7 July 2010, World Cafe

Imagined Village – The handweaver and the factory maid (ECC records)

The Imagined Village with the traditional song, “The handweaver and the factory maid”, which comes from their new CD, “Empire and Love”. The Imagined Village is a teaming of the producer musician, Simon Emmerson, of The Afrocelts, a bunch of luminaries on the English folk scene, including Martin and Eliza Carthy and Chris Wood, and some other worldish types, like Johnny Kalsi of the Dohl Foundation and the sitar player, Sheema Markerjee, and some electronica types too.

Cara Dillon – P stands for Paddy (Lament for Johnny) (Charcoal Records)

Cara Dillon is a pure-voiced Irish singer, who’s been on the scene for the last 10 years. She’s just set up her own label, Charcoal Records, and this tune comes from the first album on that label, “Hill of Thieves”.

Bassekou Kouyate – Musow for our women (Out here records)

I’ve just got the new Ngoni Ba album, “I speak Fula”, that all the world music mags have been making a big fuss over. And I see why. This is the most perfectly layered and arranged album, built around an ensemble of ngonis of various sizes and the astonishing voice of Amy Sacko, a griot who happens to be married to Kouyate. Kouyate pioneered the sound, taking what is normally an accompanying instrument, the ngoni, and assembling a number of them together for ensemble and solo playing. He also invented a bass ngoni along the way. The style has grown in popularity in Mali over the last few years to the extent that everyone is setting up ngoni bands. You don’t need much, just a bunch of acoustic ngonis. The ngoni has a stick-like neck and hollowed-out, elongated, bowl-shape body covered with skin and some gut strings – a forerunner of the banjo, many believe.

Youssou N’dour – Baay Faal (Nonesuch)

Bassekou Kouyate has also been a guest musician of choice for some time. He features on Youssou N’dour’s “back-to-basics” mbalax album of 2007, “Rokku mi rokka (give and take)”.

Etoile de Dakar featuring Youssou N’dour – Tu Veras (Sterns)

N’dour has been at the forefront of mbalax since its beginning – mbalax is a combination of Cuban horns, Congolese rumba guitar styles, traditional rhythms played on the “mbang mbang” drum and some local singing styles, sung in Wolof instead of Spanish. All this was coming together in the late 70s. Sterns have released a collection of very rare recordings from that period, a number of which were only ever available on cassette. The Spanish is still in evidence on “Tu Veras”.

Orchestre TPOK Jazz – Cheri Desi (Eva Corporation)

Speaking of the Afro-Cuban, the great Orchestre TPOK Jazz continued to perform and record after the death of Franco in the late 80s. “Cheri Desi” is from a tribute LP to Franco, “Les Mayeno a Gogo”. The track really starts to cook hypnotically at minute 3 and then takes off after the “sebene” – or the pivot point between the vocal section and the instrumental dance section – a defining part of the Congolese rumba of the 70s and 80s. Long-time TPOK vocalist, Josky (Kiambukuta Londa), who composed that track, really shows that he learnt a thing or two from the maestro.

Lobi Traore – Tiekoroba (World Village)

I’m sad to report that Lobi Traore, the great Malian adventurous blues guitarist, died unexpectedly a few weeks ago. Although from central Mali, in fact near Segu, where Bassekou Kouyate hails from, Traore collaborated with a number of guitarists from the north, including Ali Farka Toure. He helped create what is called Bambara Blues – Bambara being the language of central Mali, which has more linkages to the culture of north Mali than to the languages of Maninka and Mandinka in the south west – allowing those mixings to happen. “Tiekoroba” comes off the collection “Mali Blue”, which is a kind of best of compilation of four Traore albums made in the 90s.

Kalahari Surfers – Fish Effect (Microdot Music)

From the Kalahari Surfers’ latest, “One party state”.

Tommy McCook & the Skatalites – Freedom Sounds (Heartbeat)

Last month I played some mid 70s stuff from the saxist, Tommy McCook. McCook has been around since the dawning of reggae. He helped found one of the all time great Jamaican ska bands – the Skatalites. He wrote “Freedom Sounds”, and recorded it in the early 60s, for the great label and studio of the time, Studio One, owned by entrepreneur-producer, Clement “Coxsone” Dodd. Listen out for more sounds from Studio One in months to come.

King Tubby and Lee Perry are probably the two most famous names in dub.

King Tubby – Bottom Dub (Jigsaw Music)

King Tubby’s main method was to strip tracks right down to the bass and drums and then conjure up new rhythms and moods through adding effects to the beats like reverb and echo using an effects unit often of his own invention. Bottom Dub comes from the album “Herb Dub, Collie Dub”, which is a dub of a Skatalites’ LP – utterly changed from its ska original (thanks to Mario Pissarra for telling me about this LP).

Harry Mudie meets King Tubby – Dub with a difference (Moods)

King Tubby’s collaboration with a veteran record producer, Harry Mudie, probably best known for producing Gregory Isaacs, the super star of lovers’ rock. The string section of the original has been kept.

Lee Perry and the Upsetters – Three in one (Island/Mango)

On his album “Super Ape”, Lee Perry adopted almost the opposite approach to King Tubby – adding layers and layers to the murky sonic soup – instead of stripping down and accentuating beats and bass pulses.

Staff Benda Bilili – Sala Mosala (Crammed Disc)

From the streets of Kinshasa with a very infectious reggae lope.

Getachew Mekuria and the Ex and guests – Musicawi silt (Terp)

The mighty blast of veteran Ethiopean sax player, Getachew Mekuria, with Dutch punk band, the Ex. Mekuria helped invent that style of playing – called shelelle - in the sixties. It’s derived from war chants, if you had any doubts.

Fela Kuti – Jeun ko ku (Strut)

From the raucous, to the uber-precise – here is Fela Kuti’s The Africa 70 – circa 1971 – from The Abbey Road studio, London. This is Kuti’s rerecording of his 60’s Nigerian hit “Jeun Ko Ku” or “Chop N Quench” – proto Afro-beat with the legendary drummer, Tony Allen, laying down those ultra-controlled, insistent rhythms – never losing his cool.

Steely Dan – Rikki don’t lose that number

You probably know that Steely Dan didn’t come up with the bass figure and drum pattern at the beginning of “Rikki don’t lose that number”. They lifted it from the Horace Silver tune, “Song for My Father”, which came out in the mid 60s. But they weren’t the only ones doing heavy lifting.

Horace Silver – Song for my father (Blue Note)

Mulatu Astatke – Yekermo Sew (Strut)

Seyfrou Yohannes – Yekermo Sew (Buda Musique)

Mulatu Astatke – a music student in NYC round about when “Song for my father” came out, also lifted the tune in a way that was remarkable. He converted the song, blobs and staves and all, into a pure-bred Ethiojazz tune.

Malombo – Motshile (Kijima Records)

From Phillip Thabane and Malombo’s release in the early 80s, called “Malombo”.

Trembling Bells – Adieu, England (Honest Jons Records)

Trembling Bells, built around Alex Neilson, the multi-purpose, multi-directional drummer, and trained soprano, Lavinia Blackwall, emerged last year from the Glasgow folk scene – a wonderful throwback to 70s folk rock. Neilson wrote all the songs on their new LP “Abandoned Love” – and that was one of the them, “Adieu, England”. Are you reminded of Richard Thompson circa Fairport? I definitely am – “Crazy Man Michael” for the post-oughties or whatever decade we’re living in now.

Mary Hampton – Island (Navigator)

Mary Hampton is another UK songwriter up to her neck in tradition.

Sam Amidon – How come that blood (Bedroom Community)

Amidon draws on the same well of songs as Hampton and Neilson – English and Scottish ballads – this time filtered through the Appalachians. He’s deployed a really fabulous NY based percussionist, Shahzad Ismaily, on his new album “I see a sign”.

Mari Boine – In a blanket of warmth (Jazzland)

Mari Boine, from Norway, also works with great percussionists. From her 2003 LP “Eight Seaons”.

Kalahari Surfers and Greg Hunter – What is she saying to me? (Electric Melt)

The great maskanda star and tradition-breaker, Busi Mhlonga, provides the vocals. Amapondo providing backing vocals. UCT string quartet is also in the mix. Mhlongo died on the 15th June, after battling breast cancer. Hopefully her fiesty spirit will live on.