Episode 37
Episode 37 was originally posted on February 18, 2019.
Tracklisting:
01) “少年” by Mariah.
From the 1983 album “うたかたの日々 (Utakata no Hibi).”
Shimada, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan.
Utakata no Hibi was the last album recorded by Yasuaki Shimizu (清水靖晃 Shimizu Yasuaki) under the Mariah name. According to Wikipedia, Yasuaki Shimizu:
“is a Japanese composer, saxophonist and producer. He is known for his interpretations of the music of J.S. Bach, in particular the "Cello Suites 1-6" re-arranged for and performed on tenor saxophone. Since 1981 he has composed, produced or arranged for artists as diverse as jazz vocalist Helen Merrill, composer Ryuichi Sakamoto, and DJ Towa Tei. During this time he has lived in London, Paris and Tokyo.”
Pitchfork says of this album: “With mesh of Japanese and Armenian sounds, Mariah's unforgettable melodies walk the fine line they all but invented between its authors’ musical heritages.”
02) “Five On It” by Spielbergs.
From the 2019 album “This is Not the End.”
Oslo, Norway.
Spielbergs (originally known as “We Are All Going to Die” (which, according to Pitchfork, is also the name of the first song they wrote together) is a Norwegian power pop band who really likes Sugar and the Replacements almost as much as we do.
03) “Afous Dafous” by Tartit.
From the 2019 album “Amankor / The Exile”.
Tombouctou, Mali /Burkina Faso.
According to Last.fm: “The Ensemble Tartit are Malian Tamashek (Tuareg), comprising five women and four men. Tartit means 'union' in their language. They met in a refugee camp in Burkina Faso, where their music was a means of survival against the social and political mayhem in the Sahara Desert.”
04) “Robins Ride” by Ted Lucas.
From the 1975 album “Ted Lucas”.
Detroit, Michigan, USA.
The Numero Group website says:
“In 1968, Ted Lucas returned to Detroit following a stint in Los Angeles that saw the release of Reprise singles with his psych-rock acts Spike Drivers and Misty Wizards. Then a new father, he paid his bills by working as Motown's in-house Indian instruments specialist, playing sitar on tracks by the Temptations and the Supremes.”
“Detroit musician Ted Lucas spent decades quietly pursuing musical greatness in and around his hometown. Throughout the '60s and '70s, Lucas' name was attached to several regional rock bands, session work for Motown before they left Detroit for Los Angeles, and even time spent studying the art of raga with Ravi Shankar.”
One Chord.net says:
“Ted Lucas still remains as the great unknown, but many have heard him play, because he was “exotic instrument specialist” for Motown and played on several late 60s records by groups such as The Temptations, The Supremes and Stevie Wonder.”
If those quotes don’t intrigue you, you might be at the wrong podcast website.
Purchase the album at Amazon.
05) “Miri” by Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba.
From the 2019 album “Miri”.
Garana, Barouéli Cercle / Bamako, Mali.
Bassekou Kouyate was born in Garana, Barouéli Cercle, 60 kilometres from Ségou in 1966 and at the age of 12, he started playing the Ngoni. His band is called Ngoni ba. In the late 1980s he moved to the Bamako. His Facebook page says:
“Bassekou Kouyate’s extraordinary musical journey shows that he is unquestionably the most innovative and exciting Malian musician to have emerged in recent years. Having defied tradition he continues to push the boundaries of his ancient musical heritage, bringing his music to audiences around the world with his phenomenal live band Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba and three internationally acclaimed albums. Bassekou has become a major star amongst the new generation of African musicians.”
His website says: “Bassekou Kouyate is one of the true masters of the ngoni, an ancient traditional lute found throughout West Africa. He is a virtuoso, innovator, stronghold of tradition all at the same time.”
06) “Mission l'Afriquei” by Aiff.
From the 2019 album “Afro Soul System”.
Dordrecht, Netherlands.
The group’s Facebook page says: “AIFF are in long terms Afro Influenced Funk Federation. The Dutch musicians around DJ and producer Phil Martin and musician Ton van der Kolk play an enormous groove establishing their own version of afro-funk.”
07) “Bubamara” by Bubamara Brass Band.
From the 2018 album “Bubamarija / Kashtanizma EP”.
Moscow, Russia.
Bubamara Brass Band, out of Moscow, Russia is the project of bandleader Aleksandar Kashtanov. The Free Music Archive page says:
“The new wave of interest to the Balkan music in world scales has been provoked by launch of the well-known Yugoslavian director of Emir Kusturica. Hasn't avoided its influences and Russia where among the other structures which have addressed to a musical heritage of the Balkans, the Moscow orchestra «Bubamara Brass Band» maestro Alexander Kashtanova is brightly allocated.”
08) “Bukom Mashie” by Oscar Sulley & The Uhuru Dance Band.
From the 2002 compilation “Ghana Soundz - A Collection Of Ultra-Rare And Previously Unreleased Afro-Beat, Funk And Fusion From 70's Ghana”.
Ghana.
We’ve made no secret of our love for good music compilations to help discover new artists. It’s really a beautiful thing when you come across something you can trust. And such is the case with We really couldn’t find out much regarding Oscar Sulley & The Uhuru Dance Band other than the Quantic remix. The album’s Bandcamp page says:
“Ghana Soundz was the first ever Soundway compilation and became recognised worldwide due to the licensing of the Oscar Sulley track, ‘Bukom Mashie’ to the soundtrack of Hollywood blockbuster, ‘Last King of Scotland’.
Pounding rhythms, blaring horns and pumping vocals – the music is a document of a time forgotten when flares and Cuban heels strutted the streets and night-spots of Accra, the sizzlingly hot and humid capital of Ghana. Influenced as much by traditional rhythms and local highlife as by the music of Fela Kuti, James Brown and Santana, these tunes had almost become extinct – until now!
Ghana Soundz was the first of three collections of rare afro-beat, afro-funk and afro-fusion that Miles Cleret painstakingly travelled the length and breadth of Ghana to assemble, the third compilation to be released late 2009.”
As always, we invite you to browse the interactive map displaying where each artist is from. This week’s artists are represented by light-green map-points. Since Google Maps will only let us display 10 episodes at a time, browse the other episodes here.