COLONIAL VIGOR
Port outward, starboard homeGHETTO BLASTER “Ghetto Blaster” (1985)
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Thanks to Jane Kramer for the tip about Ghetto Blaster.
Europeans, a collection of Kramer’s old New Yorker pieces, includes a fine essay about these Lagos scenesters who went to Paris and rode the mid-80s African music craze for a while but never quite made it to the Youssou N’Dour big time.
There is also a 12″ on Island I’d quite like to get my hands on…
From the Archives [sic]: DON CHERRY “Until the Rain Comes” (1990)
OSCAR NEVES “N’zambi” (197?)
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Music from Lusophone Africa is pretty much unknown to me; other than a few stray tracks I’ve heard here and there I’m wholly ignorant.
Good thing for me that San Pasquale Entertainment has shared this criminally OOP comp of Angolan jams. It’s full of modest charmers like Oscar Neves’ “N’zambi”, which, between the table top percussion and the whistling in the fade-out, I’m totally digging.
ERIC BURDON & WAR “The Vision of Rassan: Dedication/Roll on Kirk (1970)
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I really like War, but I never listened to Eric Burdon Declares “War”, because of the over-familiarity of a certain chestnut on the record.
As usual, I didn’t know what I was missing.
GUCCI MANE “Lemonade” (2009)
BOBBY WOMACK “Facts of Life/He’ll Be There When the Sun Goes Down” (1973)
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Just so you know, when you’re a young lady hanging out backstage at a Bobby Womack show, and he invites you to his hotel room for a drink, and you suggest he’s got ulterior motives, that makes him feel terrible.
I mean, jeez, if he wanted to run game on you, you’d know it.
ATLANTIC BRIDGE “Dear Prudence” (1970)
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I normally steer clear of jazzrock, but this jam is right on, a really effective cover
From the Archives [sic]: TABU LEY ROCHEREAU “Haffi Deo” (1985)
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One of my absolute favorite African jams ever, a real killer, posted at the old place back in June of ‘08.
Shamelessly leeched (without attribution!) from the wizards at Dream Chimney, so let me now correct that discourtesy.
UPDATE: Uh, something happened between this morning and this evening, because when you go to Dream Chimney’s Track of the Day it says
Track of the Day was a site for promoting music (2000-2009)
Hopefully this is not for good. Those guys turned me on to a ton of great music…
JONAH MOYO & DEVERA NGWENA “Too Cheap” (1983)
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Every time I think I’ve found the Zimbabwean track with the most insane guitar playing, along comes something else to prove me wrong. Viz, “Too Cheap”, which is all sweet vocals and super fast, crystal clear guitar. Not to be missed.
CAPTAIN BEEFHEART & THE MAGIC BAND “Lazy Music” (1974)
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Everybody hates Unconditionally Guaranteed– even Don Van Vliet disowned it– and in truth it’s not very exciting or ambitious or good, but I can’t get tired of this half-assed, sub-Allmans ’70s period piece at all.
