Burning Spear — Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow

Episode 46 originally posted on April 22, 2019.

05 Studio One Presents Burning Spear.jpg

Tracklisting:

01) “Khon Kae Lok” by Khon Kae Lok.

From the album Khon Ba Kancha.

Bangkok, Thailand.

The excellent Monrakplengthai blog provides some background and provides the release for download:

“today, we'll hear from mr. khamron sambunnanon, singing songs of crooked politicians and ganja madmen! hailing from bangkok's chinatown, khamron sang what were called at the time phleng talat ("market songs"), as his lyrics were among the earliest examples of thai pop music to feature tales of common people; farmers, day laborers, and even more marginal figures like gamblers, vagrants, outlaws and drug addicts. because of this, khamron is considered by many to be the very first singer of luk thung, and many of the great luk thung stars of the 60s and 70s fondly recall singing along to khamron's songs during their formative years. this album, from the bangkok cassette co., ltd. (currently existing as maemaiplengthai), contains several songs that i've shared before on various collections over the years, but once again shouldn't hurt.. enjoy!”

Purchase the album.

02) “Coma Cluster” by Outer Space.

From the 2016 album Chase Across Orion.

Barcelona, Spain.

A review on the Bandcamp page says: “Imagine The Polyrhythmics melting with The Budos Band, just add a dose a spanish flavor and you get the picture.” The Tucxone Records page says (through Google Translate):

“Without fears or prejudices. With soul and skill. That is how one must travel anywhere. And so Outer Space astronauts have explored the furrows of our galaxy. His first long-term manned mission to the blackest skies on the outskirts of our solar system is called "Chase across Orion". An operation that has been coordinated from the laboratories of the Tucxone Records sound, located in Madrid, leaders in the investigation of ebony atmospheres.”

Purchase the album at Bandcamp.
Purchase the album at the Tucxone Records website.

03) “Jori” by Les Filles de Illighadad.

From the 2017 album Eghass Malan.

Abalak, Niger.

The Sahel Sounds page says:

“Les Filles de Illighadad come from a secluded commune in central Niger, far off in the scrubland deserts at the edge of the Sahara. The village is only accessible via a grueling drive through the open desert and there is little infrastructure, no electricity or running water. But what the nomadic zone lacks in material wealth it makes up for deep and strong identity and tradition. The surrounding countryside supports hundreds of pastoral families, living with and among their herds, as their families have done for centuries.
It takes its name from a drum, built from a goat skin stretched across a mortar and pestle. Like the environs, tende music is a testament to wealth in simplicity, with sparse compositions built from a few elements: vocals, handclaps, and percussion. Songs speak of the village, of love, and of praise for ancestors. It’s a music form dominated by women. Collective and communal, tende is tradition for all the young girls of the nomad camps – played during celebrations and to pass the time during the late nights of the rainy season.”

The group’s Bandcamp page says:

“Sublime recordings from rural Niger. Two very different sides of Tuareg music - dreamy ishumar acoustic guitar sessions, and the hypnotic polyphonic tende that inspires it. Guitarist Fatou Seidi Ghali and vocalist Alamnou Akrouni lead the troupe, named after the village.”

Visit the group’s profile at the Sahel Sounds website.
Follow the group at Facebook.
Purchase the album at Bandcamp.

04) “Raga Hem Behag” by Ustad Ali Akbar Khan.

From the 1983 cassette Live in Eugene.

Comilla, Bangladesh.

The Wikipedias tell us that Ali Akbar Khan:

“was a Hindustani classical musician of the Maihar gharana, known for his virtuosity in playing the sarod. Trained as a classical musician and instrumentalist by his father, Allauddin Khan, he also composed several classical ragas and film scores. He established a music school in Calcutta in 1956, and the Ali Akbar College of Music in 1967, which moved with him to the United States and is now based in San Rafael, California, with a branch in Basel, Switzerland.”

Visit the official website for the Ali Akbar College of Music.
Purchase Khan’s music at Amazon.

05) “Creation” by Burning Spear.

From the 1973 album Studio One Presents Burning Spear.

Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica.

The official website tells us:

“A music-maker, community icon, educator, spiritual uplifter; Burning Spear's importance to culture existed before the media spotlight, and has only grown since.
For nearly four decades and more than 25 albums, he has carried the torch of the gospel of political activist Marcus Garvey, promoting self-determination and self-reliance for African descendants through lyrics and rhythms that truly deliver the messages of peace and love to all.”

The Wikipedias add: “Winston Rodney (born 1 March 1945), better known by the stage name Burning Spear, is a Jamaican roots reggae vocalist and musician. Burning Spear is a Rastafarian and one of the most influential and long-standing roots artists to emerge from the 1970s.”

Visit the official Burning Spear website.
Visit Burning Spear at Facebook.
Visit Burning Spear at Twitter.
Purchase Burning Spear music at Amazon.

We invite you to continue your journey of musical exploration by seeing where each featured artist is from. This week’s artists are represented by Orange map-points. To see previous artists, visit the maps page here.

Episodes 41-50

Episode 36 was originally posted on February 11, 2019.

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Tracklisting:

01) “Spokey Dokey” by the Seatbelts.

From the 1998 Original Soundtrack Cowboy Bebop.

Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.

The Seatbelts (シートベルツ Shītoberutsu), sometimes also known as “Yoko Kanno and The Seatbelts,” is most famous for their soundtrack to the incredible anime series Cowboy Bebop. Yoko Kanno has composed for Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, The Vision of Escaflowne, and Wolf’s Rain, but Cowboy Bebop is perhaps the standout of them all. As Noisey says: “Yoko Kanno and The Seatbelts gave 'Cowboy Bebop' the key ingredient to make it one of the best anime series of all time.” The Noisey essay sums it up well:

You come to Cowboy Bebop for a compelling and complex narrative, and stay for the bangers: blues bangers, bossa nova bangers, heavy metal bangers, jazz bangers and J-pop bangers. The eclectic collection of music complemented the show so well.

Purchase the soundtrack at Amazon.

02) “知道不知道” by 邓丽君 (Teresa Teng).

From the 1967 album 凤阳花鼓.

Baozhong, Yunlin, Taiwan.

According to Wikipedia: “邓丽君 (Teresa Teng) “was a Taiwanese singer, one of the most famous and successful singers to originate from the Mandarin-speaking world. She is known to the Chinese community worldwide (especially in South East Asian countries), even in groups who may not speak Mandarin as their primary Chinese dialect.”

Like the 鄧麗君 Teresa Teng page on Facebook.
Purchase 邓丽君 (Teresa Teng)’s music on Amazon.

03) “El Pajaro” by Lhasa.

From the 1997 album La Llorona.

Big Indian, New York.

Lhasa de Sela was a Mexican-American singer and songwriter. According Wikipedia:

“Lhasa was born in Big Indian, New York, of a Mexican father, language instructor Alejandro "Alex" Sela, and an American mother, photographer and actress Alexandra Karam. According to Lhasa, her hippie parents did not give her a name until the age of five months; her mother was reading a book about Tibet and the word Lhasa "just grabbed her" as the right name for the baby girl.”

Visit the official Lhasa de Sela website.
Follow the Lhasa de Sela Facebook page.
Purchase Lhasa de Sela’s music on Amazon.

04) “Aesop's Fables” by Guy Warren.

From the 1962 album African Rhythms - The Exciting Soundz Of Guy Warren And His Talking Drums.

Accra, Ghana.

Wikipedia tells us:

“Guy Warren of Ghana, also known as Kofi Ghanaba (4 May 1923 – 22 December 2008), was a Ghanaian musician, best known as the inventor of Afro-jazz — "the reuniting of African-American jazz with its African roots"[1] — and as a member of The Tempos, alongside E. T. Mensah. He also inspired musicians such as Fela Kuti. Warren's virtuosity on the African drums earned him the appellation "The Divine Drummer".[2] At different stages of his life, he also worked as a journalist, DJ and broadcaster.”

Night Of The Living Vinyl says:

“Guy Warren, in the late 1950s, was on a mission in the US to show the jazz world, and the rest of the musical community, the importance of drumming. Not only that but he was determined to show people that the drums of Africa were as expressive and versatile as any other instrument in America. For Warren, drums were not just for providing a steady background beat while other instruments took the lead. For him the drums were the centre stage instrument.”

Purchase the album at Amazon.

05) “Creation” by Burning Spear.

From the 1973 album Studio One Presents Burning Spear.

Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica.

Allmusic says:

“Though he is better known for his releases on Island during the mid-'70s, Winston Rodney (aka Burning Spear) wrote an equally important chapter in reggae music during the first half of that decade. The singer began his professional career on a series of recordings for the legendary Studio One label during the years 1969-1974. Aided by singer/producer Larry Marshall and singer Rupert Willington, the resulting music was some of the most innovative of the style eventually categorized as roots reggae.”

Visit the Burning Spear website.
Purchase Burning Spear music at Amazon.

06) “Taty Taty” by Ramy Essam.

From the 2012 album Manshourat.

Mansoura, Egypt.

The official website tells us: “Ramy Essam is an Egyptian musician best known for his appearances in Tahrir Square in Cairo during the Egyptian Revolution of 2011. Ramy was born in 1987 in Mansoura, Egypt. Ramy is one of the few singers in Middle East to sing hard rock.”

Visit the official Ramy Essam website.
Follow Ramy Essam on Facebook.
Purchase Ramy Essam music at Amazon.

07) “Gele Beyi” by Ketema Makkonen.

From the 1972 album Ketema Makkonen.

Ethiopia.

The My Passion For Ethiopian Music blog tells us that Ketema Makkonen (also spelled : Ketema Makonnen) was “an incredibly skilled player of the Kirar, or the 6-string bowled lyre” and that his music was: “deeply sorrowful and forlorn,” saying: “these strings kick up a dusty trail of longing, intuitively navigated by his warm, rustic voice.”

Honestly, that’s about all we can find on this one. Anyone have any further information or links?

08) “Angels of Death” by Jennifer Castle.

From the 2018 album Angels of Death.

Toronto, Ontario.

Pitchfork says: “The Toronto singer’s album is a country and gospel-infused meditation on death and mourning that flickers between the broadly universal and the devastatingly personal.”

Not sure what else there is to say.

Visit Jennifer Castle’s official website.
Visit Jennifer Castle on Facebook.
Purchase the album on Bandcamp.
Purchase the album on Amazon.

09) “Goza Mi Trompeta” by Cachao y Su Ritmo Caliente.

From the 1996 album Descargas - Cuban Jam Sessions.

Cuba.

Well . . . sometimes all you have is some sort of weird bootleg CDR that you found at the thrift store because you heard a story on the radio. It has this cover and not much other information or links. You?

10) “Sor Kendine” by Tim Ersen.

From the 2001 compilation Hava Narghile: Turkish Rock Music 1966-1975.

Turkey.

We try to avoid repeats here on the Global Elite Music Radio Podcast Supershow. And, for the most part, we feel like we’ve avoided playing any particular artist more than once. However, we have made no secret of the fact that we love compilation albums to discover lots of new artists from all around the world. We featured "Berkay Oyun Havasi" by Moğollar from the the Hava Narghile: Turkish Rock Music 1966-1975 on Episode 16 and we return to that compilation here on Episode 36 with Tim Ersen, which we honestly can’t find much information about. Can you help?

Purchase the album on Amazon.

As always, browse our interactive map to see where each artist is from. This week’s artists are represented by purple map-points. To highlight a specific episode, use the little window/toggle thingy in the upper-left corner. Since we can only show 10 episodes at a time, see all of the other episodes here.

Episodes 31-40