This is the second of the Osadebe cd's from the East Street market stall (the first is here). If you've never heard him, this is magical music - fantastically mellow Nigerian highlife. There's something really special going on here by the time we get to the muted trumpet in the mesmerising People's Club Odogwu...
Great set of fabulous '80s roots sounds from Jamaican singjay star, Eek-a-Mouse. Pour yerself a rum, sit back and enjoy the sunshine.
Iggut lebrîh idrus may sellan igh islêh
Plenty of speeches And yet Nobody listens to the reason
Nettghwi zun d teghwi tmmurghi gh igenwan ikk d lhif akal
We are like grasshoppers taken between the skies and the dry grounds.
| A1 | Sam Peake & Metropolis | Metropolis |
| A2 | Brooklyn People | Peace And Love |
| A3 | Spaceark | Do What You Can Do |
| A4 | New Ghetto Express | Standing On The Verge Of Getting It On |
| A5 | Ross Carnegie & Co | Open Up Your Mind |
| A6 | North By Northwest | Disco Unusual |
| B1 | The Projections | Groovin To The Music We Play |
| B2 | C. Henry Woods Troupe | The Stranger |
| B3 | Louise Freeman | I Can Do It |
| B4 | East Coast Connection | Summer In The Parks |
| B5 | South Side Coalition | Get Off Your Seats And Jam |
| B6 | The Endeavors | Who Shaft Where |
Great free improv reinterpretation of Puccini's opera from Dave Burrell that was a real surprise find at a local boot sale. This man played with some of the great artists of the '60s free jazz scene including Pharoah Saunders, Sonny Sharrock and Elvin Jones and tha album was released on the legendary French jazz label BYG Records. If you're at all free jazz inclined then check it out.
Fantastic chunk of funky Congolese Rumba from L'Afrique Danse, beautifully showcasing M'pongo Love's gorgeous voice. Apparently she married one of President Mobutu's sons, but don't let that stop you from giving this gem a listen. The influence of American funk is especially evident on side 2...
I went to Morocco at the beginning of the year and spent a fantastic week in the mountains around Tafraout. While there I met a lovely fella called Rachid who was keen to indulge my interest in Moroccan music. He very kindly made me a cd of music by this famous group of the '60s and '70s, Izenzaren, who set radical lyrics and poetry loaded with biting social commentary to traditional Berber music. Rachid told me that this music is still very popular in the mountain regions of the country, and many young people try to emulate the group's banjo player, though he still holds the title King of the Banjo.
This is a strange thing. Sinatra obsessed middle aged rat-pack wannabe crooning over sci-fi lounge sounds and messed up electronica. Notes of a dirty old man and heartbroken whisky soaked tales of loneliness and regret. Louie Austen still makes music, but what I've heard has had smoother, more polished sound. This, his debut album on Patrick Pulsinger's Cheap label, is an all together darker affair, all crunchy beats and Blade Runner-esque retro futurism.
Fantastic compilation of dancefloor funk and soul. Some well known classics like Cymande's BRA or Eddie Bo's Check Your Bucket and some more obscure gems from Dawson Smith and Jackie Beavers. Enjoy this lovely stuff.
I must first apologise for the mistake I've made in previous posts about the music of the French Antilles. The music that I've been calling Zouk is not Zouk but cadence. Zouk is a sound that matured in the '80s and relied more on synths than the big bands that appear on these records. Having said all that, I try not to get too hung up on labels, my favourite stuff tends to be that which doesn't sit neatly in any particular category, wriggling about defying adequate description and confounding expectations.
