2 April 2014, World Cafe

Programme airs on 2 April 2014, 10 - 12pm South African time on Fine Music Radio, 101.3 Fm in the Cape Town area or via live stream http://infant.antfarm.co.za/fmr/fmr-player.asp

1 De Temps Antan – Petipetan (L-Abe)
Album: Les Habits de Papier

De Temps Antan are a power-house trio plying Quebecois music – fiddle, guitar, bouzouki, accordion and pieds percussion or seated clog dancing (although not on “Petipetan”).  And of course those magnificent voices. 

2 Blowzabella – Fulmine (Green Linnet)

Album: Vanilla

I’ve always been very partial to the diatonic button accordion playing of Andy Cutting, and was very pleased to discover this solo tune on an old Blowzabella album from 1990 called “Vanilla”.  The album first came out when Cutting joined the band at the age of 21.  The tune is “Fulmine”.  Blowzabella are another kettle of fish -  usually involving hurdy-gurdy - which I’m saving for the next show.

3 Melrose Quartet – Come and I will sing you (Private label/artist)

Album: Fifty Verses

Melrose Quartet consists of two terrific English trad duos – Nancy Kerr and James Fagan and Jess and Richard Arrowsmith.  “Come and I will sing you”  is obviously a very old round, which seems to be linked to “Green grow the rushes, o”.  Check out wikipedia for possible hidden meanings http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_Grow_the_Rushes,_O

4 The Bad Shepherds – Humours of Tullah/Teenage Kicks/Whiskey in the Jar/The Merry Blacksmith   (Monsoon Music)

Album: Yan, Tyan, Tethera, Methera

The Bad Shepherds play seriously inspired English and Irish trad versions of unlikely songs, many of them from the punk canon, if there is such a thing.  The Undertones classic “Teenage Kicks” is in a medley with “Humours of Tullah”, “Whiskey in a Jar and The Merry Blacksmith” and it’s from their 2009 album “Yan, Tyan, Tethera, Methera”, Cumbrian shepherd’s dialect for “One, two, three, four”.

5 Alasdair Fraser & Natalie Haas – Keys to the Cellar (Greentrax)
Album: Abundance

Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas are a duo who’ve been around for a number of years playing music inspired by and drawing on the Scottish and Irish fiddling tradition – he a Scottish fiddler (mainly) and she an American cello player.  Dominick Leslie supplies the deft mandolin playing.

6 The Gloaming – The Old Bush (Real World)
Album: The Gloaming

Speaking about inspired re-imaginings of Irish music, The Gloaming have come up with something really great.  The Gloaming are one of the great duos of Irish music – fiddling Martin Hayes and guitarist Dennis Cahill, plus hardanger fiddler, Caoimhin O’Raghllaigh and pianist Thomas “Doveman” Barlett. Sometimes singer Iarla O’Lionaird joins them, but not on this tune. 

 Agnes Obel – Katie Cruel (Prt 1 Live in Copenhagen) (PIAS)

Album: Philharmonics (Deluxe Edition)

Danish singer/songwriter Agnes Obel, recorded live in Copenhagen.  Over the years, I’ve played a number of versions of this American trad song, and there’ll be another version next month.

8 Pokey LaFarge – Close the Door (Third Man)
Album: Pokey LaFarge

Pokey LaFarge is a whiz with all kinds of Americana – Western swing, twenties jazz and country blues, he plays a bunch of instruments and he knows how to turn a witty, sardonic phrase too.  Here’s his take on health care in the US today. 

9 Adrian Raso & Fanfare Ciocarlia – C’est la vie (Asphalt Tango)

Album: Devil’s Tale

Sticking with gypsy swing or French Manouche, a grand pairing of Toronto guitarist Adrian Raso and the 12 piece Romanian brass band, Fanfare Ciocarlia. 

10 Tigran Hamaysan – Drip (Universal/Verve)
Album: Shadow Theater

Certainly more jazzy, but also heavily inspired by folk songs, this time from Armenia.    

11 Boban and Marko Marcovic Orchestra – Sljivovica (Piranha)
Album: Gipsy Manifesto

The Boban & Marko Markovic Orchestra are one of the greatest Serbian gypsy brass bands.  That is a remix dunkelbunt (alias of Ulf Lindemann), a producer and DJ who specializes in transforming Balkan music in all kinds of interesting ways often with a reggae undertow. 



12 Adama Koita – Fantainfalla Toyi Bolo (Transgressive)
Album: Africa Express Presents: Maison Des Jeunes

Keeping with the theme of guest producers, Damon Albarn, the guy from Blur a million years ago who has a long history of poppy collaborations with Malian musicians, brought a lot of luminary producer types to a youth club in Bamako in the middle of 2013 to work with local up-and-coming musicians.  “Africa Express Presents: Maison Des Jeunes” is the result. 

13 Tinariwen – Chaghaybou (ANTI-records)
Album: Emmaar

Tinariwen’s new album just out was recorded in Joshua Tree in Mojave Desert – still a desert, but not in the northern regions of Mali and surrounds, where the band have recorded in the past.      

14 TP Orchestre Poly-Rhythmo – Mirielle (EDL 12)

single

A few months ago I played an obscure single by a true, and perhaps under-sung, great of African music – Orchestre Poly Rythmo de Cotonou from Benin.  Mirielle is another obscure single.  Lohento Eskill is the singer.  And there’ll be more music from them next month.

15 La Yegros – Trocitus de Madera (ZZK)
Album: Viene de Mi

That’s something you don’t hear that often – trip-hoppy cumbia produced in Argentina.  La Yegros had a smash hit across Latin America a few years ago with “Viene de Mi”, the title of her internationally released album.  From the same album, here’s another catchy tune. 

16 Los Corraleros – Juana Patino (Discos Fuentes)
Album: Cumbias Solamente Cumbias

So I guess now we can play more cumbia.  Here’s something from the cradle of cumbia – the Colombian Atlantic Coast - and its heyday - the late 60s and 70s.  It’s from a 1976 collection on Discos Fuentes called “Cumbias Solamente Cumbias”. 

17 Zara McFarlane – Police and Thieves

Album: If you knew her

British Jazz singer Zara McFarlane’s wonderful version of Junior Murvin’s “Police and Thieves”.  That’s to mark Junior Murvin recent passing on the 2^nd of December last year. 

18 The Upsetters – Emotional Dub (Pressure Sounds)

Album: Lee Perry and the Upsetters present Roaring Lion

Lee Perry recorded the original “Police and Thieves” in 1976 and the song became a hit, so I thought I should also play a Murvin-Perry collaboration.  Here is something off a new collection of Perry obscurities from the Black Ark in the 70s on Pressure Sounds: a dub workout with some powerful Murvin vocals, “Emotional Dub”.

19 Prince Jazzbo – Prophet Live (Black Wax)

Album: Natty Passing Thru

2013 also saw the death of another reggae great – the toaster and dub producer Prince Jazzbo, in September.  “Prophet Live” is to the backing of “Satta massagana” from a lovely album called “Natty Passing Thru” also from 1976.

20 Dawn of Midi – Ymir (Thirsty Ear)

Album: Dysnomia

Dub is definitely one of the inspirations of Brooklyn based Dawn of Midi.  They play everything on piano, bass and drums but with a very different approach from normal piano trios.  There’re bunch of other influences in there too.  “Dysnomia” is one of my favourites from 2013.

21 Driss El Maloumi – Makan (Contre-Jour)
Album: Tawazoun

Driss El Maloumi perhaps the greatest living oud player.  He’s from Morocco and plays in the style of the legendary Munir Bashir.  On percussion is his brother, Said and Lahoucine Baquir.

22 Souha Abdel Amir – Kolli Ala Al Makshouf (Be honest with me) (Sublime Frequencies)

Album: Choubi Choubi! Folk & Pop Songs from Iraq vol 2

Sublime Frequencies have just put out a bunch of new albums, and we’ll be dipping into these over the next few months.  “Choubi Choubi! Folk & Pop Songs from Iraq Vol 2” collects songs recorded between 1980s and early 2000s in Saddam Hussain era Iraq. 

23 Oman, Doeleh & KOE Sabri – Tjikadjangan (Dust-to-Digital)

Album: Longing for the Past: The 78 rpm Era in Southeast Asia

Like Sublime Frequencies, Dust-to-digital is a collection label, but it specializes in vintage stuff often on 78 rpm and the packaging is ultra lavish (Sublime Frequencies is decidedly b-grade although their info and write ups are great).  Oman, Doelah and KOE Sabri are from Indonesia.

24 Burma Orchestra Saing Waing – I want you (Buda Musique)

Album: From Another World: A Tribute to Bob Dylan

The Burma Orchestra Saing Waing putting Dylan’s “I want you” through the wringer – from a collection of cruel and unusual versions of Bob Dylan classics.

25 Hong Thong Daw U-Don – Isan (Sublime Frequencies)

Album: Siamese Soul: Thai Pop Spectacular Vol. 2

From another Sublime Frequencies collection, this time from a few years back. 

26 The Maniapoto Voices – Patare Tainui (Zodiac Recordings)
Album: Songs of the Maori

The Andrew Sisters born in a Maori village? Well you don’t have to imagine that.  Kay, Kelly, Laura and Hinerangi Hikuroa were them.  They called themselves the “The Maniapoto Voices” and recording was made in 1966.

27 Kiyoko Itoh - ??     (Showboat)
Album: 23 Hour Woman, Love In

Kiyoko Itoh from Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan did a brief stint has one of The New Christy Mistels when the American folk group toured Japan before heading back to the US with them – and then reinvented herself a some kind of orchestral torch songster.  That’s from an album called “23 hour woman, love in” released in 1971. 

28 Nik Bartsch – Module 4 (Tonus)

Album: Hishiriyo

Swiss pianist Nik Bartsch with one of his John Cage inspired pieces from this 2006 album.

5 February 2014, World Cafe

1 Mulatu Astatke – Azmari (Jazz Village)
Album: Sketches of Ethiopia

 
 
 
 

In the 1960s when he was studying in the UK and US, composer and vibes player, Malatu Astatke came up with the amalgam of “5 tone” Ethiopian folk against Western “12-tone music” – as he calls it -  which got called Ethio-jazz.  He’s just released a new album with an expanded version of his British band, Step Ahead, called “Sketches of Ethiopia” – the allusions in the title to the Gil Evans and Miles Davis classic are deliberate.  “Azmari” refers to a kind of Ethiopian bards or griots – and you can almost hear their declamatory style of singing in there despite the lack of vocals.

2 TP Orchestre Poly-Rythmo & Honore Avolonto – Setche weda (International Disque (MA 001))

Single

We’re coming up for Mardi Gras in March, the second line parades will get going in New Orleans in February, so I thought we should focus a bit more than usual on the music of New Orleans this month. 

One of the many elements of New Orleans music, and that certainly isn’t one thing, is music of West Africa, especially music from Benin and Yoruba areas in Nigeria, as percolated through the Caribbean, especially Haiti.  Let’s start in Benin with one of the favourites of this show – the totally wonderful or Tout Pouissant Orchestre Poly-Rythmo.  An obscure single.

3 Lord Nelson – Shango (World Music Network)
Album: The Rough Guide to Voodoo

The syncretic Haitian religion, Vodou, has also had some influence especially at the level of lyrics – and there all kinds references to Vodou mythology in New Orleans music.  Calypso has never been at a loss for words, and one of the greatest songs about Vodou is by Lord Nelson and focuses on the Shango cults of Trinidad and Tobago.  It came out in 1978.

4 Dr John – My Indian Red (Warner Bros)

Album: Goin’ back to New Orleans

Dr John perhaps made the obvious overtures to Vodou, in fact he named himself after a prominent Vodou medicine man in the Louisiana area.  But he has also paid heavy homage to the Mardi Gras Indians, an essential part of the Mardi Gras tradition.  A few years ago, I played his version of the traditional New Orleans song, “My Indian Red”, that came was recorded as part of the HBO series “Treme”, which sadly has come to an end after season 4.  It was based on a swing arrangement that Danny Barker put together in 1947.  Here’s another version based on the same arrangement that Dr John brought out on his 1992 album, “Goin’ back to New Orleans”. 

5 Allen Toussaint – Lipstick traces (Rounder Records) (Universal)

Album: Songbook

Allen Toussaint is another great of New Orleans music.  Amongst his many musical abilities is moving seamlessly from New Orleans stride and boogie to sophisticated, elegiac chords.  This take of his song, “Lipstick Traces” in from a set recorded at Joe’s Pub in 2009, which Rounder Records brought out in 2013.

6 Professor Longhair – Big Chief Part 2 (Soul Jazz)
Album: New Orleans Funk vol.3 – The Original Sound of Funk

Professor Longhair was another incredible, much loved pianist and composer from NOLA.  Dr John definitely learned a few tricks from him, and aided him in many sessions. “Go to the Mardi Gras” is perhaps Longhair’s most well known tune, but I’ve played that already some time back.  “Big Chief Part 2” is some kind of b-side or outtake of “Big Chief”, another fairly well known song by him.

7 Chris Kenner – I like it like that (Metro Select)

Album: New Orleans: Gris Gris - Voodoo Grooves from the Crescent City

In the 50s and 60s New Orleans became a nexus for rock and roll and soul, and some of the best ever sides came from there.  This classic track was cut in 1961 with Allen Toussant, the pianist and arranger. 

8 Tami Lynn – Mojo Hana (Metro Select)

Album: New Orleans: Gris Gris - Voodoo Grooves from the Crescent City

In 1971 New Orleans soul singer Tami Lynn from Gert Town, NO, had some kind of hit with this song written by Clarence Paul and Andre Williams in the early 60s.

9 Mahalia Jackson – Didn’t It Rain (Legacy)

Album: The Best of Mahalia Jackson

Mahalia Jackson was probably the most celebrated gospel singer ever.  She was born and raised in New Orleans. “Didn’t it rain” is an old gospel song dating back to at least the 19^th century that appeared as sheet music in 1920s.  This version was recorded in New York, August 11th, 1958.

10 Nathan Abshire & The Balfa Brother – Nathan’s Lafayette Two Step (Ace Records)

Nathan Abshire Master of the Cajun accordion: the classic Swallow Recordings

Although not strictly a part of Mardi Gras, there is space to consider Cajun music as part of the canon of New Orleans music – as pointed out in the series “Treme”. In fact there are zydeco/Cajun festivities held at the time of Mardi Gras.  Accordion player Nathan Abshire is one of the greats of Cajun music.  This track was recorded in the 1960s for Swallow Recordings.

11 Steve Earle & The Dukes (& Duchesses) – After Mardi Gras (New West)

Album: The Low Highway

Ending off our special on Mardi Gras: “After Mardi Gras” is written for the TV series “Treme” by Steve and Lucia Micarelli the violinist-actress from series.  Earle, himself, also appears in the series.

12 Shovel & Rope – The Fall of Charleston (ATO Records)

Album: Various Artists - Divided & United: The Songs of the Civil War

In 2013, Randell Poster, a so-called “music supervisor”, who worked on Broadwalk Empire, put together a wonderful collection of American Civil War songs specially recorded by a bunch of Americana luminaries.  Here’s something somewhat atypical of the project - a ramshackle version of the “The Fall of Charleston”, which is about evacuation of Confederate troops from Charleston and entering of Federal troops in 1865.

13 Lucy Ward – Marching through the green grass (Navigator)

Album: Single Flame

Lucy Ward released her second album in 2013.  This is her version of the traditional song.

14 The Full English – Arthur O’Bradley (Topic)

Album: The Full English

The English Folk Dance and Song Society has recently put together a digital archive of source materials called the Full English, which you should check out: http://www.vwml.org/search/search-full-english.

 

The Society commissioned Fay Hield, who we’ve heard from a number of times here, to create new arrangements for a number of songs on the archive and The Full English band and album was born.  The line-up is terrific – besides Hield, there’s Nancy Kerr, Martin Simpson, Seth Lakeman and Sam Sweeney. 

15 Georgia Ruth – Etrai (Gwymon)

Album: Week of Pines          

Welsh harpist, keyboardist, singer-songwriter Georgia Ruth Williams, or Georgia Ruth, as she’s now calling herself, released a fine album in 2013. 

16 Alasdair Roberts & Robin Robertson – Farewell to the Fowler (Stone Tape Recordings)

Album: Hirta Songs

The Hebridean archipelago of St Kilda was abandoned in 1930s and since then has become home to a number of bird colonies.  Alasdair Roberts’ latest project is a collaboration with poet Robin Robertson about the St Kilda.

17 The Waterboys – Fisherman’s Blues (2^nd Version) (EMI)

Album: Fisherman’s Box: The Complete Fisherman’s Blues Sessions 1986-1988

Before coming up with their fantastic album of 1988, “Fisherman’s Blues”, the Waterboys spent three years cultivating the new sound for the album and recorded a mass of stuff in the process, including several versions of the title track “Fishermans’s Blues”.  All that stuff has just been put on the 7CD collection called “Fisherman’s Box”.

18 Rant – Tha M’fhearann Saidhbhir (Own label)

Album: Rant

Rant are a fiddling supergroup of sorts – four of Scotland’s finest fiddlers, two from the Shetland Islands and two from the Highlands.  They are Bethany Reid, Jenna Reid, Sarah-Jane Summers and Lauren MacColl. 

19 Karim Baggili – Toummai (with Le Trio Joubran) (Homerecords)
Album: Kali City

Born in Belgium of Jordanian and Yugoslavian extraction, Karim Baggili normally plays classical guitar but for his 2013 outing, “Kali City”, he’s taken up the oud and the results are fantastic.  Here’s backed by what he calls his Arabic Band, the track was Toummai. 

Here a wonderful youtube of two tunes - Lea and Kash – watch to the end, you will not be disappointed.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dkm2qPGfhbA

20 Anoushka Shankar – River Pulse   -- written by Nitin Sawhney (Deutsche Grammaphon)
Album: Traces of you

Anoushka Shankar came up with a homage to her father in 2013 – remember, he died just over a year ago in his 90s.  This is a composition by Nitin Sawhney, who also produced the album.
 

21 Maziar – Bot (Pharaway Sounds)

Album: Goush Bedey: Funk, Psychedelia and Pop from the Iranian Pre-revolutionary Iran

Over the last few years I’ve played a bunch of pop music from pre-revolutionary Iran.  Pharaway Sounds have a new collection of that sort of thing. 

22 Jon Balke, Amina Alaoui, Jon Hassell, Kheir Eddine M’Kachiche, Barokksolistene – Ya Safwati (ECM)
Album: Siwan

In 2009 Norwegian keyboardist and composer, Jon Balke was commissed by the Oslo Club Cosmopolite to come with something reflecting a harmonious meeting of different cultures.  He took the Al-Andalus (or medieval Andalusia) as his basis and worked with a baroque ensemble, and musicians from Algeria, Iran, Morocco and Norway as well as trumpeter, Jon Hassel, to come with “Siwan” – which in the Latin-Arab hybrid language of Aljamiado, means “balance”. 

 

23 Augustus Pablo & The Upsetters – Pride (Pressure Sounds)

Album: Lee Perry and his Upsetters present Roaring Lion: 16 Untamed Black Ark Masters & Dubplates)

The great British reggae re-issue label, Pressure Sounds, have uncovered yet more unreleased material by Lee Perry from the Black Ark period in the mid to late 70s.  This is something with melodica player Augustus Pablo at the fore, a great producer in this own right. 

24 Carlton and the Shoes – Love Is All (Studio One)

Album: Love me forever

From the same period as those Black Ark recordings, Carlton and the Shoes with “Love is all” from their 1968 album “Love me forever” recorded at Studio One.

25 Debademba – Djiki (World Village)

Album: Souleymane

Debademba is a Paris-based paring of guitarist and percussionist Abdoulaye Traore from Burkino Faso and Malian singer, Mohamed Diaby. They have a new album out.  “Djiki” features the flautist, Naissam Jalal.

26 Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni Ba – Poye 2 (Out Here)

Album: Jama Ko

Buried in the one of the great albums from 2013 is kind of a blues with very obvious links to delta blues – basically a celebration of west African blues with Taj Mahal guesting.

27 Van-Anh Vo – Green River Delta (Innova Recordings)

Album: Three-Mountain Pass

Van-Anh Vanessa Vo is an emerging composer and player from Vietman, who trained for decades in Hanoi and is now based in San Francisco.  This is a collaboration with the Kronos Quartet on which she plays the dan Tranh, which a 16 string zither resembling the koto.

28 Laraaji – I Am Sky (All Saints Records)

Album: Celestial Music 1978 – 2011 (Cosmic Tape Experiments)

Autoharp player Laraaji Nadabrahmananda is often associated with the new age, but that probably is to do him a disservice.  He’s a wonderfully inventive player who’s taken the instrument into new dimensions, especially with his tape experiments.  All Saints Record have collected a bunch of his stuff of his more obscure stuff from between 1978 and 2011 on “Celestial Music 1978 – 2011 (Cosmic Tape Experiments)”.

29 Andrew Bird – Hover I (Grimsey)

Album: I want to see Pulaski at night

Andrew Bird off his new EP with one of his own tunes. 

1 January 2014, World Cafe

1 Frigg – Polkka V (Displeasement Polka) (Sibelius Academy Folk Music Recordings)
Album: Polka V

2 JPP – Speedy Slam (RockAdillo)

Album: String Tease

Two short, sharp, fast and furious mass fiddle tunes from Finland.  Frigg which is actually at Finnish/Norwegian band) Polkka V came out in 2013.  JPP basically invented the Finnish fiddling tradition and Speedy Slam is from 15 years earlier  At core of both Frigg or JPP is the same family, the Jarvela – one or two generations apart.

3 Renaud Garcia-Fons – Camino de Felicidad (Enja)

Album: Beyond the Double Bass

Garcia-Fons is a French bassist of Catalonian decent. He’s known for musical explorations across Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Flamenco as well as classical and jazz traditions.  His daughter, Solea Garcia, does some wonderful Flamenco tinged singing on “Camino de Felicidad”.   

4 Esma Redzepova – Abre Babi Sokerdzan (Vlax Records)

Album: Stand Up, People

One of greats of Yugoslavian music in the 70s from one of the best collections of 2013 – “Stand Up, People” – basically Roma music from Tito’s socialist state between 1964 and 1980.  If nothing else, there seems to be some consensus that Tito was actually pretty good at tolerating and supporting the Roma populace.

5 Koby Isrealite – Crayfish Hora (Suite Part 4)

Album: Blues from Elsewhere

Koby Isrealite is an Isreali-born South London multi-instrumentalist – and I mean that – he plays just about everything string, wind, key and skin based – including his favourite, the accordion.  And he’s a played in a bunch of settings too – classical, jazz and speed metal.   His new album, called appropriately “Blues from Elsewhere” is some kind of Balkan, middle-eastern, south Asian rhythm and blues concoction. 

6 Monsieur Doumani – Cypriot Sousta (Monsieur Doumani)

Album: Grippy Grappa

The Cypriot band Monsieur Doumani put out one of the most original albums of 2013 – free wheeling arrangements of traditional songs for the bouzouki-like tzouras often strummed with some fury, and trombone and flute. 

7 Cigdem Aslan – Bir allah (One God) (Asphalt Tango)
Album: Mortissa

Turkish-born, and now London based singer Cigdem Aslan put out a cold-stone instant classic in 2013 – her take on rembetika across the Turkish-Greek divide, sung in both language, backed by some musicians with deep knowledge and subtle ability.

8 Omar Souleyman – Mawal Jamar (Ribbon)

Album: Wenu Wenu

Omar Souleyman is no stranger to this show, thanks to the label Sublime Frequencies.  They took him from basically only playing at weddings around Syria - and he’s been incredibly successful at that, his cassette releases recording those wedding over the last 20 years are numerous and very popular – to playing around the world.  In 2013 he released his first studio album, with his long-time keyboardist Rizan Sa’id at his right hand. 

9 Debruit & Alsarah – Alhalim (Soundway)

Album: Aljawal

Another fascinating album from 2013 is a teaming of French musician and producer, Debruit and Sudan-born and now Brooklyn-based singer Alsareh. They’ve been experimenting and refining their sound over the last two years. 

10 Padraig Rynne, Donal Lunny & Sylvain Barou – Lesnoto Horo (Rib Records)

Album: Triad

For some reason I haven’t seen any hype about an album that three great Irish musicians put out in 2013.  It’s Triad, by Donal Lunny who should need no introduction, Padraig Rynne, a magnificent concertina player, and Sylvain Barou whose been punting Breton music in Ireland for some time now.   

11 Linda Thompson – Paddy’s Lamentation (Topic Records)
Album: Won’t be long now

The classic Irish song, “Paddy’s Lamentation”, which dates to the time of the American civil war, from Linda Thompson fabulous new album.   

12 Lisa Knapp – Hunt the Hare Part II (feat. Alasdair Roberts) (Navigator)

Album: Hidden Seam

Speaking of great English singers, Lisa Knapp, part of the new generation of singer and songwriters inspired by the English song tradition put a pretty great sonically adventurous record in 2013 produced by Gerry Diver (who we’ve heard here before and who happens to be her husband).  “Hunt the Hare” is a duet with the fabulous Scottish musician Alasdair Roberts.  More from him in February.

13 The Young Tradition – Wondrous Love (Fledg’ling)
Album: Oberlin 1968

Live recordings of a concert given by an a capella trio of English traditionalists and rule breakers, The Young Tradition, in 1968 at Oberlin College in Ohio, surfaced recently and were put out on the label Fledg’ling in 2013. 

14 Catrin Finch, Seckou Keita – Robert Ap Huw Meets Nialing Sonko (Astar Artes/Mwldan)
Album: Clychau Dibon

Harp collaborations were something of a trend in 2013 and one of the best was between Welsh harpish and Catrin Finch and Senegalese kora player, Seckou Keita who now lives in Nottingham. 

15 Sidi Toure – Ay Takamba – My Takamba (Thrill Jockey)

Album: Alafia

2013 saw a spate of releases from Malian musicians working through the fundamentalist take-over in the north of the country, which for now at least has thankfully been pushed back.  Guitarist and singer Sidi Toure hails from Gao, a city in the northern most part of Mali.  His latest album “Alafia” which means “Peace” is out on the Chicago-based, predominantly post rock label, Thrill Jockey.

16 Bombino – Imuhar (Nonesuch)

Album: Nomad

Bombino, the Tuareg group from Agadez, Niger, put out a fabulous album in 2013, produced by Dan Auerbach in his Nashville studio.  At the centre Omara Moctor who has personal affected by many of the Taureg rebellions in Niger.

17 Lobi Traore – Jama (System Krush)

Album: Bwati Kono (In the Club) Vol 1

One of greats of so-called Mali blues, Lobi Traore.  In Lobi Traore’s case mali blues means a mix of Bambara rhythms and Jimi Hendrix guitar.  Traore died unexpectedly in 2010 and a bunch of live, nightclub recordings are beginning to emerge – they’re actually far fuller sounding and more adventurous than his studio outings.   

18 Ebo Taylor & Uhuru Yenzu – Victory (Mr Bongo)

Album: Conflict Nkru!

In 2012 I was pretty enamored with Ghanian highlife and afro-beat veteran, Ebo Taylor’s release “Appia Kwa Bridge”.  In 2013 the label Mr Bongo reissued something from 1980 – Conflict Nkru! – which is a kind of looser, funkier affair than the usual highlife. 

19 Jupiter & Okwess International – Mwana Yokatoli (Out Here Records/Proper)
Album: Hotel Univers

Jupiter & Okwess International from Kinshasa put out their first international release in 2013 – up there with the best of the year.    

20 Le Grand Kalle – Naweli Boboto (Sterns Music)

Album: His Life, His Music

Joseph Kabasele might not be as well known as Franco but he basically invented Congolese rhumba in the 1956. His recordings have been quite difficult to get up until Sterns released a double-disc retrospective.  Le Grand Kalle is the handle he often went by. 

21 Christine Salem – Maloki (Cobalt)

Album: Salem Tradition

Christine Salem is one the most recent, but one of the most creative purveyors of Maloya music from Reunion.  Maloya is rooted in slave music and Christine Selem takes it into other dimensions by cutting it with rhythms from mainland Africa and singing in a bunch of languages – Reunion creole, Malagasy, Comoran and Swahili. 

22 Dora Juarez Kiczkovsky – A la Una yo Naci (Tzadik)
Album: Cantos Para Una Diaspora

Heading to Mexico where Dora Juarez Kiczkovsky lives.  Juarez traces her roots to Eastern Europe, Spain and Argentina and Israel and tries to link all those cultures to the music of Mexico through her interpretation of traditional Sephardic songs.  “A la una yo naci” is sung in Ladino.

23 Siba – Canoa Furada (Leaking canoe) (Mais Um Discos)

Album: Avante

Siba is Sergio Roberto Veloso de Oliveira and was born in Recife into a family of musicians and poets and one of the founders of the manguebeat movement in the 90s which combined traditional Northeastern Brazilian with western pop music – following on from the Tropicalia movement of the 60s and earlier 70s.  Since then he’s sought to expand his music even further. 

24 The Skatalites – Smiling (Spectrum Audio UK)

Album: Top Deck Presents: Ska Instumentals

2013 saw the release of a bunch of totally fantastic collections of classic ska track from the 60s.  The Top Deck label was one of the first ska labels – it was formed in 1960 by two brothers, Philip and Ivan Yap.  Every track on the two cd collection “Top Deck Presents Ska Instrumentals” is worth hearing. 

25 Don Drummond – Green Island (Soul Jazz)

Album: Studio One Ska Fever! (More Ska Sound from Sir Coxsone’s Downbeat)

Trombonist and composer Don Drummond was one of the greats of the ska scene but his career was cut short in 1965 when he was ruled criminally insane after being convicted of killing his longtime girlfriend.  He died in prison in 1969.  His tune “Green Island” is on another magnificent collection of ska – “Studio One Ska Fever”.

26 Preservation Hall Jazz Band – Halfway Right, Halfway Wrong (Sony Legacy)

Album: That’s It!

One of the main keepers of the flame of parade-based jazz from New Orleans, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, in 2013 released their first album of self-penned songs and tunes – “That’s It”.  Jim James from My Morning Jacket, who’s had a long association with the band, co-produced the album, and there a bunch of luminary co-writers too – including Paul Williams. 

27 Nick Lowe – Silent Night (Proper Records)

Album: Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family

Who would have thought Silent Night could sound so groovy.  Nick Lowe’s version is on his new album, which is actually a Christmas album.   

28 Leyla McCalla – Mesi Bondye (Dixiefrog)

Album: Vari-Colored Songs

Staying in the NOLA neck of the wood, Leyla McCalla, a sometime member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, lives New Orleans now.  Her 2013 album is mainly based on Langston Hughes poems, includes some old Creole songs from the area. 

29 Stein Urheim & Mari Kvien Brunvoll – Sound of his motor (Jazzland Recordings)

Album: Daydream Twin

Stein Urheim and Mari Kvien Brunvoll are from Norway.  I really like their album from 2013 – Daydream Twin. That song was called “Sound of his motor”.

30 Chris Wildman – Eagle-man (self-released)

Album: Solo Flight

Loyal listeners will remember Chris Wildman who presented this show a few years ago.  In 2013 he brought out an album of his own compositions for solo piano called “Solo Flight”.  Contract Chris at chris.musicplay@gmail for more details.