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)

Olatunji & His Percussion, Brass, Woodwind and Choir - Zungo! Afro-Percussion

Jolly Mensah


OLATUNJI AND HIS PERCUSSION, BRASS, WOODWIND AND CHOIR
Zungo! Afro Percussion
1961

256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Columbia CS-8434


This one's for ish, the scholar/gentleman from Ile Oxumare and blog kingpin presiding over Strata-East Fan Club, Magic Purple Sunshine, Nine Sisters and Crap Jazz Covers. He's one of the main inspirations for my entry into blogdom so, when he was generously sharing anecdotes on Chief Bey in the comments of the Guy Warren post and it came to light he was unfamiliar with the second outing by legendary percussionist Olatunji Babatunde, I immediately felt obliged (rather than "obligated") to post this long OOP piece of afrojazz history.

Originally released by Columbia in 1961, they reissued it only once more in 1973 (as ACS-8434). It looks like most of the tracks have appeared on compilations over the years but a lot of those are budget and fly-by-night labels or else borderline bootlegs. When it comes to the album itself, it's fairly easy to find affordable copies ($15-$20 or less) of both the '61 and '73 printings in good condition online. This particular one's been in my possession for plenty years but I've taken pretty good care of it (i.e., rarely played it out) so it's fairly free of snaps, crackles 'n' pops, except for some unavoidable noise near the end of the last track (i.e., the tune that was played out on those rare occasions it found its way into my bag).

If you need to brush up on the bio of Babatunde then I suggest starting with his wiki page, AllAboutJazz and a more-informative-than-usual piece on Answers.com since they also offer multiple links for further reading. There's also a good post over at the excellent The Basement Rug blog with Drums of Passion and a couple other Olatunji LPs.

Slipcue review:

Although there's some nice, powerful drumming on here, the overall feel of this album may seem a bit top-heavy and monochromatic... It's that "...his percussion, brass, woodwinds, and choir" subheader on the album jacket that'll tip you off. Olatunji and his Nigerian percussion ensemble plays host to a cast of thousands that includes jazzmen such as Ray Barretto, Yusef Lateef and Clark Terry -- great players all, though their contributions are largely buried in the mix. Not a bad album, by any means, though is doesn't quite match the intensity of the earlier Drums Of Passion album. Worth checking out, though... it's very mellow, meditative, easy on the ears and entrancing.

Dusty Groove review:

One of Olatunji's best LPs, and a record that breaks out of his usual straight hard percussion stuff by adding some jazz players like Yusef Lateef, Clark Terry, and George Duvivier. There's also some singers augmenting the ensemble, but they drop out in parts, and the percussion and jazz take over. Olatunji's joined by Ray Barretto and Montego Joe on congas, and the whole thing grooves like one of Art Blakey's jazz/percussion experiments. 7 tracks: "Masque Dance", "Zungo", "Ajua", "Esum Buku Wa-Ya", "Gelewenwe", "Jolly Mensah" and "Philistine".

Babatunde Olatunji - Vocals, Drums [African]
Yusef Lateef - Winds
Clark Terry - Trumpet
Edward Bailey - Trumpet
James Nottingham - Trumpet
George Duvivier - Bass
Will Lee - Bass
Al Schackman - Guitar
Rudy Collins - Drums [Trap]
Beans Whitley - Drums [African]
James "Chief" Bey - Drums [African]
Montigo Joe - Drums [African]
Taiwo Duval - Drums [African]
Ray Barretto - Congas, Timbales

CHOIR:
Adele Potter
Adunni Pearson
Afuavi Derby
Aquasiba Derby
Babalola Jones
Chinyelu Ajuluchuku
Christine Chapman
Oyinka Parker
Ernie Truesdale
Helena Walquer
Mario Timmons
Melvin Edwards
Popoola Moore


1 Masque Dance
2 Zungo
3 Ajua
4 Esum Buku Wa-Ya
5 Gelewenwe
6 Jolly Mensah
7 Philistine


Your Olatunji opportunity at Soundological can be found HERE or HERE.

Quincy Jones - Roots

Quincy Jones
Roots
1977

256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from A&M SP-4626


Continuing with more Afro-flavoured vibes from A&M, here's Quincy Jones' soundscape inspired by the 1977 TV mini-series Roots based on the genealogical novel by Alex Haley. Great book, good series, so-so soundtrack. However, this particular recording is missing from the extensive Quincy Jones discography at Blaxploitation Jive so it's another blogosphere blank filled by Soundological. Although this was reissued on CD in 1997, the awesome cosmic poster was only included in the original vinyl release making the $5 or less this LP goes for (even still sealed) more than worth the price if you ask me...makes me wonder why people would pay over $50 for the rare CD. Sorry if the scan on this one is not so clean but it's been hanging on my wall for 15 years.

Since each side of this record is a tightly sequenced suite of short pieces that clock in under 2:30 each, there was no point in breaking it up into tracks (much the same reason there are no links for the 82 musicians involved). There are some sweet moments in this effort, mostly revolving around Letta Mbulu (if you haven't already checked her album Letta then I recommend you head over to Djalma's Soul Food and do so now) and the Wattsline Choir, but it's a top-heavy affair talent-wise that never really takes off nor transports you into a cinematic headspace. That's not to say it ain't a good album, just that it's not for everyone - those that do love it are staunch fans as a perusal of all the comments on Amazon begging for another CD release clearly illustrates.


AMG Review by Richard S. Ginell
Quincy Jones has been threatening to write a long tone poem sketching the history of black music for decades now, and he has yet to do it. This project, rushed out in the wake of the 1977 TV mini-series Roots, is about as close as he has come. A brief (28 minutes), immaculately-produced and segued suite, Roots quickly traces a timeline from Africa to the Civil War, incorporating ancient and modern African influences (with Letta Mbulu as the featured vocalist), a sea shanty, field hollers and fiddle tunes, snippets of dialogue from Roots actor Lou Gossett, and some Hollywood-style movie cues. Only a fraction of this music was used in the mini-series; oddly, the most familiar piece of music, the often-repeated "Roots Mural Theme," is not by Q but by film composer Gerald Fried, who wrote most of the TV score. Though some prominent jazzers (Shelly Manne, Victor Feldman, Ernie Watts, Lee Ritenour, Richard Tee, etc.) turn up in the orchestra, there is not a trace of jazz to be heard. This is a timely souvenir of a cultural phenomenon, but merely a curiosity for jazz fans.


Featured Artists
Quincy Jones - Trumpet, Arranger, Conductor, Vocals, Producer
Letta Mbulu - Vocals
Caiphus Semenya - Percussion, Arranger, Vocals
Rev. James Cleveland - Arranger, Conductor
Wattsline Choir: Rodney Armstrong, Mortonette Jenkins, Charles May, David Pridgen, Sherwood Sledge
Lou Gossett - Vocals
Bill Summers - Percussion, Arranger, Vocals, Concert Master

Musicians
Zak Diouf - Drums, Vocals
Paul Bryant - Percussion
King Errisson - Percussion
Bobbye Hall - Percussion
Emil Richards - Percussion
Tommy Vig - Percussion
Milt Holland - Percussion
Shelly Manne - Percussion
Victor Feldman - Percussion
Dave Grusin - Arranger, Keyboards
Michael Boddicker - Keyboards
Ian Underwood - Keyboards
Richard Tee - Keyboards
Pete Jolly - Keyboards
Lee Ritenour - Guitar
David T. Walker - Guitar
Chuck Rainey - Bass (Electric)
Ed Reddick - Bass (Electric)
Arni Egillson - Bass (Acoustic)
Milton Kestenbaum - Bass (Acoustic)
Alton Hendrickson - Banjo
Catherine Gotthoffer - Harp
Dorothy Remsen - Harp
Ernie Watts - Woodwind
Jerome Richardson - Woodwind
Bill Green - Woodwind
Terry Harrington - Woodwind
Ted Nash - Woodwind
John Audino - Trumpet
Bobby Bryant - Trumpet
Buddy Childers - Trumpet
Dick Nash - Trombone
Maurice Spear - Trombone
Bill Watrous - Trombone
James A. Decker - French Horn
David Duke - French Horn
Alan Robinson - French Horn
Tommy Johnson - Tuba
Bobby Bruce - Violin
Gerald Vinci - Violin
Janice Gower - Violin
John Santulis - Violin
Sheldon Sanov - Violin
Bill Nuttycomb - Violin
Ralph Shaeffer - Violin
Joseph Livoti - Violin
Irv Katz - Violin
Erno Neufeld - Violin
Harry Bluestone - Violin
Bob Sushell - Violin
Joe Stepansky - Violin
Rollice Dale - Viola
Bob Ostrowsky - Viola
Alex Nieman - Viola
Marilyn Baker - Viola
Jesse Erlich - Cello
Jeff Solow - Cello
Paul Bergstrom - Cello
Ronald Cooper - Cello
Jim Gilstrap - Vocals
Stephanie Spruill - Vocals
Paulette McWilliams - Vocals
Deborah Tibbs - Vocals
Alexandra Brown - Vocals
John Lehman - Vocals
Linda Evans - Vocals
Alex Hassilev - Vocals

Tom Bahler - Arranger, Choir Master
Johnny Mandel - Arranger
Herbert W. Spencer - Arranger
Dick Hazard - Arranger

SIDE A - AFRICA (THE MOTHERLAND)

Motherland (0:29)
Roots Mural Theme (2:10)
Main Title: Mama Aifambeni (Premiere Episode) (1:03)
Behold, The Only Thing Greater Than Yourself (Birth) (1:30)
Oluwa (Many Rains Ago) (African Theme) (2:28)
Boyhood To Manhood (0:53)
The Toubob Is Here! (The Capture) (1:06)
Middle Passage (Slaveship Crossing) (1:15)
You In Americuh' Now, African (0:32)

SIDE B - AMERICA (THE PROMISED LAND)

Roots Mural Theme Intro (Slave Auction) (0:15)
Ole Fiddler (1:12)
Jumpin' De Broom (Marriage Ceremony) (0:42)
What Shall I Do? (Hush, Hush, Somebody's Calling My Name) (2:17)
Roots Mural Theme Bridge (Plantation Life) (1:25)
Oh Lord, Come By Here (3:25)
Free At Last? (The Civil War) (2:24)
Many Rains Ago (Oluwa) (African Theme: English Version) (4:50)


Research your Roots with Soundological HERE or HERE.(Sharebee is being a bitchbee so using MediaFire for the first time...let me know whatcha think)

Lumumba - Lumumba

Sing With The Birds


LUMUMBA
Lumumba (comes from the Center of the Earth with the World Beat)
1974

256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from A&M SP-3610


You may or may not have heard that Guy Warren (a.k.a. Khofi Ghanaba), master drummer of Ghana, passed away on December 22nd. Soundological featured him in a post this summer at which time there was not so much info out there on the man beyond the basic bios and discogs. As often happens, since he succumbed to illness at the age of 85 there's been a flood of obituaries, memorials and tributes hence more facts floating around , including a comprehensive pictorial discography and a bibliography to boot here. Googling his name today is more productive than six months past, so if you really want to dig into the history of this trailblazer, now's the time to do so.

So why is Soundological posting this album by Lumumba? Well, besides the fact recordings by Warren are stupid rare and we have no more to offer you at the moment, not only are the majority of players on the album from Ghana but there's a direct through-line from the previous post, Arthur Adams. Adams plays guitar on a highly sought-after album by the bandleader (and ex-Fela drummer), Rim Kwaku Obeng, released in 1980 called Rim Arrives (Discogs.com link - if anyone has a copy we'd LOVE to hear it) which was also produced by Kwaku Lynn. From what headz say, it's one of the funkiest discofied Afrobeat albums to exist and it usually changes hands for upwards of $100 if you can find it. His other releases under the name Kwaku Kwaakye Obeng on small indie labels and private presses are mostly solo drumming affairs and usually change hands for less than $10. You can check out a videoclip of him performing live and also an interview with him over at Sounds of Africa TV.

A very rare and expensive Rim job

The identity of the artist Lumumba is shrouded in mystery but a commentator on Crud Crud mentioned he might be Duke Lumumba. There are a few similarities in the line up between DL's album from the late 60s (George Bohanon plays on both and Crusader Wilton Felder plays bass on the recently re-issued Jungle Funk while sometime Crusader session man David T. Walker plays guitar on this effort) and both were recorded in LA, but the strongest thread is that Duke played trumpet and the person going as simply "Lumumba" here plays Flugel Horn. However, outside of this circumstantial evidence, there's not much proof that they're one and the same person.

Can there be only one?

Other noted Ghananians on the album are George Lee, (a sax player who is apparently notorious for his naughty behaviour as a touring backup musician and played on Toots & The Maytals' Reggae Got Soul with keyboardist Rentzos) and Eddie Quansah (who also played on the Toots LP, worked with artists as diverse as Osibisa and Slade (!?!) who now calls Australia his home) but both forsake their instruments of choice to provide only backing vocals. The remainder of the musicians is a mixed bag and includes the lovely & talented Bobbye Hall on drums as well as a handful of no-names who are invisible to the internet.

Since it's one of the only reviews on this album on the intertubes, I'll let crudmeister Scott Soriano tell it like it is...


Review by Crud Crud
I don't know the story behind Lumumba. All the musicians except for two are credited as coming from Ghana (the two non-Africans, West Indies and Los Angeles). Though the group is named after the singer Lumumba, it seems as though a fellow named Rim Kwaku Obeng is the leader of the band. Obeng has records under his own name and they are sought after by Afrobeat collectors. The record was recorded in Los Angeles, which is rare for an Afrobeat record. How is the album? Spotty and sometimes suspect. I am not sure if the musicians were cobbled together by A&M looking to break Afrobeat or if some American producer stumbled upon them in Africa, brought them to the States and put them in a fancy studio. Many of the songs are over produced and some sound very studio musicianish. The two I donate today are the best two cuts (Ed: "Sing With The Birds" & "Love Is"), both featuring the borderline schmaltzy poetry of Lumumba.


Lumumba - Narration, Doroben Durugya (whistle flute), Ammoo Durugya (long flute), Fritwiwa (thumb gong), Dawuro (gong gong), Akasawa (shaker), Jews Harp, Conga, Ntoa (round drum), Flugel Horn, Vocals

Rim Kwaku Obeng - Ntumpan (talking drum), Drums, Donno (squeeze drum), Fritwiwa (thumb gong), Akaswaa (shaker), Brekete Drum, Dawuro (gong gong), Conga, Ntoa (round drum), Electric Piano, Ammoo Durugya (long flute), Vocals
Emmanuel Rentzos - Electric Piano, Organ, Vocals
Luther Coffey - Fender Bass
Kwabena Gyanfi - Fender Bass, Electric Guitar
David T. Walker - Electric Guitar

George Bohanon - Bass Euphonium, Red Callendar-Acoustic Bass
Bobbye Hall - Conga
Victoria Miles - Vocals
Gloria Green - Vocals
George Lee - Vocals
Eddie Quansah - Vocals
Willie Cheetan - Vocals


1 Sing With the Birds
2 Ahoma Trofo (Telephone)
3 Twoo Boe (Work Chant)
4 Ananse Sem (Akan Folk Tale)
5 N.S.U. Shiw (Hot Water)
6 Love Is 50/50
7 Kwaku Ne Kwaku


Journey to the Center of the World Beat of the Earth 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!

James Newton - Axum

JAMES NEWTON
Axum
1982
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from ECM 1-1214

Soundological submits some Sunday morning spiritual sounds for you and yours. A deeply personal album by a critically acclaimed flautist exhibiting his trademark contributions to jazz in an intimate setting, it is mostly remembered for the brouhaha with the Beastie Boys after one of the tracks was sampled on Check Your Head with ECM's permission (mechanical) and not Newton's (publishing). Not exactly a landmark case, but it reinforced the Eurocentric bias in the US court system towards the L.C.D. of simple diatonic melody. You can read James' take on the whole deal further down the page.


AMG Review
by Scott Yanow

James Newton's set of unaccompanied flute solos is generally more intriguing and diverse than one might expect. An expert at multiphonics (often humming through his flute in order to get more than one note at a time), Newton is also very strong at constructing logical yet utterly unpredictable improvisations. His playing on nine of his originals covers a fair amount of ground, and he alternates between three different types of flutes (his regular horn, alto flute and bass flute). Still, the results are more for specialized tastes.

James Newton - Flute


1 The Dabtara
2 Malak 'Uqabe
3 Solomon, Chief of Wise Men
4 Addis Ababa
5 Choir
6 Feeling
7 Axum
8 Susenyos and Werzelya
9 The Neser


Letter From James Newton About the Decision on
Beastie Boys Sampling of His Tunes
reprinted from On Lisa Rein's Radar

To whom it may concern,

It seems like a real "Weird Nightmare" to be writing you this email. For the last two years I have been involved in a suit because the Beastie Boys sampled a part of my composition "Choir" and did not contact me for permission. They did not change in any way what they sampled from "Choir". It begins with the sampled six and a half seconds and loops in the song over forty times. "Pass the Mic'" has appeared in CD, MP3, LP, and DVD formats.

The law clearly states that to use someone else's music one must contact and receive permission from both the record company and the copyright owner. "Choir" was registered with the copyright office and ASCAP in 1978. My publishing company JANEW MUSIC controls 100% of the rights. Nevertheless the Beastie Boys only contacted and received permission from ECM Records and ignored me.

The case went up for summary judgement one month ago and Judge Nora Manella of US Federal Court ruled against me!!!!!!!!!!! She stated as a fact of law that my music was unoriginal !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The liner notes of Axum begins with a quote from the New York Times that "James Newton is the most accomplished and original flutist now playing Jazz".The year that Axum was released (1982) was also the first year that I won the Down Beat International Critics Poll as the best jazz flutist. The judge must feel that her opinion is more significant than all of the experts in the field.

The six and a half second sample consists of three sung notes C,Db ,C and a held flute harmonic C2, as a result of the combination of voice, harmonic and a balanced distribution of each a series of shifting multiphonics are created. She ignored the multiphonics because they weren't written on the score and said that there are just three notes in the score which aren't protectable. If you go to the Beastie Boy's DVD of the piece "Pass the Mic" to signify the song their is only my flute sample and a drum beat . There is a spectrograph that moves wildly when my multiphonics are played. If there was only one pitch the movement would be minimal. She also consistently used European paradigms to judge my music. An aria from Purcell's "Dido and Aeneas" and Cole Porter's "Night and Day" were examples of what is protectable. "Choir" is about four black women singing in a church in rural Arkansas. This work is a modern approach to a spiritual. As you well know, one would be hard-pressed to find multiphonic fingerings in most jazz scores, even when multiphonics are used!!!! If I'm writing for a classical ensemble I'll write out the multiphonic fingerings because of how notation is used in that culture of music.

Spirituals come out of the oral tradition, and if they are notated they're in the most simplest form which is the way that I wrote out "Choir" On the same LP one can find "The Neser" which is influenced by Ravel and is a 8-minute work for flute quartet where everything is written out except a short alto flute cadenza. I certainly didn't become dumb when I dealt with my own culture in "Choir." The urgency of this letter is that after unjustly winning the case the Beastie Boys have filed a motion with the court for me to pay their legal fees of $492,000 after they stole my music. I have already spent a considerable amount of money for a creative musician and college professor. This would, of course, send me into bankruptcy, and I stand a chance of losing my home and all that I have worked for through the years. If you can spread the press release around to your colleagues in the European press, it will help the cause greatly. The more newspapers, magazines and journals that this is placed in will help. Please inform us of any press that appears so that we can use it in our legal endeavors. Also any of you that are heads of organizations or lawyers please contact my lawyer, Alan Korn (aakorn@igc.org), and he can give you the information of where to send Amicus letters.

This decision is a dangerous one that would affect jazz composers and other composers that choose to write in other ways. I have had plenty of training to write all of my scores in the most eurocentric Boulezian fashion but why should I be forced to to please a Judge who has very limited musical knowledge, certainly little of the Afro-American musical tradition. The strain on this trial and subsequent rulings have been immense. It has curtailed much of my artistic output because of the seriousness of this situation. For many years I have tried to give much as an artist and educator to the world community. This is a time when I have to now ask for your help. I have never sued anyone in all of my years on the planet up to this point. I am fighting for my rights and the ability to express myself in my own and any other cultural perspective that I choose as an artist. Please spread this around as much as possible.

Yours in music and freedom,
James Newton

Ethical arguments aside, if you focus on the ruling itself rather than the personalities involved and their actions leading up to, during or after the trial there's only one major conclusion you can draw. Justice ain't only blind, She deaf too.

Reissued on CD in 1994 (how's that for timing on ECM's part?) which is also OOP. Like the review said, it's not exactly everyone's cup o' tea but if you like Paul Horn's Inside series or if you like your relaxing New Age sounds less newy and more agey, then you'll likely enjoy this. You never know until you try HERE or HERE.

Naná Vasconcelos - Saudades

NANA VASCONCELOS
Saudades
1980
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from ECM-1-1147


Listening to this album in a relaxed state with your undivided attention can elicit a mystical experience. It is one of the deepest and most magical pieces of polyvinyl chloride I own. Not much more to say than that.


Naná Vasconcelos - Berimbau, Percussion, Voice, Gongs
Egberto Gismonti - "Super 8 String Guitar" on Cego Alderaldo

Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart conducted by Mladen Gutesha

1 O Berimbau
2 Vozes (Saudades)
3 Ondas (Na Óhlos de Petronila)
4 Cego Aderaldo
5 Dado


AMG Review
by John Storm Roberts

This 1979 recording is probably Afro-experimentalist Vasconcelos' finest. It presents his various facets -- berimbao playing, intricate overlain vocals, fine percussion, even gorgeous guitar -- simply and almost overwhelmingly. This is one of those performances that remind one to never let natural dogmatism get too out of hand.

Get it HERE and HERE


1972 Naná Vasconcelos at Brazilian Nuggets
1973 Amazonas at Vinil Velho
1973 Africadeus at Malado de Som
1977 Dança das Cabeças (with Egberto Gismonti) at Brasil Midia
1979 Saudades
1983 Codona 3 (with Don Cherry & Collin Walcott) at My Favorite Sound
1983 Zumbi
1984 Duas Vozes (Egberto Gismonti & Naná Vasconcelos) at Brasil Midia
1986 Bush Dance at The Bossa Blog
1989 Rain Dance (Naná Vasconcelos & the Bushdancers) at Schadenfreudian Therapy
1990 Lester (with Antonello Salis)
1995 Contando Estórias: Storytelling at Som Barato
1997 No Tempo Da Bossa Nova
1997 Fragments: Modern Tradition at Som Barato
1999 Contaminação (with Ralph Towner) at The Bossa Blog
2001 Fragmentos
2002 Minha Lôa at Centro Virtual de Percussão Batuque Brasileiro
2004 Fandango Jazz Festival (with Antonello Salis & Peppe Consolmagno) at Som Barato
2005 Isso Vai Dar Repercussao at Som Barato
2005 Chegada at L'Arbe de les 1000 Musiques
2006 Trilhas at Som do Roque

In addition to the blogs noted above, I highly suggest you head over to J Thyme...KIND for more Brazilian beauty if you haven't already had the chance.

Demos Deniran & His Dynamic Africa Rhythmers - Lukorigi

boomp3.com

90 MB
256+ VBR LAME mp3
Vinyl rip & scans from Ramsom Folly Melody Tones RFML 2

Demos Deniran & His Dynamic Africa Rhythmers - Music
Prof Y.S. - solo
Austin Omo - Gani Drums

1 Festac (Ariya)
2 Ojo Ro Kiletutu
3 Ole Darun / Ola O Kitan
4 Bi Igbin Fa


You want obscure Nigerian Afrobeat? Check out this slice from Demos Deniran (real name Moses Adeniran according to song credits). Little out there on him beyond a brief mention on the Nigerian Gospel Music Scene website as one of "a crop of gospel singers (who) have followed the funky path." It seems he was also active in grassroots politics through his music, as mentioned in a report on court proceedings on the corruption of Nigeria's own version of the RIAA.

Deniran passed on in 1995 but remains highly respected in Nigerian musical, political and religious circles with stars such as Sonny Okosun (who also sadly passed away two months ago this weekend - find his LP Liberation on Shanachie if you can) and Ebenezer Obey coming out en masse to perform tributes to him, including recording an album called Final Race. According to this article from Nigeria, which recounts the cultural elite of Nigeria dropping like flies from all kinds of weird medical problems and no access to funds, his cause of death was due to an unspecified chronic ailment. It also includes a lot of interesting incidental info on the Festac Town (a subdivision of Lagos created around the pavillion - pictured on the back of the LP above - erected for the African Festival of Arts & Culture or FESTAC in 1977 and the home of the Nigerian 419 scam) music scene from around the time this album was recorded up until recently. Incidentally, it also highlights how just because organizations collect royalties on behalf of artists doesn't mean the artists actually see commensurate (or any) payment from the same.

In chapter 9 of the book "World Music: A Global Journey" a musician named Adesanya Adeyeye recalls "performing with Demos Deniran’s Dynamo Luko Funk group at the Western Hotel in Idi Oro, Mushin, Lagos for nine months" between graduating from the Nigerian Institute of Music in 1979 and leaving for the US in 1981 to study at Kent State. The Western Hotel is in the same neighbourhood as Fela's Kalakuta Republic and its musical pedigree stretches back to the late 50s, when it was known as the Mainland Cave Hotel. Then it was the home of Baba Eto who some insiders consider as creator of the instrument, and originator of the musical style, Agidigbo (according to Fatai Rolling Dollar, Ebenezer Obey and their record company) which was a precursor of Juju and Highlife.

As far as a discography goes, all I can tell you is Demos has at least one other LP on the "Leader" label in Nigeria (it's for sale here). There isn't any info on the Ramsom Folly Melody Tones label out there at all, and the comapanies involved in recording, printing and distributing this LP have long since packed it in. I picked this up at Recordland in cowtown back in the late 80s and don't know how it got there but it hasn't been played much, so I figure it was likely an attendee of FESTAC (it ws a major African cultural event) or someone who had travelled to Nigeria. The afro section in Recordland at this time was about 8 LPs and the rest were all african Fela pressings so it seems likely they were the purchases of a tourist.

The LP seems to be made up of takes from multiple session with side one having a much cleaner sound than side two. Although the cover and label list three tracks for side two, there is only one track break so the mp3 file follows the same numbering. Side one is the best, with the first track being my favourite. The lyrics (printed on the back cover) are highly positive, the melody sweet and the mid-tempo rhythm hypnotic.

Exclusively available to readers of Soundological, this extremely rare Afrobeat release is waiting HERE or HERE for your discovery.