Don’t forget you’re listening to WorldBeatUK right here on Rhubarb Radio, transmitting from Birmingham right across the world! If you’ve got an internet connection then we can reach you! My name’s Glyn Phillips and you can join me every Wednesday (7pm-9pm UK time) on a musical journey around the world.
Now, it’s very strange that even though I’ve spent various months in Brazil going back and I was a founder member of various Brazilian music ensembles in Birmingham from the late 80s onwards that I haven’t played a lot of music from there on this show. Well let’s try and redress the balance a bit - though as ever with a bit of a twist.
This next track is from samba-reggae giants Timbalada and one of my favourite numbers of theirs “Beija-Flor” (Hummingbird). Of course with me I always like to put a different slant on things - so this is Timbalada remixed with some ragga lyrics in English (possibly by someone called ‘British Bulldog’ - I just can’t tell, I’ve tried to track it down but to no avail - if you know the answer, contact me); I have no other details apart from it’s taken from the 2000 album “Brazil: The Essential Album” (on the Manteca label):
10 “Beija-Flor” (5:02) by Timbalada from album “Brazil: The Essential Album (Disc 2)” (Manteca)
[CONTINUOUS]
11 “Engasga Gato/Casa Barata” (3:26) by Juçara Marçal e Kiko Dinucci from album “Padê”
OK, that jaunty samba track was by the Brazilian paulistino duo of Juçara Marçal and Kiko Dinucci from their debut album “Padê” (which is a Yoruba word which means ‘finding’ and also refers to the opening ceremony of a candomble session where the first orixa to be called is always Exu the messenger). The track was a mixture of rumba and carimbó made from the medley of two songs “Engasga Gato” and “Casa Barata”.
And from one giant nation of Latin America to another - ¡OYEN! Sres y Sras - vamo’ a Mexico! Sí, Sr. ¿Cómo no? Dele por ‘echo… Llamando a todo’ lo mexicano’ y las mexicanas - desde Tijuana a Cancún - que bellas y riquísimas que son!
Now then, Luna Itzel comes from Mexico and is an interpreter of classic Mexican songs and traditional styles especially the notoriously difficult huapango style (you can look her up at www.lunaitzel.com). However, in the track I’m going to play for you she sings a lilting waltz.
This is taken from her fourth album “Frida Volumen 2 - El Venadito” which is dedicated to Mexico’s most celebrated visual artist the great, nay the legendary, Frida Kahlo. If you’ve never come across the artwork of Frida Kahlo - or indeed her even more unbelievable life story - then I urge you to investigate further.
In the meantime, the beautiful Luna Itzel is going to ensare us with her voice. This is called “La Bruja” (The Witch).
12 “La Bruja” (3:55) by Luna Itzel from album “Frida (Vol 2) - El Venadito” (2008 - Tratore)
[CONTINUOUS]
13 “De Thelo Pia Na Xanarthis” (3:34) by Imam Baildi from album “Imam Baildi” (2007 Emi Greece and 2009 Kukin Music)
[CHANGE CD!!]
You’re listening to WorldBeatUK on Rhubarb Radio with me, Glyn Phillips, taking you on a musical journey around the world from 7pm to 9pm every Wednesday evening.
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The last tune you heard was by the Greek remixers, refixers, producers and bandleaders Imam Baildi. Formed by two brothers Orestis and Lysandros Falireas in the mid-noughties, they specialised in taking old recordings - especially Greek rembetiko ones - and refixing them with a contemporary aesthetic - new rhythms, style clashes, rap overlays, hip-hop, trip-hop, drum & bass etc. Not surprising when you realise that their father owned a record label and shop specialising in old rebetiko.
That track was from their first album called simply “Imam Baildi” which incidentally means the ‘The Fainting Imam’ (or Fainting Priest) and is also the name of a Middle Eastern stuffed aubergine dish! The track was called “De Thelo Pia Na Zanarthis” and features the vocal talents of Meri Lida (aka Mary Linda) and her husband, Greece’s most famous bazouki-player, singer and composer Manolis Hiotis (aka Manolis Chiotis) - all remixed by the Falireas brothers, Imam Baildi.
Since that first album, the brothers have been inundated with requests to form a live band to tour their remixes and so they’ve put that together and also in the meantime worked on a new album called appropriately enough “Cookbook” (EMI Greece). They added more strings to their remixing bows by mashing in Balkan and Latin elements to their Greek rebetiko base. This uptempo Serbian inspired track is called “Ki Allo Hasaposerviko” (which just means ‘yet another hasaposerviko’).
1 (14) “Ki Allo Hasaposerviko” (2:57) by Imam Baildi from album “The Imam Baildi Cookbook” (EMI Greece)
[CONTINUOUS]
2 - Reggae City Ad Jingle (1:05) -
[CONTINUOUS]
3 (15) “Cumbiapunkreggae Party” (4:12) by Goy Karamelo & Los Kangrejos from album “Remedio De Mi Corazon” (Cangrejo Records)
That track was the uplifting and very danceable “Cumbiapunkreggae” from the album “Remedio De Mi Corazon” (Remedy from my Heart) by the Argentinian musician, producer and remixer Goy Karamelo originally from Mendoza, now in Buenos Aires - you can check him out on Soundcloud. And I loved the little nod to La Colegiala in there too!
And talking of Cumbiapunkreggae Party - that seems like a good time to thank everyone that turned up to the Wagon and Horses in Digbeth last Saturday for Subvert where a slew of great reggae and dub DJs played some fabulous tunes and a packed crowd got into the wonderful dub tunes of Relative - very impressive outfit indeed - with special guests including Bongo Damo also turning up on bongo.
In particular I’d like to thank all the people who gave my new band Kilombo a rapturous reception on our debut gig. Relative were not an easy act follow, but we threw ourselves into it - all 9 of us cramped up on the stage and props to Greg for managing to eek some kind of sound from a very difficult situation.
However, you, the crowd just blew us away as we moved from cumbia to rumba to rhythm and blues and jazz and funk and township, bolero and reggae and each time you just hopped, bopped and skanked along to every tune - even the slow ones. And then to not let us leave the stage - even though we’d got no more tunes to play! Too much, guys, too much!
OK, last week I played you a new tune by the Malian singer Fatoumata Diawara and she’s back this week on the show but as a special guest of the great Beninese vodoun afrobeat band Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo who’ve recently released their first new album in about 20 years called “Cotonou Club” (on the Strut Records label). Fatoumata joins them on vocals for this tune called “Mariage/Ou C’est Lui” - this one’s for ma petite soeur Virginie lá en Le Havre avec gros bisous:
4 (16) “Mariage/Ou C'est Lui” (5:05) by Orchestre Poly Rythmo from album “Cotonou Club” (Strut Records)
And from their most recent album to their very first album! This is Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo from 1973. In an exciting development the record label Analog Africa are launching a new series of albums called “Analog Africa - Limited Dance Edition” dedicated to releasing African and tropical records in strictly limited editions which concentrate on single artists that have had an impact on the label in one way or another.
The first two releases feature the first LP of Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo simply entitled “Le 1re album” and also a cosmic compilation by the legendary Ghanaian funkster Rob “Roy” Rainsdorf - usually just referred to as Rob.
Both albums are released on Monday 13th June and I strongly urge you to seek them out. They come as either CDs (as a sixpage digipack) or as a vinyl LP - both distributed by Proper Records and the vinyl also distributed by F-Minor. Don’t forget, these are limited editions - when they gone, they gone!
The first track I’m going to play is by Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo and it’s called “Egni Miton? Nin Mi Na Wa Gbin” (Analog Africa)
5 (17) “Egni Miton? Nin Mi Na Wa Gbin” (6:13) by Orchestre Poly-Rythmo De Cotonou from album “The First Album”
[CONTINUOUS]
6 (18) “Boogie On” (4:15) by Rob "Roy" Raindorf from album “Funky Rob Way” (Analog Africa)
Yep, you just heard the Ghanian funky afrobeat maestro Rob “Roy” Raindorf and a track called “Boogie On”.
And that’s exactly what we’re going to do - this is a band I also played last week called Ikebe Shakedown from Brooklyn, New York, who play some really shit-kicking funk, boogaloo and afrobeat! This track’s from their eponymous album and it’s called “Sakonsa”:
7 (19) “Sakonsa” (2:32) by Ikebe Shakedown from album “Ikebe Shakedown” (Ubiquity)
Right, anybody wanna dance? Let’s get this party started! One of my favourite cumbiamberos Pedro Laza with his Pelayeros and a Mixticius cumbia-swing remix of the track “Cójeme La Caña” . . .
8 (20) “Cójeme La Caña” (3:00) by Pedro Laza Y Sus Pelayeros (Mixticius remix)
Now, didn’t that do you the world of good!? Certainly did it for me. This is almost the last track so let’s keep grooving and dancing - in fact as Mixticius has it in this fabulous cumbia crash-up: don’t stop till you get enough!
9 (21) “Don’t Stop Till You Get Enough” (2:55) by Mixticius
That’s the end of the show, boys and girls, hope you enjoyed it.
[Shout-outs, reminders, etc]
I’m going to leave you with a slice of classic world music history - well in my mind at least. At the beginning of the 90s three different cultures got together to search out common ground together - the young Spanish flamenco group at the head of the nu-flamenco movement, Ketama, the jazz and folk double-bassist with the amazing warm sound, Danny Thompson of Pentangle fame and the as then little-known, in Europe at least, Malian musician Toumani Diabate and his then very unusual african harp, the kora.
What they created still stands the test of time - two beautiful, life-affirming records Both called Songhai. Although I love the first album, this is from the second album (“Songhai 2”) and also reunites Ketama with their former vocalist José Soto and includes Keletigui Diabate on the marimba-like balafon.
This track’s called “Sute Monebo” (which translates as ‘Shouting Won’t Raise the Dead’) and it’s going out to Big Neil and to Dylan and to all those who love great world music. Good night all and sweet dreams!
10 (22) “Sute Monebo” (4:56) by Ketama, Toumani Diabate & José Soto from album “Songhai 2” (Hannibal Records)
WorldBeatUK (13th Show) - Broadcast Notes (25/5/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Rhubarb Vampisoul Chico Trujillo La Big Landin Palmeras Kanibales Hamilton Loomis Roger Innis Jamie Little Sondorgo Lena Kovacevic Joanne Vance Sexto Sentido Olufemi Hijaz Va Fan Fahre Zephyrus Ieye Yeska Gypsy Sound System Strut
WBUK13 (25/5/11) Show Notes
1 “Intro-Mat” (1:47) - Matchatcha - ‘Nyekesse’ (Melodie)
You’re tuned into Rhubarb Radio, I’m Glyn Phillips, and you’re listening to WorldBeatUK - two hours of the best world music from around the globe!
On the show tonight - for your delectation and delight - I’ve got music from Cuba, Texas, Serbia, Nigeria, Belgium, South Africa, Ecuador, Hungary, Jamaica, Ghana, South Africa, Iran, California and Poland.
But we’re kicking off tonight with a couple of tracks from some re-issue compilation albums that I’ve been featuring over the last couple of weeks. The first track is from the album “Highlife Times Vol 2” which features Highlife music from Ghana and Nigeria from the 1950s and 1960s. It’s a compilation on the Spanish Vampisoul label and this track is a fusion of Highlife and Charanga by the band the Ramblers International, it’s called “Muntie”.
2 “Muntie” (5:21) - The Ramblers International - ‘Highlife Times Vol 2’ (Vampisoul)
Same vein, but this one’s from the album ‘Nigeria 70: Sweet Times, Afro-Funk, Highlife & Juju from 1970s Lagos‘ on the Strut Records label and this is Ali Chunkwumah and his Peace Makers International and a number entitled “Henrietta”.
3 “Henrietta” (4:40) - Ali Chunkwumah & His Peace Makers International - ‘Nigeria 70: Sweet Times’ (Strut)
Well you don’t have to go to Nigeria or Ghana to hear some good highlife or afrobeat because Holland’s very own Mdungu have got it going on over here in Europe. This is the title track of their album on the Zimbraz label. Afro What!?
4 “AfroWhat!?” (4:55) - Mdungu - ‘Afro What!?’ (Zimbraz)
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
5 “Los Luchadores Jump” (4:42) - Los Flamers feat. House of Pain (Le Cumbianche Disco Remix)
That was a little bit of glitch-cumbia from Los Flamers featuring House of Pain called “Los Luchadores Jump” - all about the Mexican wrestling phenomenon known as ‘lucha libre’ where fat blokes dressed in silly costumes and lycra-covered faces jump around all over each in heavily choreographed performance-fights . . .
Nothing new to those us of brought up on Saturday afternoon British Wrestling during the 1960s and 70s through the likes of Big Daddy, Giant Haystacks, Mick McManus, Catweazle and of course, the Mystery Man himself: Kendo Nagasaki! (or just plain old Peter Thornley to his neighbours!)
Ok sticking with some wonderfully cheesy cumbia now, this is another example of the new wave of cumbia from South America’s Southern Cone countries - in this case, Chile’s Chico Trujillo - one of the leaders in la cumbia chilombiana and latin ska. This track is from their album "Chico de Oro" (Golden Boy) and a number entitled “Sombrero”:
6 “Sombrero” (4:48) - Chico Trujillo - ‘Chico de Oro’
Like many people who listen to this programme, I like me ska. Oh yes! I’m not a big fan of the 3rd wave of ska - the sort of million-miles an hour, shouty-punky stuff; I much prefer first wave Jamaican ska - more laid back: sort of Skatalites, Jackie Mittoo, Don Drummond, you know who I’m talking about.
However, there’s some great stuff, now coming out of South America, so I offer you a couple of bands from Venezuela. First up from their 2007 album “Skaterriza” is La Big Landin Orquesta and a piece of latin ska based on a very old Brazilian choro tune called “Proezas de Solon”:
7 “Proezas De Solon” (4:02) - La Big Landin Orquesta - ‘Skaterriza’
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
8 La Culebra (4:02) - Palmeras Kaníbales - ‘La Ruta’
So, first up was La Big Landin Orquesta from Venezuela and “Proezas de Solon”; and after that the wonderful Palmeras Kaníbales also from Venezuela, and from their 2006 album “La Ruta” an old Cuban tune called “La Culebra”. Wasn’t that magnificent! Just the kind of band I’d love to see live.
Talking of which, after last week’s show I went up to the Adam and Eve pub right here in Digbeth to see a band on spec that I’d never seen before. I knew the bass player, the highly talented and very funny Roger Innis - who I’d spent the afternoon doing photoshoots with, along with the rest of our new band The Funkawallahs - more of which in weeks to come! - and he’d said he was playing that evening with a blues/funk/rock band and to come along after my show.
And boy, oh boy, was I glad that I did! The band consisted of Roger Innis on bass, Birmingham’s own Jamie Little on drums and two Americans - a Mr Strat Doyle on sax and the most excellently named Hamilton Loomis from Texas on guitar, vocals and gob-iron (that’s harmonica for those of you who don’t come from the Black Country!). Easily, but easily one of the best live bands I have seen in years . . . Easily!
What a night! The band were tighter than a duck’s backside - and that’s watertight! The sax player could almost have blown up an entire tornado in the pub and Hamilton was just outstanding. Perfect. Just perfect, in everything he did. Half the crowd there were excellent Brummie musicians themselves - enough to form 3 or 4 more bands - a tough crowd under normal circumstances; but this band were just stupidly good!
And it was all free!! Honestly, Brum’s a great place for music - you jus’ gotta search it out. I won’t go on, except to say that this next track is by the aforementioned Hamilton Loomis Band from their album “Live in England” (on Ham-Bone Records). Obviously, as with all live recordings, it is but a pale imitation of the real experience, but it’s all I got. This is called “Best Worst Day”.
9 Best Worst Day (4:23) - Hamilton Loomis Band - ‘Live In England’ (Ham-Bone Records)
You’re listening to WorldBeatUK right here on Rhubarb Radio, with me Glyn Phillips bringing you 2 hours of great world music every Wednesday evening between 7-9pm UK time.
From Digbeth to Dakar, from Birmingham to Belgium, from England to Ecuador WorldBeatUK brings a whole planet to your ears!
[mention ChatnGo/Facebook, shout-outs etc]
Söndörgo are a group from Hungary and this is taken from the forthcoming album “Tamburising: Lost Music Of The Balkans” on the World Village UK label. The release date for this has recently been confirmed as 27th June 2011 here in the UK on CD and digitally worldwide.
Their trademark instrument is the tambura - not the stringed drone instrument of Indian music - but a small mandolin-like instrument of the Serbian and Croatian communities resident in Hungary. In fact the band’s whole sound is distinct from the usual fiddle-led line-up of Hungarian tradition. This track is called “Opa Cupa”:
10 Opa Cupa (3:48) - Söndörgõ - ‘Tamburising: Lost Music Of The Balkans’ (World Village UK)
Yep, the wonderful traditional sound of the balkan tambura and vocals as played by Söndörgö from their album “Tamburising: Lost Music of the Balkans”. Well, I’m going to play three rather beautiful contemporary tracks from female singers now.
Staying in the Balkan area, the first one is an artist I played last week, the lovely Serbian singer Lena Kovacevic. Last time I played her singing in Srpksi; but she’s also pretty nifty in English too! So this is from her 2009 English language album “Haunt Me” and a jazzy track called “Shine Your Light”.
11 “Shine Your Light” (4:18) - Lena Kovacevic - ‘Haunt Me’
Lovely! Now, this next artist is the Ecuadorian singer, guitarist and composer Joanne Vance (not to be confused with the English painter of the same name). Yes, I know, it’s not the most hispanic sounding of names, but whilst her mother is Ecuadorian born and bred, her father was from North America.
Joanne makes mature jazz-tinged music which I would call pop, except that her songs have a greater depth and resonance than what you would normally expect from that term. You can hear the influences of people such as Ani DiFranco, Tori Amos, Jeff Buckley etc on the one hand and South America’s homegrown acoustic rockers such as the Argentinians Luis Alberto Spinetta and Pedro Aznar (both of whom I used to listen to back in the 80s) on the other.
But be under no illusions, this is no throwback or copycat music; Joanne is very much her own boss and this comes over in the confidence of her delivery and the maturity of her compositions. She’s a complete modern woman.
Which for me, is a strange thing to come to terms with since, I have to confess, I used to know her when she was just 10 years old (some 20 or so years ago!). Joanne and her sister Carrie and their lovely mother, Cecilia spent a year or so living right here in Birmingham whilst Ceci studied at the University. Jo’s mother would come along to the now legendary latin all-nighters at Los Andes where I cut my teeth DJing in the late 80s/early 90s. Happy times indeed.
So I was stunned when after two decades I made contact with Ceci and realised that little Jo (all goofy glasses and braces on her teeth when I knew her) had grown up - and to be a wonderful musician too.
So, I think they are listening to the show right now, out there in one of my favourite cities of the world, Ecuador’s capital, Quito - the second highest capital on the planet - way up in the South American Andes. Pues, chicas, Jo, Carrie y Ceci - besos de mi, saludos desde Birmingham y espero vertes un dia de estes!
This track is from her album “Silencios Incómodos” (Uncomfortable Silences) and it’s called “Versión Editada”:
12 “Versión Editada” (3:42) - Joanne Vance - ‘Silencios Incómodos’
[ CHANGE THE CD OVER!! - CHANGE THE CD OVER!! ]
Beautiful! Joanne Vance from Ecuador. You can find out more about Joanne from her website: www.joannevance.net.
And now the third in my trilogy of lush female singers. This time we’re going North from Ecuador to the Caribbean and touching down in La Habana, Cuba. And that’s where we’ll find one of my absolute favourite bands of the moment, the four girl vocal phenomenon that is Sexto Sentido (Sixth Sense in English).
I’ve played them quite a bit on this radio show and on the one I used to co-present before, and shall continue to do so. Quality is quality and these girls have it by the bucketful. They’re currently riding high in Cuba after having had their single “Guajiro” at No 1 in the Cuban charts for 7 weeks - which I also played on my last show.
Just to let you know the music you’re hearing is a UK exclusive - I’m the only person to be allowed to broadcast the music from their forthcoming album in this country, after hearing and writing about the band when I met them last year in Copenhagen.
Sexto Sentido are four Cuban singers and multi-instrumentalists, composers, arrangers to boot. Very, very talented ladies indeed. Oh, and beautiful too! You can read my review of their concert at Charlie Scott’s Jazz Bar in Copenhagen at www.worldmusic.co.uk/reviews if you want.
In the meantime this is from the soon to be released album “The Way” - which they’ve produced entirely themselves and is a mixture of lush, complex and sophisticated self-penned English and Spanish songs in a variety of styles. This is a jazzy bossa entitled “En Tu Cuerpo” (In Your Body):
(1) 13 “En Tu Cuerpo” (4:08) - Sexto Sentido - ‘The Way’
Sexto Sentido there from Cuba - and definitely more from them in the weeks to come.
OK, let’s move on and get some more Highlife dancing music in. This is an old track from West Africa - Ghana’s Melody Aces (not to be confused with the Belfast dance band of the same name!) from the album “Stars of West Africa - Highlife Hits” and a lovely lilting track - probably from the 1950s or maybe early 60s - called “Emase Puro O” [ ‘émashay puro-oh’]:
(2) 14 “Emase Puro O” (2:48) - Melody Aces - ‘Stars of West Africa - Highlife Hits’
Now, this next track popped onto my mat a few days ago entirely unsolicited and I thought, ‘Ok? Let’s see’. And what a pleasant surprise it was. The artist is called Olufemi, originally from Lagos, Nigeria and now operating out of South Africa - a singer, saxophonist and composer - and plays what he calls African South West Fusion. This is Olufemi’s debut album; it’s called “Just in Newtown” (referring to a part of Johannesburg I think).
It’s a good album, with a variety of musical styles - although I’m not yet sure whether that is its strength, or its weakness. It goes from straightahead jazzy soprano sax pieces (which wouldn’t sound out of place on a David Sanborn or Kenny G album - or at times even like Brum’s own Alvin Davis or Julian Smith aka Joolz Gianni) - right up to soukous-tinged dance pieces and afrobeat-fused workouts. Definitely a pan-african approach to his music.
However, the musicianship is good and there’s some very enjoyable tracks on it - including this one, which has a distinctly South African flavour. This is Olufemi and a track called “Thando Lwami”:
(3) 15 “Thando Lwami” (4:12) - Olufemi - ‘Just In Newtown’
Change of flavour and place on these next few tracks. I’ve been digging into my Persian music albums recently and came up with these offerings from a sampler entitled “Persia: Ancient Roots of Music”. The first piece is called “Agitation” and is by Kazem Davoudian from his album “Pearl”.
(4) 16 “Agitation” (2:02) - Kazem Davoudian - ‘Pearl’
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
(5) 17 “Blue of Dream” (2:02) - Farivar Kosrhavi - ‘Abi-e Ro’ya’
The track you just heard was by the Iranian Farivar Kosrhavi from his album “Abi-e Ro’ya” and translates as “Blue of Dream”.
Moving from Iran, but still staying in the Middle East by association is this next piece, by the band Hijaz. This is a six-piece group based in Belgium but consisting of various nationalities and cultural influences. Their music draws upon North Africa, The Mediterranean, India, the Middle East and European jazz traditions and infuses their latest album with a richness and a palette of flavours which allows them to endlessly serve up tantalisingly different musical courses.
This is probably the most jazzy piece I’m playing tonight and features the piano of Greco-Belgian Nico Deman - but for the non-jazzers amongst you, don’t let that put you off. It’s very accessible still - there’s some great oud playing from Moufadhel Adhoum and Indian tabla pitted against kit drums and bass as well. This piece is called "Mr J.P.S." from Hijaz’s album “Chemsi” (which means Sun) on the Belgian Zephyrus label.
If you’re in London or the South East of England this weekend you can actually see Hijaz live in concert at the Union Chapel, London this Saturday 28th May. This is their debut in the UK and their manager tells me that they’re very excited about performing over here.
[ The link for that is here: http://bit.ly/eDOjp5 ]
(6) 18 “Mr J.P.S.” (5.31) - Hijaz - ‘Chemsi’ (Zephyrus)
And also on the Zephyrus label from Ghent in Belgium here’s their flagship band Va Fan Fahre and a track from their last album - “Al Wa Debt” - which did really well on the European world music charts last year. It’s often been described as ‘balkan brass goes Arabic’. Zephyrus have just announced that they are now allowing free downloads of five of the tracks from the album.
[Just go to the following link to download that:
http://www.vafanfahre.be/database/index.php?q=node/23 ]
So here are Belgium’s Va Fan Fahre with the Arabic singer Aicha Haskal and a track called “Ya Habibi Taala”:
(7) 19 “Ya Habibi Taala” (3:04) - Va Fan Fahre - ‘Al Wa' Debt’ (Zephyrus)
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
(8) 20 “La Kumbia de Los Peregrinos” (3:52) - Grupo Kual (Le Cumbianche Disco Remake)
Couldn’t resist a bit of electro-glitch-cumbia ! That was the Le Cumbianche Disco Remake of Grupo Kual’s “La Kumbia de Los Peregrinos” - just to get you all stirred up!
And now a jingle to promote the forthcoming Reggae City 2011 Festival here in Birmingham on Saturday 11 June at the Rainbow - just round the corner from where I’m sitting here in the Custard Factory, Digbeth.
(9) 21 Reggae City Festival Ad Jingle (1:05)
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
(10) 22 ”I Know” (3:15) - Ieye - ‘Fever Grass’ (Shengen Clan)
OK, that was one of my favourite female reggae singers of the moment - Ieye from Jamaica - and a track called “I Know” from her album “Fever Grass” on the Shengen Clan Imprint Label. Lovely stuff.
Quick couple of announcements now: Birmingham’s own ska and reggae favourites, the Heels will be performing mid-afternoon at next week’s Lord Mayor’s Parade on Bank Holiday Monday 30th May - so keep an eye out for them if you like your ska in a Skatalites stylee!
Also the following weekend you can catch the debut of el combo Kilombo - a brand new band formed from members of both the Heels and Flame Of Fervour at the Wagon and Horses in Adderley Street in Digbeth - again just around the corner from the Custard Factory.
That’s on Sat 4th June and it’s a night called Subvert, featuring also the dub band Relative, DJs Skeleton, Marc Reck (also from Rhubarb Radio), the Jam Jah DJs Robin Giorno and Bongo Damo, as well as Christy, Dodgy Greg and Stalingrad.
And it’s all FREE! Yep, not a penny for all that music! Keep an eye out for Kilombo’s drummer - he’s a right dodgy geezer. I’m sure I’ve seen and heard him before somewhere . . .
In the meantime, here’s one from the Gypsy Sound System’s Psio Crew from Poland - a little number from the “Iskra” album - this is “Dobry Gooral”:
(11) 23 “Dobry Gooral” (2:51) - Psio Crew - ‘Gypsy Sound System - Iskra’
Just got time now for goodbyes etc . . .
[THANK YOUS, SHOUT OUTS, REMINDERS, ETC]
I’m going to leave you with a brilliant latino band from Los Angeles. They are called Yeska (which is a play on the words ‘Yes!’ and ‘Ska’ and is also the Chicano slang word for ‘weed’).
Their music is what you get when you cross jazz with afro-cuban music with ska! Skafrocubanjazz of course! And that’s the name of the album that this track, “Skaliente”, is from. Don’t be fooled by the gentle ska montuno beginning - because about 3 and a half minutes in this bubbling piece of latin ska turns into an absolute monster!!
(12) 24 “Skaliente” (6:32) - Yeska - ‘Skafrocubanjazz’ (Aztlan)
WorldBeatUK (12th Show) - Broadcast Notes (18/5/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Rhubarb Radio World Music Juanafe Moneyman Julio Sosa JuJu Kim Sinh Tlahoun Gessesse Vampisoul Strut Mdungu Lena Kovacevic Svang Ieye Sexto Sentido Almeida Girl Easy Star Monosonicos Paratiisin Pojat El Hijo de la Cumbia
WBUK12 - SHOW NOTES (18/5/11)
1 Intro-Mat (1:47) Matchatcha from album 'Nyekesse'
Welcome - Coming up . . .
2 La Makinita (3:48) Juanafé - ‘La Makinita’ (Oveja Negra; 2010) - Cumbia
Chile to Argentina
3 La Mara Tomaza (3:53) El Hijo de la Cumbia - ‘Freestyle de Ritmos’ - Cumbia Argentina
Staying in Argentina
4 Mano A Mano (3:17) Julio Sosa - 30 Aniversario 1964-1994 - Tango
Still in Argentina . . .
5 Chacarera Del Puestero (2:27) Los Puesteros - Chacarera
Due to technical probs last week … going to replay “Life” - Moneyman - Nigeria 70" album
6 Life (6:17) Moneyman And The Super 5 International - ‘Nigeria 70: Sweet Times’ (Strut Records) - African (Nigeria)
And from Nigeria to Gambia - or more correctly where Gambia meets the UK. The next band is called JuJu and includes Britain’s Justin Adams on electric guitar, bendir and backing vocals) and Gambian Juldeh Camara (on lead vocals, ritti and talking drum - and here I must apologise because last week when I played another track from JuJu I confused the nyatiti which is a harp with the ritti which is the one-string fiddle which Juldeh is an expert on). So this next track is also from their forthcoming album “In Trance” on the Real World Records label and will be released in the UK on the 13th June. This bluesy track is called “Waide Nayde”.
7 Waide Nayde (5:09) JuJu (Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara) - ‘In Trance’ (Real World)
A real treat now - the guitar work of the Vietnamese multi-instrumentalist Kim Sinh, has been the stuff of legend and cult status for a a few years now - but mostly amongst American rock and jazz guitarists, who can’t see how this septuagenarian Vietnamese gentleman who has not been brought up on blues seems to be steeped in the Delta sound! The truth is that his music is actually from a traditional vietnamese theatre music called Cai Luong first created in the 1920s.
Kim was born in 1930 in Hanoi, Vietnam and plays all manner of instruments both traditional as well as violin, hawaiian guitar and specially tuned guitars that are reconstructed to use Vietnamese music scales. Enough talk, just listen to this. The track is “Liéu Duong Hoang Thiên Khúc” and it’s from the album “Music from Vietnam 4” on Caprice Records. Eat your heart out Jimmy Hendrix!
8 Liéu Duong Hoang Thiên Khúc (4:35) Kim Sinh - ‘Music from Vietnam 4’ (Caprice Records) - Vietnamese Guitar music
9 Tule Meilla Vaan - Come On Over (3:32) Paratiisin Pojat - ‘Paratiisin Pojat’ (Poko Records; 2008) - Finn-Mex
Another treat from a forgotten age now as we hear the Ethiopian singer Tlahoun Gessesse who died just over two years ago, being accorded a state funeral attended by tens of thousands. Regarded as one of the most popular of Ethiopia’s Golden Age in the 60s, he was known just as ‘The Voice’. This is a track called “Sema” (and thanks to Rhubarb Radio’s own Soesmix Edan for introducing this to me) and is from the album ‘Ethiopiques 3, Golden Years Of Modern Ethiopian Music 1969-75’ on the Buda Musique label.
10 Sema (4:19) Tlahoun Gèssèssè - ‘Ethiopiques 3, Golden Years Of Modern Ethiopian Music 1969-75’ (Buda Musique)
Last week I played you a track from Nottingham’s own tropical band, Monosonicos, and here’s another from the multicultural, multinational band, which mixes afrobeat and latin rhythms with Spanish lyrics and steelpans etc. Very interesting. This is called “Sin La Luna” (or Without The Moon).
11 Sin La Luna (4:23) Monosonicos - Latin/afrobeat
The next two tracks come off an album I received recently from the excellent Spanish re-issue label Vampisoul. The album’s called “Highlife Times Vol 2” and is another one of the recent releases of excellent 1960s and 70s highlife from Ghana and Nigeria which is currently enjoying a renaissance in popularity. The first track I’m going to play is by “Bobby Benson & his Combo” and reminds me of old Jamaican rhythm and blues in a way. This one’s called “Taxi Driver”
12 Taxi Driver (3:25) Bobby Benson & his Combo - ‘Highlife Times Vol 2’ (Vampisoul 129) - Highlife
[CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS]
13 Ogiobo (5:43) Sir Victor Uwaifo & his Titibitis of Africa - ‘Highlife Times Vol 2’ (Vampisoul 129) - Highlife
The last track you heard was also sfrom the album “Highlife Times Vol 2” on the Vampisoul label and was called “Ogiobo” from the wonderfully named Sir Victor Uwaifo & his Titibitis of Africa! Yep, that’s what I said.
Sticking with the whole afrocentric groove - here’s a modern take on it. From Holland the band is Mdungu and taken from their album “Afro What?!” on the Zimbraz label this is "Boolow Gambia".
14 Boolow Gambia (5:36) Mdungu - ‘Afro What?’ (Zimbraz/Music & Words MW3035) - Afro
15 S’ Mediterana (3:41) Lena Kovacevic - ‘Dobar Dan Za Pevanje’ - Serbian Jazzy
Balkan Connection
16 Haidukka (4:53) Svang - “Sväng” (Aito Records AICD005; 2004) - balkanesque
Bill Withers tune (Gil Scott Heron also)
17 Mama’s Hand (3:50) Ieye - ‘Fever Grass’ (Shenghen Clan) - Reggae
Jamaica
18 Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds (4:33) Easy Star All-Stars Feat. Frankie Paul - Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Dub Band (Easy Star Records 1018)
also for Lucy
19 Barfly (4:25) Almeida Girl & Descarga - ‘Llanita’ (KAMOCD1) - Salsa
20 Guajiro (3:22) Sexto Sentido - ‘The Way’ - RnB Cubana
Sexto Sentido and the succes of "Guajiro" in Cuba: seven weeks at No 1 in Cuba and another 7 weeks at No 3 (just behind Don Omar’s Danza Kuduro and Shakira!); the video of this won the Lucas Award (like a Cuban Oscar for videos) and hit international latin american charts too - and that’s without being released on an album or available digitally yet! The girls intend to release their third album called “The Way” with this track on, in the summer in Europe. So I’ll be playing more from them in the run up to that over the coming weeks.
OK, here’s another angle on the Latin scene - the mashup between traditional afro-latin forms such as cumbia with contemporary electronic-driven styles such as dubstep; this is a tune by Tony Camargo entitled “Año Viejo” (the old year) refixed by bootlegumachine into a piece of ‘raverton’. Enjoy!
21 Año Viejo (5:44) Tony Camargo (bootlegumachin refix) - Raverton
Thank yous and goodbyes. Announce the Rea River Soul night.
22 Oye El Consejo (3:26) Ibrahim Ferrer - ‘Buenos Hermanos’ (World Circuit WCD065; 2003) - Son
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
WorldBeatUK (11th Show) - Broadcast Notes (11/5/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Sierra Leone Monosonicos Sergent Garcia Zulu 9.30 Canteca de Macao Blind Boys of Alabama Johnny Cash Maria Kalaniemi Mariza Neblina Sound JuJu Maguaré Juicebox Vetex Slivo Electric Club Zephyrus Hippo Cumbancha Strut Aito Fexomat
ShowNotes for WBUK11 - 11/5/11
1 “Intro-Mat” by Matchatcha from album “Nyekesse” (Melodie)
WELCOME BACK to another edition of WorldBeatUK - the 2 hour world music show that brings you the best music from around the globe, from today, yesterday and often even a glimpse into tomorrow! I’m Glyn Phillips, you’re tuned into Rhubarb Radio coming live from the Custard Factory in Digbeth, Birmingham, England and this is WorldBeatUK!
First up this evening is a track from a new CD which was only released yesterday. It’s an album of remixes by DJ Logic - and the original album they were taken from was called “Rise and Shine” which came out last year on the Cumbancha label, by Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars.
I’ve played some of their stuff before on the show, which is a mixture of traditional West African music with roots reggae. The band has a fascinating history, having first formed in one of the refugee camps during and following the wars in Sierra Leone. They’re now based in the United States and enjoying some well-deserved respect and attention and are currently on tour around the States.
The “Rise and Shine” album was quite a big hit for them worldwide last year and so they’ve teamed up with DJ Logic to do so remixes for this sort of extended EP called “Rise and Shine Remixes” (also on Cumbancha) which was released yesterday on iTunes and Amazon. This track is one of the more traditional offerings; it’s called “Muloma”.
2 “Muloma” by Sierra Leone’s Refugee All Stars & DJ Logic from album “Rise and Shine Remixes” (Cumbancha)
And staying with Africa this is Moneyman and the Super 5 International from an excellent album called “Nigeria 70 - Sweet Times: AfroFunk, Highlife and JuJu from 1970s Lagos” which is due to be released on the 23rd May by Strut Records. This track is called ”Life”
3 “Life” by Moneyman and the Super 5 International from the album “Nigeria 70 - Sweet Times: AfroFunk, Highlife and JuJu from 1970s Lagos” (Strut Records)
And from Lagos, Nigeria to Nottingham, England! There are so many bands out there now being influenced from the incredible explosion of music now available from all over the world, and often mixing up all kinds of different influences, rhythms and instruments into their sound.
I came across these guys called Monosonicos on SoundCloud a few weeks back and was taken by one of their latin-meets-afrobeat tracks; but here I’m going to play you a sort of soca-cumbia with some romantic vocals and their trademark steelpan (which I love).
It’s a pity the sound’s a bit low and slightly muddy, but it’s enough to know that they’ve put a lot of thought into the music and are probably well worth seeing live. So, this is the Monosonicos from Nottingham in the UK and a track called “Loca”.
4 “Loca” by Monosonicos
CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS
5 “Yo Soy Salsamuffin” by Sgt Garcia from album “Una y Otra Vez (Cumbancha)
Ok that was the great Sargento Garcia, one of the leading lights of the whole European Mestizo sound. I’ve been following his work for some years now and he always manages to produce some really interesting pieces.
For this new album, he’s signed to a new record label - the North American world music specialists, Cumbancha. The album is entitled “Una y Otra Vez” (Time and Again) and was released in Europe in March and will be in the Americas next week.
As ever El Sargento sings in a mixture of Spanish, English and French and mixes up salsa and dancehall reggae in his trademark salsamuffin style (as you just heard) as well as experimenting with rumba, rock, punk, bolero, and much more. I wouldn’t say it was necessarily a better album than any of his previous ones, but it’s just as good - which is praise enough!
OK, let’s stay with more of this European mestizo sound - where Latin America meets Reggae and Dub meets Rock and beyond, for the next two tracks.
The next band have carved themselves out a name in Europe and especially in their native Spain. This is Zulú 9.30 from Barcelona - who I played last week - and the track that I promised from their new album “Tiempo al Tiempo”. This is “La Tierra Tiene Hambre” - The Land is Hungry!
6 “La Tierra Tiene Hambre” by Zulu 9.30 from album “Tiempo al Tiempo”
CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS
7 “Green Yin” by Canteca de Macao from album “Agua Pa’ La Tierra”
First you heard Zulu 9.30 and “La Tierra Tiene Hambre” and that was followed by another band from Barcelona, Canteca de Macao (which, when I first came across them, I assumed to refer to a choral group from the Portuguese enclave of Macao near China - but which I found out later was actually a spoonerism of ‘manteca de cacao’ or cocoa butter in English!).
Anyway, that was their track “Green Yin” (presumably a seasick Billy Connolly . . . !) from their 2009 album “Agua Pa’ La Tierra” on Warner Music Spain.
We’re going to leave Europe behind now and get some religion in our lives! Come on boys and girls, let’s go to Church! All the way to the rich red soil of Alabama in the Southern United States and the most excellent Blind Boys of Alabama!
For seven decades this band has been wowing audiences with their amazing gospel choral sound. They only have one original member of the band left now, but it doesn’t change their pedigree and quality one iota.
The Blind Boys have teamed up with young Country singer and Producer, Jamey Johnson to make an album of Country-Gospel (released two days) called “Take The High Road” (on Saguaro Records and Proper Records) - No! Don’t run away - it’s really good!! Seriously!
Here the Blind Boys team up with the Oak Ridge Boys on the title track “Take The High Road”.
I’ve written a full in-depth review about it on the world music website: www.worldmusic.co.uk - check it out.
8 “Take The High Road” by The Blind Boys of Alabama from album “Take The High Road” (Saguaro/Proper Records)
Wasn’t that wonderful! The Blind Boys of Alabama in conjunction with the Oak Ridge Boys and “Take the High Road” from the album of the same name - just released two days ago.
Hey, the service ain’t over yet! Sit back down in that pew, you sinners! You all look like you could do with your own “Personal Jesus"; Johnny Cash certainly does, and Goofee’s the man to supply him . . .
9 “Personal Jesus” by Johnny Cash (Goofee Remix)
CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS
10 “Hold To God’s Unchanging Hand” by Irma Thomas from album ‘Rough Guide To Louisiana”
Yeah, that was Irma Thomas from Louisiana and a track called “Hold on To God’s Unchanging Hand” from the album “Rough Guide to Louisiana”.
Very much a change of place now - we’re flying over to the Finland by the light of a silvery moon to hear the wonderful Maria Kalaniemi, a singer and accordionist of Swedish and Finnish descent who will play us a tango from her new album “Vilda Rosor” (that’s Wild Rose in English) which was also released a couple of days ago on the 9th May in the UK, (from Aito Records).
This track is called “Under Fullmanen” (under the full moon) . . .
11 “Under Fullmanen” by Maria Kalaniemi from album “Vilda Rosor” (Aito Records)
And if it that wasn’t beautiful enough. Just listen to this. In every show I try and include at least one song of almost indescribable beauty, one that hits you at every emotional and spiritual level and this next track is one of those; by one of my all-time favourite singers, the queen of heart-string pulling fado and saudade - who else but, Mariza.
If you were really lucky you would have had the chance to see her live last night right here in Birmingham. I was unable to go, sadly! And I’m trying not to think about it too much; but if you’ve never heard her before, just open your heart and let this song in.
It’s one of my favourite songs of hers “O Gente da Minha Terra” (the people of my land) but delivered in a very unusual way - not to the usual and bewitching background of Portuguese guitars, double bass etc that I’ve heard her sing it to before - but to nothing but the subtle piano accompaniment of Tiago Machado. This is true sonic beauty . . .
12 “O Gente da Minha Terra” by Mariza from album “Fado em Mim” (World Connection)
CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS -
13 “You Don’t Know My Name” by Alicia Keys (Jejah mashup)
[CHANGE THE CD HERE!!!!]
You’re tuned into Rhubarb Radio and are listening to “WorldBeatUK” with me Glyn Phillips at the helm for two hours of the best world music from around the planet.
First up you heard Mariza’s “O Gente da Minha Terra” and then after that Jejah’s reggae mashup of Alicia Keys’ You Don’t Know My Name” - I love Alicia Keys and I also love that remix using Neblina Sound’s Operator Riddim!
While we’re in that reggae vibe let’s stick with the Spanish mashers and mixers for the next couple of numbers coz this is Barcelona’s Neblina Sound System again and a laid back Spanish language song by “Oli” called “La Mente” which utilises the Zurie Riddim.
14 “La Mente” by Oli (Neblina Sound)
OK final reggae mashup of the night. It’s by Spain’s Neblina Sounds again; this time from their album “Intergalactic Mashups” and, you’d better believe it, it’s none other than Bob Marley that gets the Beastie Boys treatment! “Could YOU be Intergalactic?”
15 “Could You Be Intergalactic” by Bob Marley vs Beastie Boys (Neblina Sound)
This next one’s a promo taster from an as yet unreleased album called “In Trance” by the band JuJu - a collaboration between the UK guitarist Justin Adams and Gambia’s ritti master Juldeh Camara - it’s sort of Gambian Rhythm and Blues with a metal edge - but trust me, it’s very good! The album’s going to be released in the UK next Tuesday on May 17th by Real World Records; this is a track called “Nightwalk”.
16 “Nightwalk” by JuJu (Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara) from album “In Trance” (Real World Records)
West Africa again and going right back in time 30 years now! From the 1981 album “Show Me Your Love” this is some lovely old Ghanaian Highlife from the Opambuo International Band of Ghana and a track entitled: “Hu Anim Ase Nkyene”.
17 “Hu Anim Ase Nkyene” by Opambuo International Band of Ghana from album “Show Me Your Love”
CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS - CONTINUOUS
18 “Navidad Negra” by Maguaré from album “Retro-Cumbia” (Zephyrus Records)
One of my favourite afro-colombian tunes there, “Navidad Negra” (Black Christmas), in a 2010 remake by the Belgian based band Maguaré and their wonderful Colombian singer Paola Marquez - I do love her voice - from their album “Retro Cumbia” on the Belgian Zephyrus label - besotes a mis zefiranas: Paolita y La Marangita!
And to follow that, from the Dutch label Hippo Records, this is a funky piece of retro-boogaloo from Juicebox off their album “Canned Boogaloo”; this is called “New York Soul”. Yeah, Baby! Aúuuuuuuuu! Take your latin swing and just add that afro-thang!!
19 “New York Soul” by Juicebox from album “Canned Boogaloo” (Hippo Records)
Back to Belgium and some Balkan style brass from the huge brass band Orchestre International du Vetex - this is “Vetex on Fire III” -
20 “Vetex on Fire III” by Orchestre International du Vetex
We’re firmly in Tipsy Gipsy territory all you tsiganophiles! Fancy a drink?
21 “Hey Hey” by Fexomat
Ha ha ha!!! Loads of you couldn’t handle last week’s offering of gypsycore from Fexomat, so maybe you found that a little easier on the palatte - slightly more quaffable perchance?
OK, that’s about it . . .
[Goodbyes etc]
Just time to leave you with this from France’s Slivo Electric Club. A lovely bit of contemporary gypsy style music called “Gypsy Kopath”. Enjoy!
See ya’ll next week. Spread the words, peeps, tell all yer friends. And remember: it’s all about the music!
22 “Gypsy Kopath” by Slivo Electric Club
WorldBeatUK (9th Show) - Broadcast Notes (27/4/11)
Tagged with: Worldbeatuk Glyn Phillips Rhubarb Sergent Garcia Show of Hands Susana Seivane Anxo Lorenzo Ojos de Brujo Gnawledge Camarao de Rama Gypsy Groovz Owiny Sigoma Tamikrest Dub Colossus Shawn Lee Quique Neira C-Sharp Ebo Taylor Imam Baildi Bongomatik Strut
WBUK9 (27/4/11) Show Notes
1 Intro-Mat (1:47) Matchatcha Nyekesse (Melodie)
Hope you’ve all had a good Easter and enjoyed the good weather; now that it’s turned a bit colder, hopefully you’ll all be thinking “Nah, bit parky this evening, think I’ll stay in and be warmed up by the groovy choonz and tropical vibes on WorldbeatUK!” So without further ado and maybe even a little bit of adon’t, we’ll kick off with El Salsamuffinero Mayor, Bruno ‘Sergent’ Garcia, and a track from his new album (“Una y Otra Vez”) out on Cumbancha. This one is called “El Baile del Diablo” - The Dance of the Devil.
2 El Baile Del Diablo (4:00) Sergent Garcia Una Y Otra Vez (Cumbancha)
Now that last tune was all about the devil’s dance that the politicians and the world’s leaders indulge in as they continue to muck our lives around - as El Sargento says: “One Step Forward, Two Steps Back”. Well this next group also wrote a song criticising those same politicians, leaders and power-hungry people - the track was called “Arrogance, Ignorance and Greed” off the album of the same name by English Folk giants Steve Knightley and Phil Beer of Show of Hands and I played that one a few weeks back.
So now another one off that same album, but this time spelling out their views (which I happen to share) about Creationism. This is called “Evolution”. With the rallying call of ‘Nail your colours to the mast’, the message is “The finger points in one direction, that’s natural selection”
3 Evolution (3:26) Show Of Hands Arrogance, Ignorance and Greed
(Hands On Music, 2009, HMCD29)
Well to show a bit of balance here’s a tune that’s related to a religious theme. It’s called “Camiño Longo” which means the ‘long route’ and is from an album (on the Do Fol Musica/Boa label from Spain) called “Cantigas de Camiño”. The album, which comes with an exquisite little hardback book, is dedicated to music based around the famous Pilgrims Route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain’s Northwestern region of Galicia. This is the beautiful singer and bagpiper Susana Seivane.
4 Camiño Longo (4:01) Susana Seivane Cantigas Do Camiño (do Fol Musica/Boa)
There’s been so much good stuff coming out of the Spanish region of Galicia that I’m including it as one of the three points of what I consider to be Spain’s Golden Triangle of Creativity (which also includes Catalunya in the North-East and Andalucia in the deep South of the peninsula).
Here’s yet another example from Galicia - the brilliant bagpiper Anxo Lorenzo and a track from his debut album “Tirán” (which also include guests appearances from Ireland’s Eoghan Neff on violin and England’s most famous exponent of the Northumbrian pipes, Kathryn Tickell). The album’s released on the Spanish Zouma Records label. This track is also called Tirán.
5 Tirán (ends at 4.10ish) (4:30) Anxo Lorenzo Tirán (Zouma)
Ok, over to the second point of my Golden Triangle: Catalunya, home to Barcelonan super-group Ojos de Brujo. They hit the scene with a bang just 10 years ago and have consistently delighted the world music fans and confounded their detractors with their very personal, idiosyncratic and uncompromising approach to music, business and life.
Word has it that they’re finally splitting up to concentrate on personal projects and so have just released what is, I suppose, their final album (which is released by Warner Brothers Spain). Some critics have accused them of laziness because it contains only two new tracks, the other 11 having all been released before on their other albums.
But the title kind of gives it away: “Corriente Vital: 10 Años” (which roughly translates as ‘the Essential Current - 10 years); it’s obviously a retrospective - but with a band of the quality of Ojos de Brujo, there’s an amazing back catalogue to choose from - so there’s definitely no fillers here!
What they’ve done is to hand all the tracks over to different producers and allow them to remix them as they want. So, yes, it is a new album - it’s like meeting up with an old friend for a last dance; they just happened to have had their hair redone and put on a new outfit - but they still move just as well as before! This track is “Todos Mortales” - originally from their 2009 “Aocaná” album - but here remixed and featuring Roldan from Orishas.
6 Todos Mortales (3:23) Ojos De Brujo Corriente Vital 10 Años (Warner Music Spain)
Staying in Spain still, we’re heading South to the final point of my Golden Triangle of Spanish Creativity, to the huge province of Andalusia on the South Coast, the jumping off point for the Moorish influx that so influenced Iberian culture.
And high up in the Sierra Nevada, the home of the amazing Moorish palace and gardens of the Alhambra you’ll find one of the most stylish, yet also most funkiest and bohemian of Spanish cities, Granada.
This is home to a brilliant band - or maybe I should call it a project - called Gnawledge. Put together by American musicologist Canyon Cody and rapper Gnotes, they fuse Andalucian flamenco with North African Gnawa music and jazzy hip-hop sensibilities and more, so much more, utilising a cast of top flight Granadan musicians including Juan Habichuela “El Nieto” on guitar, Otoman Almerabet on Laúd, Eneko Alberdi on guitar, DJ Doblegota on Scratch and loads more amazing musicians. I absolutely LOVE these guys! This is from their “Granada Doaba” album (on the Gnawledge label) and a track called “Perro Cruzado”.
7 Perro Cruzado (3:57) Gnawledge Granada Doaba (Gnawledge)
Ok, we’re going to leave Spain now, but just to show how difficult that is, this next track is a wonderful piece of maracatú-flamenco from Brazil! The band is called Banda Camarão de Rama and is based around the Miguez family: father, Gilvan, daughter, Aline and son, Daniel from Belo Horizonte, in Minas Gerais. The track is entitled “A Bala”.
8 A Bala (2:57) Banda Camarão de Rama
Complete change of pace and place now as we head back over the Atlantic to Europe and back to that Balkan Gypsy Music Festival in Guca, Serbia I mentioned a couple of weeks back. This is part of a 35 minute long jam between 75 balkan brass musicians and 10 nyabinghi drummers; the track is called “Hot Water Festival” (this is part 4) and it’s from the album Gypsy Groovz Orchestra Goes Tutti Mundi: “Night Train for Lovers and Thieves” on the German Network Medien label.
9 Festival Tople Vode Part 4 (3:10) Gypsy Groovz Orchestra Night Train for Lovers and Thieves (Network)
- - - CONTINUOUS - - -
10 Margaret Okudo (dub) (4:18) Owiny Sigoma Band Owiny Sigoma Band (Brownswood)
That last track was called “Margaret Okudo” by the Owiny Sigoma Band, and is from their forthcoming album. There’s an interesting story attached to it:
Two years ago on the eve of the inauguration of President Obama, five musician friends from London who’d know each other since school days pitched up in Nairobi, Kenya, East Africa as part of a loose, informal collaboration organised by the voluntary organisation Art of Protest to promote local Kenyan musicians and partner them with British ones to see what came out of it all.
The London lads met with the phenomenal teacher and player of the East African nyatiti - an 8 string lyre - Joseph Nyamungu, a man steeped in traditional Luo music; he in turn introduced them to drummer Charles Owoko - also steeped in Luo rhythms and the 7 piece got together to find common ground in a disused factory in downtown Nairobi - the only studio big enough to take them all - since most studios in the capital cater only for rap and RnB productions, ie a computer and one mic!
They named the band after Joseph’s grandfather, Owiny Sigoma. Next year they reconvened in Nairobi, this time as a 10-piece band and recorded the album at the Kenya National Theatre - a collection of gloriously loose afro-grooves which sway between Luo and London.
Most of the songs are written by Joseph and based on Luo folk songs. However they must have done something right, because they were picked up by Brownswood Records and championed by none other than Gilles Peterson, who’s really into the drum and bass heavy sound, and Damon Albarn of Gorillaz fame, who also pops up on a couple of the tracks on the album. The album’s also called “Owiny Sigoma Band” and is due to be released next week on the 2nd May on the Brownswood Records label.
Ok, sticking with Africa, but this time shifting over to Mali, here’s a band I’ve also played before. Part of the new generation of Tuareg Desert Rockers, this is the young band Tamikrest, from Saharan Mali, and a track from their new album released only two days ago by Glitterhouse Records. The album’s called “Toumastin” and this track is entitled “Tidit”.
11 Tidit (4:15) Tamikrest Toumastin (Glitterhouse Records)
- - - CONTINUOUS - - -
12 Wey Fikir (4:20) Dub Colossus Addis Through The Looking Glass (Real World)
Wasn’t that dreamy and beautiful! You’ve just heard the brilliant Dub Colossus, an Anglo-Ethiopian collaboration between Nick Page, aka Dubulah of Transglobal Underground and Syriana, and masses of fantastic Ethiopian musicians from the Addis Ababa scene (which includes jazz and rock and hip-hop and soul as well as traditional music).
The wonderfully delicate vocals on there were handled by Ethiopian pop star Tsedenia Gebremarkos. So much great music on that album - it really repays listening to again and again to extract all the hidden flavours! I’m absolutely loving it! That track was called “Wey Fikir” from the album “Addis Through The Looking Glass” by Dub Colossus and it too was released only two days ago on the 25th of April and is on the Real World Records label.
Well, I can only really follow that with a track by Shawn Lee’s Ping Pong Orchestra - who incidentally will be appearing at Birmingham’s Mostly Jazz Festival on Friday 1st July this year - and what else but a dark, jazzy piece called “Ethio” from the album “World of Funk” on the Ubiquity label.
13 Ethio (3:42) Shawn Lee's Ping Pong Orchestra World Of Funk (Ubiquity)
- - - CONTINUOUS - - -
14 Afrodesia (2:41) The Afro Soul-Tet Afrodesia (Ubiquity)
That last track - drenched in tropical rain storms - was an old track called “Afrodesia” from the heyday of jazzy afro-psychedelia and was by the Afro Soul-Tet from their album also called “Afrodesia”. Originally a very limited pressing of between 500-1000 on the Banyon label from Los Angeles sometime between 1968-71, it’s now been reissued by Ubiquity Records.
Something different now. This is a track I’d originally planned to play last week, but my interview and live session with Brazilian percussion genius Renato Martins overran somewhat and I had to drop it. Well, now I can reinstate this lovely piece of Chilean reggae - this is from the king of South American reggae, Quique Neira - off his album “Jah Rock” (on the German label GLM) - and a track entitled: “Dar y Recibir” (To Give and To Receive):
15 Dar y Recibir (4:35) Quique Neira Jah Rock (GLM)
And from a classic reggae style to very much up-to-date Jamaican reggae-pop with a latin-cum-RnB feel; this is C-Sharp - a band I’ve played a lot this year - and probably the most clubby commercial piece I’ve heard of their’s, with at least one verse in Spanish too! They’ve got a new album coming out this year called “The Invitation”. This is called “Dancin’ Like Crazy”.
16 Dancin Like Crazy (3:14) C-Sharp
- - - CONTINUOUS - - -
17 Calypso Cha Cha (2:52) Count Lasha & His Calypsonians Soundman Shots: The Caribou & Downbeat 78's Story (Snapper Records)
Ha ha! Bet you didn’t see that one coming did you? From contemporary Reggae pop to the sound of 1950s Jamaican mento (masquerading as Calypso) mixed with Cha Cha Cha taken from some rare 78’s! Very early fusion then!
And yet people forget that there has always been quite a bit of influence between the neighbouring islands of Jamaica and Cuba. Very many Jamaicans went to work on the sugar plantations in the East of Cuba and learnt Spanish and soaked up the rich cultural soup of Santiago de Cuba and took this back to JA; similarly I met many old Cubans who had learned English either from Jamaicans or in Jamaica themselves.
That was Count Lasha and his Calypsonians from a great compilation double album on the Snapper Records label called “Sound Man Shots: the Caribou and Downbeat 78’s Story” and a track entitled, funnily enough, “Calypso Cha Cha”.
Ok, sticking with the whole half-a-century ago feel, this is from one of my favourite labels, Soundway Records, (who recently released the excellent Colombian compilation of 1960s tunes called “Cartagena!”); this time it’s still in the Caribbean but looking at the French speaking Caribbean and an album released in 2009 called “Tumbélé! Biguine, Afro & Latin Sounds from the French Caribbean, 1963-1974”, which concentrates on the French-speaking and - to this day - still French-administered islands of Martinique and Guadeloupe. A fantastic retrospective of yet another hidden part of the Caribe.
However, the track I’ve chosen is actually by a band from Haiti who happened to spend a few years living and working in Martinique and who recorded several LPs there, mostly heavy ‘compas’ for the Hit Parade label. The band is called Les Loups Noirs de’Haïti (the Black Wolves of Haiti), the track was recorded in 1972 and is a manic biguine written by Gardner Lalanne and featuring some bizarre, almost psychedelic, approximations of a jet plane taking off, with crazy sax, distorted guitar and a rhythm section that is almost tripping over itself with excitement. Absolutely love it! This is called, appropriately enough, “Jet Biguine”.
18 Jet Biguine (3:26) Les Loups Noirs D'Haiti Tumbele (Soundways)
Wonderful madness! OK, in the last of my oldies (for the moment at least) this is a funktastic, groovalicious slice of Ghanian Afrobeat from someone who I’ve featured before on this show, Mr Ebo Taylor from the excellent album “Life Stories - Highlife and Afrobeat Classics 1973-1980” - a double album of Ebo’s work with different bands and all very, very enjoyable. It’s on the Strut Records label and was released a few weeks ago. The track I’ve selected has guitar maestro Ebo Taylor alongside Uhuru-Yenzu and a track called “What Is Life?”
19 What Is Life? (4:38) Ebo Taylor & Uhuru-Yenzu Life Stories -
Highlife & Afrobeat Classics 1973-1980 (Strut)
Did I say last of the oldies? Well, Yes and No. Those Greek brothers Lysandros and Orestis Falireas, better known as Imam Baildi (who incidentally take their name from a middle eastern aubergine dish which translates as “The Priest Faints”) - well, these inveterate mashers and mixers of rebetiko have worked their magic on yet another old Greek tune this time it’s the singer Meri Lida and a track called “Thlipsi”.
20 Thlipsi (Remix) (3:20) Meri Lida/Imam Baildi The Imam Baildi Cookbook (EMI Greece)
Ok, we’re slipping up to the last 20 minutes or so of the show, so let’s press on. This band I discovered only recently - and I’m so glad I did. They’re from the Netherlands, they’re called “Bongomatik” and they play the most delightful mix of latin, funk and pop.
This is off their eponymous debut album (and if you’re wondering why I’m using all those big words again - ‘eponymous’ is just another word for ‘self-titled’ - Aw, come on guys, there are thousands of words in the dictionary, it’s a crime not to try and use them all!).
It’s a great album, a whole lot of fun, highly recommended, not long released. It’s published by No Can Do Music on the Distribution label and this track is called “Donde” (if you like Cuba’s Omara Portuondo you’ll recognise it… eventually!).
21 Donde (5:11) Bongomatik Bongomatik (No Can Do / Distribution)
Continuing with the Cuba connection, this is a band that England’s Tumi Music label are pushing a lot. They’re called To’ Mezclao (which means “All Mixed Up”) and that reflects their musical standpoint - since the album covers salsa, latin pop, son-fusion, latin house, reggaeton, merengue, cumbia and bachata.
Naturally, the album is called “Hibrid” (or Hybrid), it’s on the Tumi Music label. They’ll be touring the UK this summer between mid-June and mid-July and promise to be a very exciting band live. The track I’ve chosen is a piece of latin pop called “Mango Bajito”
22 Mango Bajito (3:11) To'Mezclao Híbrid (Tumi Music)
Sticking with latin this is one of my all-time favourite salsa tracks. Of all the salsa dura - or hard salsa - tracks, this is one of the most ‘dura’. It’s by Mr Hard Hands himself, Ray Barretto. It’s from the double album compilation “Fania Records 1964-1980: the Original Sound of Latin New York” released this year by Strut Records. And the track is the MONSTER tune that is: “Indestructible”
23 Indestructible (4:14) Ray Barretto Fania Records 1964-1980:
The Original Latin Sound of New York (Strut)
Thanks to one and all etc…
I’m going to hand over to Olbi Iyah and his show “Version Galore” with reggae of all sorts and styles and periods. And to ease you into that, this is probably my favourite track of the night. This is LUSHNESS personified! Mr Sonny Bradshaw and the Sonny Bradshaw Seven from the Trojan Sixties Box Set 1, this is “Love is Blue”. Good night, see you next week for more worldly grooves!
24 Love Is Blue (3:19) Sonny Bradshaw Seven Trojan Sixties Box Set 1
WorldBeatUK (4th Show)- Broadcast Notes (21/3/11)
Tagged with: WorldBeatUK Glyn Phillips Rhubarb Radio Dr John Dirty Dozen Waso Koen de Cauter Romani Lavotta Salmarina Big Chief Rosellys Palma Coco Soundways Ebo Taylor Gabbidon C Sharp Slamboree Strut Maria Kalaniemi Mariza Barry Phillips Aito
Playlist for Monday 21st March 2011
1 JINGLE 1 0:34 (Glyn Phillips voice-over “Intro-Mat” by Matchatcha)
Coming up on the show this evening: 1950s Gospel, 1960s Cumbia, 1970s Ghanaian Afrobeat, 1980s Gipsy Swing, 1990s Sevillanas, Noughties Fado and Teenies Reggae! But first this: In May 1970 Eric Clapton, Bill Wyman, Charlie Watts, Steve Winwood and a host of others (including various Stones and Beatles) came together to record an amazing album of blues - and the catalyst for all this? One Mr Chester Arthur Bennett. Better known to you and me as … Howlin’ Wolf!
2 Built For Comfort 2:11 Howlin' Wolf The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions (Chess/MCA) Blues
That was a track called “Built for Comfort” off the 1970 album “The London Howlin’ Wolf Sessions” an experiment that teamed up the legendary Chicago Blues man with some of the then cream of the British crop. OK, so why am I kicking off a world music show with the Blues? Well, it IS world music - in fact along with Jazz, Rhythm and Blues, Cajun, Zydeco and Country music it is America’s very own world music.
But more particularly, because yesterday marked the 2nd anniversary of the death of my father - one of two huge musical influences on my life (the other being Alexis Korner) both of whom planted the seeds of my interest in the wider musics of the world. So as a little homage to my father I’d like to share with you some of the tracks, musicians and styles that I grew up with during the 60s and 70s and into the 80s.
My old man played jazz and blues trombone, teaching himself from the age of 17 and throwing himself into the rebel music of his day (that day being 1951) - New Orleans Jazz! “Rebel Music”?! I can hear you say. Why, yes. to people brought up in the war years on American crooners and the British “Hee Hee! Pop the Kettle on Mother!” approach to musical entertainment, New Orleans jazz was wild, unpredictable, rebellious, You needed to learn it by ear, not by notes and best of all - yer parents hated it! Things really don’t change do they?
I have precious little recorded material to show for his almost 6 decades of performing. This next piece was given to me by a man who came to his funeral who had played with him back in the 60s in a (very non-rebellious) early form of ‘tribute band’, given over to recreating note-for-note 1920s style jazz - very much not my old man, but hey it was a gig; however, please listen to this and revel in his ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ 12 second trombone solo which single-handedly blasts away the tuba player and the rest of the band’s cobwebs and shows - albeit briefly - that to him music needed to be ‘felt’ not just played. This is Birmingham’s own Ken Ingram’s Classic Jazz Kings and a track called “Deep Henderson”
3 Deep Henderson (Take 2) 4:06 Ken Ingram's Classic Jazz Kings KICJK Vol 6 Jazz
Only one more jazz one now because I can feel my brother already gnashing his teeth and reaching for the tranquilizers. There are so many musicians I could pick that I remember him spinning records to in the front room, but this guy is probably the one that most subconsciously influenced my old man’s playing style - full-on broadsides of ‘bone and big sweeping notes that used the whole length of the slide. This is on vinyl - an old Vogue label ep - and it’s “St Louis Blues” by the great Kid Ory.
4 St Louis Blues - Kid Ory Vogue epg1006 Jazz
[VINYL]
If you’ve just tuned in - don’t worry, you’re still listening to WorldBeatUK with me Glyn Phillips - I’m just taking the opportunity to use this first hour to commemorate the 2nd anniversary of my father’s death with a little homage to what ‘world music’ we could lay our hands on in those far off days before the 80s. We’ve had Blues, we’ve had Jazz; now for the 3rd of the great triumvirate of 20th Century Black American music: Gospel! And in our house two ladies stood head and shoulders above the rest: the excitable dynamo Sister Rosetta Tharpe and the mighty rock of faith that was Mahalia Jackson. We’re going on a journey bound for glory with Sister Rosetta on “This Train” and that’s followed by an absolute masterclass in control and deep belief in Mahalia Jackson’s “In The Upper Room”. Firstly though . . . All Aboard!!
5 This Train 2:50 Sister Rosetta Tharpe The Original Soul Sister Gospel & Religious
[CONTINUOUS]
6 In The Upper Room 5:58 Mahalia Jackson Gold Collection Gospel & Religious
Leaving America behind now, but not the ladies, we move into more recognisable world music territory. In 1965 my parents went to Portugal, guests of the son of some very well-heeled Portuguese people. They were taken to a fado house in Lisbon and returned home with a couple of wonderful ep’s. It was my first taste of foreign language music - and I really took to it. Who else but the Grand Diva of Fado, the woman in black, the legend in her own lifetime: Amalia Rodrigues and from that very same ep (“Amalia the Beautiful”) this a track known in English as ‘The Song of the Sea’ - Solidão (Canção do Mar)
7 Solidão (Canção do Mar) Amalia Rodrigues Amalia the Beautiful (Columbia) Fado
[VINYL]
Ok, Briefly back over the Atlantic to the States. New Orleans Jazz might have very unjustly got a bad name from the ranks of the ‘Cool Jazz’ brigade (you know, they should really study their musical history, Jazz did not start with Bird, Trane and Miles!) - however this next track sets out to demonstrate the fuller picture of the Crescent City - on the one hand the Funky, Funky, PHONKY brass bands and on the other the amazing pianists. This track combines two examples of the best - it’s The Dirty Dozen Brass Band fronted by the Night Tripper himself, The Gris Gris Man, the living embodiment of New Orleans Juju, Dr John Creaux - or just Mac to his friends. “It’s All Over Now”!
8 It’s All Over Now 4:57 The Dirty Dozen Brass Band (Dr John) Jazz Moods - Hot (Columbia/Legacy) Jazz
During the 60s and 70s besides listening to oceans of rock (proper rock mind!) my ears were always open to hear anything that spoke of foreign climes - there wasn’t a lot but I remember Dad playing Ravi Shankar, Manitas de Plata, The Drummers of Burundi etc all of which swam around in my head next to The Beatles, Santana, Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, Hawkwind, Slade - yes, Slade, why you got a problem with that?
However, one chance meeting had a profound effect on my musical development as a teenager. During the later 70s my father and I pitched up at a small jazz festival in Kent and met four amazing Belgian musicians (yes, I’m back talking about Belgium again). It was a gipsy jazz quartet called Waso and they were to become our friends and unwitting musical mentors for years to come. The band consisted of Michel Verstraeten on Double Bass, the Manouche gipsies Vivi Limberger on rhythm guitar, and his cousin Fapy Lafertin on lead guitar and Koen de Cauter on reeds and vocals. Actually they were all multi-instrumentalists but more of that later. First off I’m going to play a track from their 1983 album “Gipsy Swing Vol 5” which is typical of the style that made them firm favourites of discerning British jazz audiences during the 80s. This is their gipsy jazz version of the old Russian theme “ - Ochi Chorniye” - “Black Eyes”.
9 Les Yeux Noirs 2.58 Waso Gipsy Swing Vol 5 (Munich Records 1983) Gypsy Jazz
[VINYL]
This was incredibly exciting music - and tracks like this were capable of being played at breakneck speed; just the sight of Fapy Lafertin’s fingers effortlessly flowing over the frets was enough to make most British Django devotees hang up their guitars in shame. However, it wasn’t just all gipsy swing standards; the band’s frontman Koen de Cauter had a very personal style of singing and comic facial expressions that often masked his true skills; so I was exposed also to musette, chanson and, as here, an idiosyncratic rendering of the waltz - “Flambée Montalbanaise”
10 Flambée Montalbanaise 3:38 Koen de Cauter & friends Django! (DeWerf 2004) Gypsy Jazz
That last track was taken off an album recorded in 2004 called “Django!” and featured not just Koen and Fapy from the original Waso, but also two of Koen’s sons Waso de Cauter on rhythm guitar and Dajo de Cauter on double bass. So far, so good. But is this world music? Yes, yes, yes! You just need to leave your preconceptions at the door. As the night went on, Waso would treat their British audiences to a taste, just a taste of the hidden world of Central and East European music. You have to remember it was virtually impossible to hear anything like this in Britain 30 years ago, let alone buy it anywhere.
The next track although recorded in 1996 by another offshoot of the original Waso band called Romani, is again typical of the treats they had in store for the lucky few able to cram into the tiny clubs where they played to absolutely breathless audiences. The band here features Vivi’s son Tcha Limberger (now internationally famous in his own right) on vocals and violin, Vivi himself on rhythm and backing vocals, Koen on lead guitar and his son Dajo again on double bass. It is a sublime piece the original of which I remember playing to death on an old scratchy worn out cassette. This is “Letscho Kurko”
11 Letscho Kurko 5:43 Romani Romani (Map Records) Gypsy Jazz
[CONTINUOUS]
12 Serenade 2:24 Lavotta Le Chemin des Tsiganes Gypsy Jazz
To finish off the North European gipsy section that was the wonderful Lavotta from an album called “Le Chemin des Tsiganes” and a track entitled “Seranade” - You can get all the details for these tracks right after the show by logging onto my world music website, called appropriately enough www.worldmusic.co.uk and then clicking on the Radio category - there you’ll find playlists for all my shows.
Just to remind you, you’re listening to WorldBeatUK here on Rhubarb Radio, with me Glyn Phillips and for this first section of the show I’m paying homage to my late father and to the music he either introduced me to or discovered with me back in the 60s, 70s and early 80s. I would like to have played you some 60s music by the Southern French gipsy, Manitas de Plata - but I can’t put me hands on his album - so this is again from my father’s collection; it’s from Andalucia in Southern Spain and it’s a sevillana by the choral group Salmarina called “Fue en Sevilla” (It Happened in Seville).
13 Fue en Sevilla 3.39 Salmarina Sevillanas de Carlos Saura (Polydor) Sevillana
Ok this is the last one in homage to my father. You might remember that earlier on in the programme I played a piece by the most famous fadista of all time, Amalia Rodriguez; the next song is by the most famous fadista of her generation, who might yet prove to eclipse Amalia in time. Who else but: Mariza. Just as with Eva Cassidy, I can remember distinctly the first time I ever heard her; I was driving along College Road in Handsworth when this astounding voice came out of the radio and I had to pull over to the kerb and listen, since all the hairs on my arms were standing up and I began to feel faint. Now THAT’s the power of music! My father discovered her around the same time in the early noughties and loved her voice equally.
One of my last memories of true closeness to him took place after he’d been told he didn’t have long to live; He was struggling to breathe through his oxygen mask, so we just sat next to each other and he got me to put on a documentary about Mariza and her life. We sat there experiencing the joy of music, the longing for more time and the sadness of impending loss. True ‘saudade’. The next week he stopped listening to any music at all, because he couldn’t bear the pain of knowing he’d never play trombone, never sing, never dance, never truly live again. This is “Meu Fado Meu”.
14 Meu Fado Meu 3.26 Mariza Transparente (EMI/World Connection 2005) Fado
Did I say that was the last song for my father? Well, technically this is. Good friends of me and my dad’s and North London ambassadors for mixing up styles from Soweto to the Crescent City, this is Big Chief and . . . . “Song For My Father”
15 Song For My Father 6.48 Big Chief Live at the Bull (Teepee Records 2005) Jazz
[CONTINUOUS]
16 JINGLE 2 1:01 (Glyn Phillips voice-over “Intro-Mat” by Matchatcha)
[CONTINUOUS]
17 Emoções 3:04 Jose Da Camara Emoções (Sony 2010) Portuguese
(Jose Da Camara Canta Roberto Carlos)
Welcome back to WorldBeatUK with me Glyn Phillips right here on Rhubarb Radio. You were just listening to the sounds of Portuguese singer Jose da Camara singing a song called “Emoções” (‘Emotions’ in English) from the album of the same name, subtitled Jose da Camara Canta Roberto Carlos (J d C sings the songs of Roberto Carlos). That’s on the Sony label 2010.
A quick reminder that this is the last show on a Monday! If you tune in next Monday between 6-8pm you’ll probably get the wonderful Marc Reck, but not me. WorldBeatUK is moving from next week to WEDNESDAY evenings at the slightly later time of 7-9pm UK time (overseas listeners please check the time differences because the UK’s clocks go forward an hour this weekend coming!). So that should be much better for those who struggle to get back home in time for 6pm to join me. There’ll be no excuses now!
Now here’s a band that are playing here in Birmingham next week at the Kitchen Garden Cafe in wonderful uptown Kings Heath on Monday 4th April at 8.30pm. I was going to get them to come on the show and play live for us, but of course as you’ve just heard, I won’t be here on Monday - because I’ll be here next Wednesday! The band’s called Polly and the Billets Doux an eclectic mix of folk/soul/pop and I don’t know what really - but it’s nice! Sort of halfway between Bonnie Raitt and Norah Jones. This is from their album “Fiction, Half-Truths and Downright Lies” and it’s called “Lead Me On”.
18 Lead Me On 4:31 Polly And The Billets Doux Fiction, Half-Truths and Downright Lies Pop/Soul/Folk
[CONTINUOUS]
19 Caught Me At A Bad Time 2:38 The Rosellys One Way St (2008) Americana
You’ve just been listening to a pair of Birmingham’s finest young musicians who play what’s often referred to nowadays as ‘Americana’ - as I’ve been trying to point out all through the programme, world music is a lot broader than you might think. That was The Rosellys and “Caught Me At a Bad Time” from their album “One Way Street”. Check out their website www.therosellys.com. They often play at the Tower of Song in Cotteridge, South Birmingham and are well worth checking out indeed!
Ok, here’s a tune that at first seem to have overtones of American folk and hillbilly, but is in fact performed by the Finnish-Swedish accordionist, Maria Kalaniemi - originally written by Hilma Ingberg, probably in the early 20th Century. I’d love to know whether it’s the Appalachian influence on Scandinavia or the Scandinavian influence on Appalachia in this tune - who knows - but I do know I like the track. This is from her 2010 album on the Aito Records label entitled “Vilda Rosor” which means ‘wild rose’ and it’s a track called “I Fjol” - which I have no idea what it means. Just enjoy!
20 I Fjol 5:22 Maria Kalaniemi Vilda Rosor (Aito Records 2010) Swedo-Finnish Folk
[CONTINUOUS]
21 Interlude (Callin Gramma) 0:38 Ortegon - Interlude
[CONTINUOUS]
22 Muchacha 3:13 Ortegon - (Palma Coco) Salsa
That was another track by someone I featured last week, the Colombian producer and musician Sr Ortegon and a track called “Muchacha” (preceded by a weird phone conversation to someone’s granny . . .). Ok let’s stay in Colombia and return to that great album I played last week: “Cartagena: Curro Fuentes & the Big Band Cumbia & Descarga Sound of Colombia (1962-72)” on the Soundways label. This is a cumbia with a tango intro by the great Lucho Bermudez. “Fiesta de Negritos”. A Bailar!!!!
23 Fiesta De Negritos 2:34 Lucho Bermudez Y Su Orquesta Cartagena! (Soundways) Tango-Cumbia
Sticking with re-releases from the golden years, this next track is from a recent re-release of Ghanaian Highlife and Afrobeat Classics from 1973-1980 on the Strut label, called “Life Stories” and all of the tracks are by or associated with Ebo Taylor. I’m hoping to play a lot more from this label - there’s a new album coming up called “Nigeria 70” - so as soon as I get that, I’ll play some stuff off it for you (big shout out to Stephanos!). In the meantime this is a heavenly slice of music called, funnily enough, “Heaven”. . .
24 Heaven 6.04 Ebo Taylor Life Stories (Highlife & Afrobeat Classics 1973-80) (Strut 2011) Afrobeat
Now closer to home - much closer. We here in the UK like our reggae; here in Birmingham we really like our reggae - and we’ve got the musical pedigree to prove it. From my neck of the woods, Handsworth, one band has stood out on the international stage. Who else but Steel Pulse - and founder member Basil Gabbidon is still playing around Brum with his band, Gabbidon, and I was lucky enough to be playing at the same venue (the Tower of Song in Cotteridge) as him and Carol Brewster, the soul and gospel singer, a couple of weeks ago. This is from his recent album called “Reggae Rockz” - it’s “Kool Runnings”.
25 Kool Runnings 3:30 Gabbidon Reggae Rockz (Runcum Music RMCD25) Reggae
Sticking with reggae, this is a great Jamaican band name of C-Sharp, who wrap some sweet tunes around some very insightful lyrics. Really liking their work. They’ve had hits in Jamaica with “No More” (that dealt with the often taboo subject of severe depression) and more recently “Nurse” (in 2009). This is from their new - as yet unreleased - album, “The Invitation”, and it’s a fitting cry to the madness of the world all around us today. This is called “What’s the Matter with the World”.
26 What's The Matter With The World 3:58 C-Sharp The Invitation (C-Sharp Music) Reggae
[Remind people that WorldBeatUK is moving to Wednesdays from next week onwards and will start and end an hour later (7-9pm) - which should make it easier for everyone to tune in.]
27 Balk To The Future 3.40 Slamboree - - Balkan Dance
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