Karel Bogard & Co. - Blues From Over The Border

KAREL BOGARD & CO.Blues From Over The Border1971
224+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Barclay 90017

Since the last few posts featuring Mainstream MRL recordings were predominately of the blues persuasion, there's one more album of the genre to squeeze in before Soundological gets back in the swing of the jazz/funk/soul thing. To that end, this here write-up is a heapin' helpin' of what could best be described as a Belgian speculation sandwich. "WTF is that," you ask dear reader? Well, it's a tasty filet of trusted info on a musician from Belgium (block quotes segment below) nestled between two thick slices of whole-wheat hypothesizin' (pretty much the rest).

Bogard is sometimes referred to as Karel Bogaert, and the first tenuous thread connected to the latter name is that someone using that moniker authored a book called Blues Lexicon: Blues, Cajun, Boogie Woogie, Gospel that was published in 1971 by Antwerp publishing house Standaard Uitgeverij. The book remains a popular overview to this day of exactly the strains of music Bogard covers so well on the album and is even considered as canon by some European academics due to the thorough and comprehensive biographical data of hundreds of American folk musicians included therein. Currently it's cited as one of the main references on the Dutch Wikipedia entry for Blues.

The following info is from Belgian Pop & Rock Archives, translated from Dutch by Google and edited by yours truly:

In the late sixties Karel Bogard was proficient in various instruments, playing in Leuven (he sang, played guitar, piano, and even a hundred others) in various blues, skiffle and jugbands, like Free Sound Community en Crowin Rooster.

After graduation he went to Paris to study Chinese but while in the French capital, he kept himself busy in musical circles. Through contacts with Alexis Corner (Bogard was playing in his band at the time) and Memphis Slim he struck a deal with the French label Barclay. The LP "Blues from over the Border" appeared in France in 1971, including Roland van Campenhout and other guests.

In the mid-seventies in Ghent he started his own record label: Dwarf Records. Originally created solely to issue the Kandahar LP, Bogard he soon found a number of kindred souls so in a short time the label also included Banzaï, Tjens Couter and TC Matic from Arno.

"In the years '70-'75 Ghent was a hive of activity," he said in the book "Wit-lof from Belgium," and jazz musician Pol Van Gijseghem was involved in various projects. There emerged an interaction with many groups: Bunker, Quark, Red Mole .. etc.. Rock and jazz had found each other." Karel Bogard thus became one of the main figures of jazz-rock in Belgium (Hugo Spencer, 5th Ball Gang, Marc Moulin, Placebo, Sam Suffy). Bogard's main project in these years was Kandahar, with guitarist Jef De Visscher and Pol Van Gijseghem, who released two LP's in the blues/jazz/rock idiom.

Simultaneously, he also recorded solo (the LP "From Dusk until Dawn" in 1975) or combined forces with other companions as The Karel Bogard Blues Band in 1976 with "Still Hooked On The Blues" and as Karel Bogard's Highway Band in 1977 with "Step," featuring the single "Sweet Lady Society".

Dwarf went bankrupt, however, and was swallowed by E.M.I./ I.B.C. (with whom they already had a distribution deal). This marked the end of Kandahar and a bitter Bogard quit music, combining his studies in engineering and oriental languages to land a job with a dredging company in Singapore.

That's pretty much it for the meat and, from thereon, it's back to unfounded flights of fancy based on scant photographic evidence of a recent pic that belies a resemblance to the young Karel on the cover of this album. Unfortunately, the pic was in a corporate quarterly report and the PDF of said report has been misplaced or erased in the past few weeks. If it pops up again, the post will be updated with the side-by-side comparison of photos. Regardless, let us return to the specumilatin'...

When in Singapore, he likely worked for one of the two Belgian dredging companies doing business there, Dredging International or Baggerwerken Decloedt, which have since merged and now operate under the name Dredging, Environmental & Marine Engineering. In 1997 he was the President of the Belgian & Luxembourg Association of Singapore , a social club for expats and he seems to have returned to Europe at the turn of the century, serving on the board of directors from 2001-2007 for Dutch environmental product company PMV. Other than that, there is no reference to any further musical projects with the participation of Mr. Bagard/Bogaert.

Which is a shame really, since his obvious passion and talent for music seem to have borne the brunt of his distaste at "the biz" and an older, wiser, worldly Karel would likely bring the depth of his experience to his lyrics. Roughly in his 60s, these days he would probably more clearly exude the blues feeling beyond the note-perfect execution of its stylistic idioms. Although it was obvious Karel felt the blues on this recording, it doesn't necessary follow that the listener will feel his blues.

For a student of the African-American roots music techniques this document may be almost as valuable as original field recordings from the early part of the century (which Bogard had obviously pored over himself). For purists who demand their blues artists be directly from the delta (or at the very least Chicago), this will be anathema. For casual listeners who don't care much about the "who" or "when" or "what" when it comes to their blues, they'll likely enjoy the "how" displayed here by Bogard and his companions, mostly because Karel and companions so obviously enjoyed themselves while recording.

Blues From Across the Border seems to have steadily increased in price until it maxed out in value in 2007 - Popsike gives eBay auction results of 45€ in 2003, 80€ in 2006 with prices ranging from 100€ to 200€ in 2007 on eBay and at various online record stores. Since then, it seems to have dropped with most pricing reverting back the 40€ to 80€ range. This rip is from the Canadian pressing of the LP, which in many places is mentioned as the only run Barclay printed. It was part of that big bulk purchase I made last summer so you could say I scored it for a buck which is definitely a bargain for this slice of folk-blues, even without considering the value to collectors.


Karel Bogard - Lead Vocal, Acoustic Guitar, Kazoo, Mandolin, Piano
Bottleneck Chris - Acoustic Guitar, National Slide Guitar, Vocals
Roland Van Campenhout - Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Flute, Harmonica
Roger Mason - Accordion, Spoons, Triangle, Vocals
Derroll Adams - Banjo


1 Brownsferry Blues
2 Done Lived With The Blues
3 Morning Sun
4 Don't You Leave Me Alone
5 I.C. Blues
6 Crumble's Farm
7 Rollin' Blues
8 Me And The Devil
9 Bukka White Is Not Dead
10 Danny's Tune
11 See See Rider
12 Tennessee Rag
13 Crowley Two-step

Make a run for the border with Soundological HERE (updated 2013-04-04).

Solo Album Discography

1971 Blues from over the Border
[Barclay 90017] at Soundological

1975 From Dusk Until Dawn
[Dwarf 4C062-96844]

1976 Still Hooked On The Blues
[Milo}

1977 Step
[EMI/Dwarf 4B062-98105]

With Kandahar

1974 Long Live The Sliced Ham
[Sounds Superb 4M048-97401 / Dwarf LP1]

at Prog Not Frog 

1975 In The Court Of Catherina Squeezer
[Dwarf 4C062-96846]

at Prog Not Frog

VA - Orishas Across The Ocean

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Orishas Across The Ocean
320 CBR mp3
CD rip & scans from Ryko RCD 10405

As winter progresses, long after its foliage has been shed, the tree loses most of the moisture in its trunk and must rely more than ever on the sap stored in its roots. In this spirit, Soundological would like to share with you a healthy helping of the musical equivalent of sap from said roots and the wellspring from which the branches of most musical traditions featured on this blog -- Blues, Jazz, Soul, Gospel, R&B, Funk, Rock & Roll, Hip Hop, etc. -- have extended themselves.

Long OOP, this CD fetches a high price (a new copy can go for upwards of $70) and is valuable not only for its pristine presentation of remastered material from the Library of Congress (that's why these recordings fall under the public domain) but for the reverent and revelatory booklet that provides enlightening reading regardless of the degree of familiarity one may have with the religious and cultural diaspora from Mother Africa. One might say this collection is essential for both its text and context, so if you were not fortunate enough to find it a decade ago it's highly recommended you take advantage now.


AMG Review
by John Vallier

The 24 tracks featured on this compilation are aural snapshots of Haitian Vodoun, Cuban Santeria, Trinidadian Shango, and Brazilian Candomble religious ceremonies. They were originally recorded between the late '30s and the mid-'50s by such notable ethnologists as Laura Boulton, Melville Herskovits, and Lydia Cabrera. Culturally speaking, these recordings highlight African diasporic religions that originated with the Yoruba and Dahomean peoples and were brought to the New World with enslaved Africans. Retrieved from deep storage at the Library of Congress and digitally remastered by a team of audio experts, The Yoruba/Dahomean Collection: Orishas Across the Ocean is a powerful audio record that documents both the proud cultural legacy and sophisticated musical practices associated with Afro-Caribbean and Afro-Brazilian cultures.

Return to the roots for nourishment with Soundological HERE. (updated 2012-07-27)

O.K. Jazz/Orchestres Bantou & Cercul - Pont Sur Le Congo

OK Jazz - Si Tu Bois Beaucoup


Orchestre Cercul - Honole


VARIOUS ARTISTS
Pont Sur Le Congo
1965

256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Pathé STX 183


Found this LP in a dollar bin about a decade ago and never gave it too much thought other than playing it a few times here and there on a sunny afternoon. Once in a while I'd cart it out to a gig if I was going to be playing a set of tropical beats but other than that it's pretty much escaped the ravages of entropy compared to a lot of my vinyl. While researching the recent Lumumba post I was surprised the learn that this is actually a very highly prized album among collectors with a copy in G to VG condition fetching anywhere from $50 up. Mainly it's due to the fact it includes hits by a nascent O.K. Jazz (from before the name change to T.P.O.K.) and it features a very early piece by Franklin Boukaka who would later help further Manu Dibango's career before his own life was cut short when he was executed by the authorities in '72 for his "subversive" music.

Wordsound Warrior and Musical Martyr
Franklin Boukaka ca. 1970

There are other reasons why this is a unique record, most of them revolving around the immense political upheaval and the development of Congolese popular music in the 60s. The title refers to the unique geographical situation of the Democratic Republic of Congo capital Kinshasa and the Republic of Congo capital Brazzaville as well as the metaphorical linguistic, racial and cultural bridge between them, the former city represented by O.K. Jazz and the latter by Orchestres Bantou and Orchestre Cercul. For an excellent accounting of this dynamic and turbulent period it's highly recommend you check out Gary Stewart's book Rumba on the River: A History of the Popular Music of the Two Congos published in 2000 (you can read it at Google books here). He covers the musical scene of this time and place in considerable depth and within an historical context reaching back to colonial times.

No bridge so far

One of the keys to the popularity of O.K. Jazz was their synthesis of the Cuban rhumba with traditional Congolese rhythms and melodies which is definitely the name of the game on side one. Side two sees a bit more variety in tempo and rhythm although it's still anchored in Cuban idioms and there's a bit more action from the horn section. All in all a very enjoyable album and an important slice of African musical history.


O.K. Jazz - Tracks 1-6
Orchestre Bantou - Tracks 7,8,11,12
Orchestre Cercul - Tracks 9,10


1 Misele
2 On A Osé Le Dire
3 Polo
4 Bolingo Ya Bougie
5 Si Tu Bois Beaucoup
6 Le Temps Passé
7 Pa' Vacillar
8 Batous Pachanga
9 Mobali Ya Craneur
10 Honole
11 Endiable Merengue
12 Tout Brazza


Take it to the bridge with Soundological HERE or HERE.

Various - Voodoo Ceremony In Haiti

Boomp3.com

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Voodoo Ceremony In Haiti
1974

48.6 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Olympic OL-6113


OK, so actual zombification rites aren't included in these field recordings but I figure the shambling results of certain vodoun practices are the closest we've come to academic verification (and real-life examples) of one of the mainstays of the movie monster pantheon. Close enough for a music blog trying to work a Hallowe'en theme, anyway!

These particular rites were recorded in Haiti and released by Olympic Records Corporation. Not to be confused wih Joe Fletcher's Olympic Records from the 20s, the latter-day Olympic was a small independent label specialised in licensing public domain and ethnomusicological material. You've probably never heard of the company or its owner, Joseph Abend, for the same reason their history is most notable: losing a copyright suit brought by the estate of Scott Joplin to the tune of $200K in 1978. There's little other info available on Abend and ORC but around 1977 their catalogue dried up so I figure it's a safe bet to assume this mis-step (and what sounds like mediocre legal representation) bankrupted the label.

The spooky sounds and disembodied voices were captured by Maurice Bitter, who made many ethnomusicological field recordings for multiple record labels. He's also a prolific author in the subject of historical anthropology, often writing about the music and dance traditions of the societies he studies and he provides some good liner notes here as well.


1 Voodoo Drums
2 Nibo Rhythms (1:19)
3 Prayer To Shango
4 Petro Rhythms
5 Nago Rhythms
6 Invocation To Papa Legba
7 Dahomey Rhythms "The Paul'L" / Maize Rhythm / Diouba Rhythm "Cousin Zaca"


Let Soundological do the voodoo for you HERE or HERE.

Jobelou - Voodoo Trance Music: Ritual Drums of Haiti

Boomp3.com

JOBELOU
Voodoo Trance Music: Ritual Drums of Haiti
1974

87.2 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Lyrichord LLST 7279


A final Hallowe'en treat and one that will also see you safely through Dia de los Muertos, especially the track previewed above. This time the focus is more on the rhythms of the rituals rather than replicating them in their entirety and is basically a lesson in voodoo beats by a master drummer named Jobelou.


1 Yanvalou
2 Djuba
3 Banda
4 Petro
5 Bumba
6 Nago
7 Congo
8 Kita
9 Mahi Lété - Dahomey fla vodou
10 Ibo
11 Mazone - Crabigné - Guédé
12 Zepaule

Recorded live in Port-au-Prince, Haiti by Richard Hill & Morton Marks


Highly informative liner notes break it all down so without further ado, Soundological's pleased to provide voodoo party beats to you HERE or HERE!

Fuad Hassan Ensemble - Music of the Bedouin Bandits

Boomp3.com
Boomp3.com

FUAD HASSAN ENSEMBLE
Music of the Bedouin Bandit
1959

73.3 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from RCA Victor LSP-1991


Here's another slice of RCA exotica with a lot of similarities to the Guy Warren album posted here on Soundological a couple months ago. For instance, both have excruciating exploitative covers with thinly disguised racist overtones (although at least the Guy Warren album had excellent liner notes) with no connection whatsoever to the artists, who were actually authentic masters of their particular ethnic folk genres which revolved around drums, rhythm and dance.

Since I don't read Arabic, there was very little info I could pick up on Fuad Hassan, who's much better known as Ahmed Fouad Hassan. He was Egyptian and, from what I can glean, was basically the Count Basie of North African belly dance, renowned as a composer and bandleader in the lucrative and fast-paced world of the nightclub scene in Cairo.

Most of the info I could find on him was derived from a handful of articles on his ex-wife, Nagua Fouad, who almost sounds like the Josephine Baker of modern belly dance. Now this is where there is some unintended accuracy in the joke liner notes. You see, he actually was a kind of bandit in a way. Some people would call Mr. Hassan a cradle-robber since just a few scant years after this album was released, he married Nagua while she was still a teenager and he was 17 years her senior. It seems to have been some kind of mutually-satisfactory Svengali situation that lasted for six years and during that period she was catapulted into Middle Eastern stardom.

Sensationalism aside, this is actually a superb recording by one of Cairo's best bands and it easily showcases Hassan's considerable skills at both composition and arrangement with its assortment of originals as well as adaptations of familiar tunes and even an early stab at East-West fusion with "Jazz Araby." The rhythms and percussion are forefront throughout as befitting a dance record and if you're a fan of desert sounds you will not be disappointed.


1 Whirling Sands
2 Bolero Ala Drums
3 Dubki
4 Egyptian Caravan
5 Caravina
6 Eb Si Olanda
7 Dance of the Djiens
8 Cocktails
9 Hali Men
10 Chifti No. 2
11 Jazz Araby
12 Kashlama


Belly up to the bar with the Bedouin Bandit and Soundological HERE. (updated 2012-07-27)

---------------------------------------------------------

Hungry for more? You can also hear Hassan and his group on these compilations:

Belly Dance - Music for An Oriental Dance (5 tracks) at Passionate-Music
The Best Belly Dance Album In The World (3 tracks) at We Love Music
The Rough Guide To Belly Dance (1 track) at NayNayNom

If that's more belly dance beats than you were bargaining for, Soundological plundered those posts to provide our readers with an extra disc's worth of the Bedouin Bandit's beats that you can find HERE. (updated 2012-07-27)

Gato Barbieri - Chapter One: Latin America

GATO BARBIERI
Chapter One: Latin America
1973
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Impulse! AS-9248

****KILLED BY THE IFPI ON 9/9/09****

I've been pretty tied up the last day or so with the launch of the shad shack and finally moving this weekend so we're back to short & sweet territory for a few more days.

That's why we're throwing up some Gato Barbieri. If you're into jazzfunk, funkjazz, jazz, or just funk, you must have see his LPs or CDs out there (often in the discount bin) so you know what you're in for...mostly. This one is a collection of songs done in Buenos Aires with some of Argentina's best musicians as Barbieri began a serious ethnomusicological journey through Central and South America (hence the title). Calling it "jazz" or even "latin" is a bit of a stretch, although technically they could both be considered correct.

Although it's clearly Barbieri playing in his histrionic style, there's something different in the way he expresses his vocabulary here. It's as if complete abandon and total surrender to the muse brought a different type of restraint rarely heard in his performance. The growls and squeals are still there but what's missing is any forcing of his point in an obvious fashion. Gone is much of the (pardon the pun) overblown emoting or technical theatrics he tends to lean on like a helper monkey and there's scant sign either of the schmaltzy romanticism that crept into his free jazz work of the late 60s, and in which he would wallow during his so-smooth-it's-runny phase of later years.

No, this is El Gato amongst colleaugues and compatriots in a musical context with which he was highly familiar. Having just come home off the wild success of Last Tango In Paris and now about to embark on a quest to find the very musical soul of his continent, it's as if he knows the coming journey will change him in unfathomable ways. He was on the precipice of the abyss and he knew it. This is the sound of him not leaping into it but rather turning around, surveying from whence he came then falling backwards over the edge and letting gravity do the rest. He was very much on fire the next few years and this session is literally incendiary.


AMG Review by Scott Yanow
The four "Chapters" in this series found Gato Barbieri rediscovering his South American roots and displaying his intense tone in melodic settings where his energy would be better focused than it had been on his earlier avant-garde albums. Joined by a large group of Argentinian musicians, Barberi is in top form throughout this heated set, particularly on "Encunetros" and "India." Each of the "Chapters" is recommended although Chapter Three is the only one currently available on CD.


Gato Barbieri - Arranger, Tenor Sax, Vocals
Osvaldo Berlingieri - Piano
Adalberto Cevasco - Bass, Guitar
Domingo Cura - Drums, Bombo
Isoca Fumero - Guitar, Charango
Pocho Lapouble - Drums
Ricardo Lew - Guitar (Electric)
Raul Mercado - Flute, Quena
Amadeo Monges - Harp, Indian Harp
Jorge Padin - Percussion
Quelo Palacios - Guitar (Acoustic)
Antonio Pantoja - Quena, Erkencho, Sikus
Eduardo Zurdo Roizner - Percussion
Dino Saluzzi - Accordion, Bandoneon


1 Encuentros
2 India
3 La China Leoncia Arreo La Correntinada Trajo Entre La Muchachada La Flor De La Juventud
4 Nunca Mas
5 To Be Continued


This has seen a few CD reissues since the 90s but Soundological is under the impression it is currently OOP so we're feeding the kitty HERE and HERE.


****KILLED BY THE IFPI ON 9/9/09****

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Affected URLs:

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Flow - Flow

FLOW
Flow
1970
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from CTI 1003

One of only five LPs released in the CTI 1000 series while Creed Taylor was transitioning from A&M to start his own label (you can read more about it at Doug Payne's site) and one of few rock-oriented albums to be put out by the label. It's also notable for being the project Don Felder left to join The Eagles, for whom he would compose their biggest hit, "Hotel California." Far from the countrified MOR that Henley, Frey, & Co. would spew for the rest of the decade, Flow is a nice slice of jazzy, folky, West Coast style rock with some rootsy touches, including a Leadbelly cover (the only non-original composition of the bunch). It's quite a creeper and grows on you after a few listens so definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of the genre.

John Winter - Piano, Electric Piano, Organ, Soprano & Tenor Sax, Flute, Harmonica
Don Felder - Guitar
Chuck Newcomb - Bass, Vocals
Mike Barnett - Drums
Ed Shaughnessy - Percussion
Angel Allende - Percussion
Johnny Pacheco - Percussion


1 Daddy
2 Here We Are Again
3 Line 'Em
4 Gotta Get Behind Your Trip
5 Chicken Farm
6 No Lack Of Room
7 Summer's Gone
8 Mr. Invisible
9 Arlene


Obviously we're all pretty clear on what happened to Felder afterward.

Ocala's John Winter (not to be confused with the fabulous furry albino brother Johnny) seemed to be the main creative force behind Flow but I could find little on his career afterward. He passed away in his home town recently after an extended illness.

Chuck Newcomb seems to be active back in the ol' stomping grounds as that name pops up as current bass player for the Funky Blues Messiahs in Gainesville, for the Beautiful Bobby Blackmon blues band in Orlando circa 2002 and it sure looks like an aged version of him in this video playing with Bird Dog Bobby & The Solstice Brothers in Florida.

Mike Barnett appears to have developed into a talented multi-instrumentalist and worked extensively with guitar genius Adrian Belew (great short but comprehensive video overview by the man himself at his site) during the King Crimson hiatus from 85 - 95. He continues to play with critical darlings Coffee Sergeants, his psych-pop outfit out of Texas and is active as a producer in folk and blues. Then again, maybe he didn't. You can't really trust AMG and there's squat to connect these two occurrences of the name elsewhere and there are some photos that don't lend themselves to as strong a comparison as Newcomb's.
UPDATE 2013: an anonymous commenter has claims to a bunch of corrections for above info on core band members and is probably more reliable - however no links or proof were provided so we'll keep the above as it stands for now. I can corrobrate Newcomb has retired from The Solstice Bros, though.

The percussionists are another story altogether. "Well-known" is an understatement! Shaughnessy has over 400 credits and was Doc Severinson's drummer on The Tonight Show for 29 years, Allende spent the 70s working with Idris, Sonny Fortune, Alphonse Mouzon, Mongo and others while Fania label founder Johnny Pacheco remains one of the most influential personalities in Latin music.

You can also download the tracks individually at 128k from Felder's own site. Check it out, there are pictures of the band, an interview with Creed Taylor, album lyrics, a bit of history behind Flow and the Florida scene at the end of the 60s and it's the only place on the web with much info on the band. He has requested none of the material there be reproduced and I'll cheerfully oblige but it's only one click away, so head over there if you want to know more about them.
There was a Japanese CD reissue in '99 but it is OOP as well. If you don't want to spend upwards of $100 for the vinyl you can get it from Soundological HERE. (Link updated May 23, 2012)