World Music For Kids + Emmanuel Jal interview

Spin The Globe playlist

9 May 2008

This week we spun global music for kids in anticipation of the upcoming Seattle International Children's Festival. Plus an interview with Emmanuel Jal of Sudan, and more.

By the way, there's a whole new look at the KAOS radio website -- have a look!

hour 1 (Artist - Song - Album)
Firewater - Borneo - The Golden Hour
Adriana Maciel - Samba dos Animais - Brazilian Playground
Emmanuel Jal - Warchild - Warchild
Emmanuel Jal interview
Emmanuel Jal & Abdel Gadir Salim - Nyambol - Ceasefire
Emmanuel Jal - Stronger - Warchild
Zap Mama - Zap Bebes - Ancestry in Progress
Umalali - Nibari / My Grandchild - The Garifuna Women’s Project
The Afrodelic Stegosaurchestra - Matches - The Afrodelic Stegosaurchestra
Dissidenten - Lobster Song - New World Party

hour 2
Tomas Gubitsch et al - Toma Que Toma - Songs of Innocence
Di Grine Kuzine - Karel’s Kumbia - Funky Pukanky
Amparanoia - Ven - Latin Reggae
Moussu T e lei Jovents - Forever Polida - Invente a la Ciotat
Tiken Jah Fakoly & Tribo de Jah - Baba - Drop the Debt
X Plastaz - Kutesa Kwa Zamu - Rough Guide to African Music for Children
Reem Kelani - Galilean Lullaby - Sprinting Gazelle
Amazones Women Master Drummers - Tagan Danguira - Live in Montreal
Uaragniaun - Trinze Trinze - U Diavule e l’acqua sante
Yoshida Brothers - Overland Blues - III
Yerba Buena - Bla Bla Bla - Island Life
Sergio Mendes - Odo-ya feat. Carlinhos Brown - Encanto
Ashen & Walker - Batucada Ostinata - Rough Guide to Brazilian Street Party

Listen:

Monday's mp3: Cinco de Mayo sin Mariachis

Americans seem to be able to forget connections. Today's a great example. Amid the increasing anti-immigrant fervor ("let's build a wall! plus anti-immigrant radar!"), we're nonetheless delighted for a chance to throw a Cindo de Mayo party. The irony in this context of a US-based celebration of a Mexican military victory may be lost on Corona-soaked brains, I suppose.

Today we dig a little deeper into the music of Mexico than the stereotypical Mariachi band (as fun as they are). Xavier Quijas Yxayotl goes back to the pre-European roots of the music of the New World on his 2002 album Singing Earth.

"When people think of music from Mexico they think of this newly formed Mariachi style as traditional Mexican heritage," says Yxayotl. "They are wrong in thinking so." On this CD, Yxayotl gives a sampling of real Mexican roots music: pre-Columbian songs played on authentic instruments that he has spent most of his life building and playing.

The music is rhythm-driven (all five of the artists on the CD play percussion) along with vocals and Yxayotl's Aztec and Mayan clay flutes. The liner notes are sparse, and I would love to know more about the drums used. But that's a minor complaint about a beautiful album that's rhythmically and melodically accessible.

[mp3] Xavier Quijas Yxayotl: Dance of the Corn People
from the album Singing Earth

artist website: www.yxayotl.com
and he's on YouTube

Cinco de Mayo & World Laughter Day

Spin The Globe playlist

2 May 2008

May 4 is World Laughter Day, and we marked the occasion with global songs to make you laugh, or dance, or sing along. All in the interests of mirth and the joy it brings. Plus some Latin sounds for Cinco de Mayo, and other global grooves.

Congratulations to Jenny of Olympia for winning the Salsa Celtica CD we had up for grabs on today's show.

Artist - Song - Album

hour 1
Pepe & the Bottle Blondes - Rumba de 5 Kilos - Latenight Betty
Pili Pili - The Headpeeper - Best of Pili Pili
Unnamed pygmies - Nzombi / Music for the return from a hunt - AKA Pygmy Music–Central African Republic
Olla Vogala - Achille - Marcel
DJ Dolores - Numeros - 1 Real
Bola Sete - Calypsilone - Bola Sete e 4 Trombones
Narasirato Pan Pipers - Wawasitani / Whistling Natural Sounds of Nature - Cry of the Ancestors
Round & Round - Nainoa - Legends of the Ukulele 2
Aton - We Are All - Oasis World Vol. Viii #2
The Shin - Born in the Saddle - Egari
Kora Jazz Trio - Nina - Kora Jazz Trio
Mau Mau - La Casa Brucia - Dea
Amparanoia - Ven - Latin Reggae
Oleg Skripk - Red Rose - Kraina Mrly Ethno Festival

hour 2
Gothart - Bezequesh Goca - Happy Trails & MG
Salsa Celtica - El Agua de la Vida - El Agua de la Vida
DJ LK - O Que é a Bossa Nova (feat. Denise Fontoura) - Misturada
Moussu T e lei jovents - Bolega Banjo - Invente a La Ciotat
Gamelan X - FlutterSwarm - Satu
Motimba - Oye La Buena - Monkey Vibrations
Fiamma Fumana - Check In - Euro Groove
Fosforo - Desconocido - Macondo
Les Freres Smith - La Marchedes Smith - Advance single
Goran Bregovic - Gas Gas - Balkan Beats Vol. 3
Golem! - Warsaw Is Khelm - Fresh Off Boat
Kassin + 2 - Samba Machine - Futurismo
Jamshied Sharifi - Di’vaneh - One

Listen:

(Note: the show archive may be offline until May 5 due to bandwidth issues. If you're unable to access it, please return after May 5 and it should be restored to health. )

Rock for Peace

So, dear SoundRoots reader, by now you have recognized some of my preferences, and near the top are Afrobeat, Balkan brass, and pretty much anything with great global percussion. Not quite at the top is the catch-all known as "Latin alternative" -- an umbrella term almost as indescriptive as "world music," except that at least the former hints at what language to expect.

Still, I know from some of your comments (hey...I've been meaning to talk to you about the lack of comments of late. So I will, later. But for now...) that some of you are fans of the emerging rock/pop/reggae/punk/etc sounds emerging from Latin American and expatriate Latinos, such as the Ireland-dwelling Rodrigo y Gabriela.

So this one's for you. The new album En Paz from Ecuador-born Cecilia Villar Eljuri will hit the stores May 20 (scoop: it's already available on CDBaby). I know today is May Day, but since she doesn't have songs about striking dockworkers, I'll settle for this song of imprisonment, which reflects the more rocking (and flamenco-tinged, with the vocal assistance of Johnette Napolitano) side of the artist. There's a fair amount of variety on En Paz, from the quiet conflicted passion of "Yo Soy" to the reggae licks of "El Aire," featuring Sly & Robbie.

The album's title emerged from Eljuri's feelings as she put together the album. "These days I don't see much peace around us," she explains. "I see danger, inequities, fighting over borders, divisions among people and the loss of love. In spite of all that, I believe there is hope that we can overcome this and coexist in a tranquil society."

Well, a tranquil society that rocks out now and then.

[mp3] Cecilia Villar Eljuri: Juala (con Johnette Napolitano)
from En Paz

Eljuri website: eljurimusic.com
Eljuri on YouTube

Monday's mp3: Bollywood for Dummies

Recent viewings of Bollywood films and a radio interview (on The World) with a certain playback singer have put Indian diva Asha Bhosle firmly in my mind this week.

If you have any familiarity with Bollywood musicals, you've heard her voice, whether you realize it or not. Many of those lip-synched song-and-dance numbers that pepper India's films are sung by this amazing prolific woman. Having recorded over 20,000 songs, she's a woman whose music is just hard to miss. (Her sister Lata Mangeshkar is no slouch either!)

Yet, my first introduction to her came though the film 1 Giant Leap, which utilized her iconic voice on the song "The Way You Dream" (video). Since then, I've been seeing her name on the credits of soundtracks to movies new and old. Some of those are collected on The Rough Guide to Bollywood Legends: Asha Bhosle, from which this track is pulled. This collection includes 16 tracks of hers ranging from

[mp3] Asha Bhosle: Rishte Bante Hain
from The Rough Guide to Bollywood Legends: Asha Bhosle

The earliest song on this collection is from 1956, the latest from 1999, and she's still singing today. This song, from the 1985 album Dil Padosi Hai, is actually not from a film. Not from a real one, anyway. The album concept came to writer R. D. Burman (Bhosle's second husband) while driving in his car; he created a soundtrack to a movie that existed only in his mind. It became particularly popular in Pakistan, I'm told.

You can enjoy the sheer vocal purity of this on its own, but if you haven't seen these movies (the ones outside of Burman's head), you have to check them out. Drama, fights, romance, and always lots of singing and dancing to illustrate those other things.

By the way, now that Bombay is Mumbai, shouldn't we be calling it Mummywood?

Global Percussion

Spin The Globe playlist
25 April 2008
(as heard on radio KAOS 89.3 fm)

Spin The Globe always features great percussion, but this week we focused primarily on drums and the musicians who hit them, worldwide. After all, tomorrow is the percussion-heavy Procession of the Species and all weekend is the World Rhythm Festival in Seattle! Congrats to the listeners who won tickets to see Jose Carrion (see calendar) and the newly re-issued CD Planet Drum by Mickey Hart.

Artist - Song - Album

hour 1
Princesinha Da Mare - Capoeira Experience - Rough Guide to Brazilian Street Party
Amazones - Sinte, Kassani Soro - Live in Montreal
Gamelan X - Gammafro - Satu
Villagers - Water Drums - The Big Bang
Suphala - Secret Language - The Now
Tactequete - Uapa - Tactequeque?
Mestre Acordeon - Cuidado Bezouro - Eh Capoeira
Tony Allen - Black Voices - Live
Zakir Hussain & the Rhythm Experience - Nines Over Easy - Zakir Hussain & the Rhythm Experience
Hungry March Band - Kradical - Portable Soundtracks for Temporary Utopias
Orlando Julius - Solo Hit (instrumental) - Super Afro Soul
Mickey Hart - Evening Samba - Planet Drum

hour 2
On Ensemble - Zeecha - Dust and Sand
Te Vaka - Hea la koa iei - Ki Mua
Tumbatu Cumba - Ritmo de Negros - Tumbatu Cumba
Bobi Cespedes - Yambu Rock - Rezos
Akoya Afrobeat - Oluya - President Dey Pass
Boban I Marko Markovic Orkestar - Latino Cocek - Go Marko Go!
Tom Teasley - Tali for One - Global Groovilization
Turbo Tabla - Multiple East - Belly and the Beat
Subaro - Trilogia Nordestina Part 2 - Subaro
Kusun Ensemble - Ogbame - Nokoko

Listen (click below or see more archives at http://www.earball.net/spintheglobe/listen.htm )

Tuku's Earth Day Plea

You can’t save the planet. You can replace all the incandescent bulbs in your house, drive less, bike more, buy green power, take shorter showers, eat locally, go vegetarian, buy fair-trade coffee, super-insulate your home, drive a hybrid, telecommute, brew your own biodiesel, grow veggies, recycle milk jugs, stop flying, fight less & pray more, put solar panels on your roof, maintain a worm bin, stop watching TV, walk more, compost food scraps, exercise more, stop eating fast food, wear organic cotton clothes, take the bus, move closer to work, take eco-vacations, plant trees, shop at the local farmers market, and it still won’t save the planet. Not even close.

Which isn’t to say you shouldn’t do some or all of those things. On this Earth Day, we (and I mean ALL of us) are facing a remarkable litany of environment-related problems, from global weirding (aka climate change) to food shortages to shrinking water supplies to melting glaciers. And a good chunk of those problems can be traced to human activities.

We may not have any control over larger environmental factors. But the human factors are just that… things we do or control. And while none of these things alone will make a difference, by doing them you may be setting an example to your family and friends and coworkers. Maybe you talk to them, or perhaps you set up a blog or give a public talk about your experiences. Maybe you influence a thousand people, or maybe just one. But if you do nothing – if I do nothing – those people may also do nothing. And nothing will get done.

So try some of those things. Do them because we need to treat the planet with more respect. Or do them because you want to maintain something like your current lifestyle and delay the inevitable – the end of oil, the end of the internal combustion engine, the end of cheap plastic crap.

Or heck, do it because Tuku told you to. In this song, he sings about how people have wrecked the environment by chopping down trees and dumping trash in rivers, leaving no shelter from the sun and no place to bathe or fish. And he asks the people to do something about it.

What are you doing?

[mp3] Oliver Mtukudzi: Pindirai
from the album Nhava

tags: world music, zimbabwe, oliver mtukudzi, earth day

Monday's mp3: Ain't no party like a James Brown party...

Someday I'll have to put together a radio show highlighting the influence of James Brown on global music. Today's offering is a step in that direction.

Brown's influence is particularly clear in African music -- specifically Afrobeat, where Fela Kuti and others twisted funk to their own ends. Of course, others around the world were not and are not immune to Brown's catchy, danceable grooves.

The first track on the new compilation The Rough Guide to Brazilian Street Party captures a bit of that energy. Funk 'N Lata rips through this track, quoting Brown midway into this live Berlin party. Wish I'd been there. And I wonder why the group doesn't have more music available?

The rest of the album is no slouch, featuring everyone from AfroReggae (with Manu Chao!) to Think of One to a bunch of high-energy Brazilians I don't know. This is the energy I expected, but didn't get, from Putumayo's new [fill in region] Party series. Now we can get the party started!

[mp3] Funk 'N Lata: Baile Funk (Live in Berlin)
from The Rough Guide to Brazilian Street Party
(official release date 6 May 2008)

Funk 'N Lata on YouTube

tags: worldmusic, soundroots, james brown

Global Guitars

Spin The Globe playlist

18 April 2008

Guitars were the theme this week, and we sampled a wide variety of styles from the precision of India's Debashish Bhattacharya to the loping blues of Etran Finatawa and the folksy sound of Bob Brozman's pals in Papua New Guinea. Congrats to Rich, who won himself a copy of Dengue Fever's Venus On Earth during the show. Spin The Globe airs (and streams live) 10am-noon Fridays on KAOS-fm.

Artist - Song - Album
hour 1
Puerto Plata - Santiago w/ Frank Mendez - Mujer de Cabaret
Debashish Bhattacharya - Prabha - Calcutta Slide-Guitar
Sunil Ganguly - Ajhoon Na Aye (from Sanjh Aur Savera, 1970) - Bollywood Steel Guitar
Souad Massi - Denya Wezman / That’s Life - Acoustic-Best Of Souad Massi
Etran Finatawa - Soto - Desert Crossroads
Rokia Traore - Mancipera - Wanita
Kim Sinh - Son Dong lu huong ma et. al. - Music from Vietnam 4-The Artistry of Kim Sinh
Drew Bennett - Fiesta Bailar - Flamenco Salsa
Badi Assad - Estrangeiro em Mim - Verde
Papua New Guinea Stringbands with Bob Brozman - Youth Development Song - Songs of the Volcano
Regis Gizavo, Louis Mhlanga, David Mirandon - Mari Hakuna - Stories

hour 2
Aradhna - Man Mera - Amrit Vani
Pacifika - Estrellas De Miel - Asuncion
Dengue Fever - Integration - Venus on Earth
Dama & D’Gary - Voasary / The Parable of the Orange - The Long Way Home
Mahmoud Fadl - And the Days Have Gone By - For Oriental Dancers
Csurgo Zenekar - Kerek Isten Faja - Folk Music from Hungary
Trio Joubran - Laytana - Majaz
DJ Logic & Jason Miles - The Souk - Global Noize
Eduardo Mendonca - Space Needle Danced - Show Brazil!
Baka Beyond - Sad Among Strangers - Rhythm Tree
Debashish Bhattacharya - Maya - Calcutta Chronicles

listen:



tags: worldmusic, playlist, guitar, guitarists, kaos, radio

And the Winner Is...

The BBC World Music Awards for 2008 were announced last week, but they're absurdly difficult to find on the BBC website, so for your enjoyment and convenience, I share them here. The

2008 BBC3 World Music Awards Winners:
click on any link for album info and sound samples

Africa: Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba
Asia/Pacific: Sa Dingding
Americas: Andy Palacio & The Garifuna Collective
Europe: Son de la Frontera
Mid East & North Africa: Rachid Taha
Newcomer: Mayra Andrade
Culture Crossing: Justin Adams & Juldeh Camara
Club Global: Transglobal Underground
Album of the Year: Bassekou Kouyate & Ngoni ba:

There's one award yet to be handed out, and you can have a say in it. Voting for the Audience Award continues through 8 May, at BBC3. I just voted, but I'm not going to influence your vote by saying for whom I voted.
Some of the winners will perform at a 30 July show at the Royal Albert Hall.

tags: worldmusic, bbc, awards, bbc3, Bassekou Kouyate, Sa Dingding, Andy Palacio, Son de la Frontera, Rachid Taha, Mayra Andrade, Justin Adams, Juldeh Camara, Transglobal Underground

World Music Top 10 - April 2008

SoundRoots / Spin The Globe Top 10 World Music Albums - April 2008

1. Gamelan X: Satu
2. Boban i Marko Markovic Orkestar: Go Marko Go!
3. DJ Dolores: 1 Real
4. Cheb i Sabbah: Devotion
5. Dengue Fever: Venus on Earth
6. Golem: Fresh Off Boat
7. Orlando Julius: Super Afro Soul
8. Toumast: Ishumar
9. Toumani Diabate: The Mande Variations
10. Freshlyground: Ma'Cheri

Yes, a US-based group heads the "world music" top 10 this month. Following the winter lull, a flood of new releases are coming in, many of which were highlighted on last week's Spin The Globe. Certainly one of the strongest is the Indonesia-meets-Afrobeat sound of Gamelan X. More on them shortly, in the meantime click on some of the albums and check out their sample sounds. And let me know what you like, or what I'm overlooking in the world of new music.

tags: worldmusic, top 10, charts, gamelan x, gamelan, spin the globe, kaos, radio

Monday's mp3: Malagasy Magic

Paul-Bert Rahasimanana may not be a household name, even among global music fans. But he looms large in my own relationship with "world music." More commonly known as Rossy, the Malagasy artist recorded a delicious album ripe with the unusual -- even exotic -- sounds of Madagascar that was released by Real World Records in 1991.

Island of Ghosts is actually a soundtrack, I'm told, to a film of the same name. (I haven't seen it - if anyone can get me the film, you earn big SoundRoots karma points). But while it has something of a soundtrack's atmosphere, the music holds up solidly as a stand-alone musical album as well, though some of the tracks are much shorter than ordinary songs. Even the brief audio glimpses of mysterious instruments like the valiha, aponga, and kabosy are mesmerizing. Sure, the upbeat tunes also contain a fair amount of synth, but hey -- this was barely out of the 1980s, and Rossy was listening to pop as well as to his roots.

Rossy started out as a country accordion player, forming his first band in 1981. He quickly learned new instruments (valiha, guitar, flute) and musical styles (salegy, pop, rock, reggae) when he moved to the island nation's capitol, Antananarivo, and his group became one of the most popular in Madagascar. Despite this, only two or three recordings are available, sadly. And I have no idea if Rossy is still musically active (anyone?).

Many seem to consider the 1992 album One Eye on the Future, One Eye On the Past Rossy's key recording, but my early exposure to the entrancing melodies and instruments on Ghosts has kept the earlier album uppermost in my musical mind. This song, the liner notes say, "is an appeal to the Malagasy people to think of their island as an inheritance which must be preserved for later generations."

[mp3] Rossy: Madagasikara (Madagascar)
from the album Island of Ghosts

For more Malagasy sounds, check out Tarika and Vakoka.

tags: worldmusic, madagascar, rossy, malagasy, selegy, Paul-Bert Rahasimanana

So Fresh It Stings: New World Music Releases

Spin The Globe playlist

11 April 2008

Artist - Album - Song

hour 1
The Shin - Nat Tsar Khek & Abdul Shah Ill - Many Timer
Raduza - Ma Phuc Mandar - In the Salon of Baroque Dames
Markus James - Drivin By - Snakeskin Violin
Frank London’s Klezmer Brass All-Stars feat. Kol Isha - T’hay Yeshua Zoys - The Rough Guide to Klezmer Revival
Watcha Clan - Balkan Qoulou - Diaspora Hi-Fi
Louis Mhlanga - Rhumba All the Way - African Party
Etran Finatawa - Amidinine / My Friend - Desert Crossroads
Jamshied Sharifi - One - One
Freshlyground - Manikiniki - Ma’Cheri
Kola Collective - Roma - Stew it, fuse it, groove it
The Ipanemas - Era Bom - Call of the Gods
Beth Nielsen Chapman - Yemaya - Prism

hour 2
Maraca - Castigala - Rough Guide to Cuban Street Party
Gianmaria Testa - L’albero del pane / The Bread Tree - Lampo
Mamadou Diabate et al. - Nigui Dyarra - Strings Tradition
Glyn “Bigga” Bush - Afro Spot - 12” Afrobeat Single
Pouya Mahmoodi - Dingomaro - Mehr
Papa Noel - Bon Samaritain - Congo Gold
Mazaher - Ya Min Yerashy - Zar Music & Songs
Debashish Bhattacharya - Maya - Calcutta Chronicles
Figli Di Madre Ignota - Nema Problema Tourist - Balkan Beats Vol. 3
Nii Tettey Tetteh & the Kusun Ensemble - Awo - Nokoko
Toumast - Kik Ayuittma / Hey! My Brothers! - Ishumar

Listen:


tags: worldmusic, playlist, radio, kaos, new releases, spin the globe

Alt Latin THIS!

Had a request for more Latin Alternative sounds, and I hope this will help quench that thirst. I had not heard of 3 Na Massa (not to be confused with 3 Na Bossa) before this disc zipped across my desk like a hummingbird seeking the first nectar of spring. And I still know very little, so perhaps I should let the band do the talking:

3 Na Massa was founded by Rica Amabis, Pupillo and Sucinto Silva aka Dengue in São Paulo. Pupillo and Dengue play drums and bass while Rica is the magic cook, the producer of the trio. This is also where the band name stems from, 3 na massa - 3 in the dough, slang for something that makes your mouth water in expectation of a special treat.

The idea of 3 na massa came from women. Women talking about their amorous experiences with men -- moments, events that marked their life, whether seduction or desires. The songs are inspired by the sensuality of these stories. They can be happy, entertaining as well as spicy and longing like an erotic adventure in an amusement park. Under the influence of Federico Fellini’s films and the work of Serge Gainsbourg of the 60s and 70s, the music could easily be the soundtrack of the illustrated stories of Millo Manara.

The debut album release is the stories (songs) of 13 different women who collaborated with the trio to create this trip through the large emotional world of women. Lending their voice to the songs are some of Brazil’s favorites: CéU, Nina Miranda, Thalma de Freitas, Karine Carvalho and Alice Braga, among others.

And the sound? ... Here's a track that features vocals by actress Karina Falcao (who, interestingly, played Shorty's wife in a film we've been discussing here recently: City of God / Cidade de Deus).

[mp3] 3 Na Massa-Certa feat. Karina Falcao - Certa Noite
from the album 3 Na Bossa

3 Na Massa myspace

tags: world music, latin alternative, 3 na massa, brazil, karina falcao

Mondays mp3: Happy Birthday, Ravi!

Master sitar player Ravi Shankar is one of those guys who seems like he's always been there... and not just there, but everywhere (as we noted last year).

To some extent his daughters have taken over the family's portion of the global spotlight, but Ravi's music is still out there, still gaining new listeners. ARC has just released The Best of Ravi Shankar, a three-raag disc, and a few years earlier came The Rough Guide to Ravi Shankar, notable for a bit more variety as well as appearances by Zakir Hussain and Ali Akbar Khan.

This is one of the shorter tracks on that latter CD, but it's no slouch, as the masters Shankar and Hussain play beautifully together.

[mp3] Ravi Shankar with Zakir Hussain: Reflection
from The Rough Guide to Ravi Shankar

Today is Ravi's birthday -- his 88th! Happy birthday, Ravi

There's an enlightening interview with Ravi Shankar here. And for sight as well as sound, check out this Ravi Shankar video

tags: worldmusic, india, ravi shankar, sitar, zakir hussain

Beatles Gone Global

Spin The Globe Playlist (on KAOS-fm)

4 April 2008

The Beatles broke up almost 40 years ago, but their musical influence remains huge worldwide. Today we spun some of the global covers of Beatles songs, from the far-flung corners of the
planet and with diverse cultural styles.

Artist - Song - Album
hour 1

Moussu T e lei jovents - Oplati Oplata - Invente a La Ciotat
Leningrad Cowboys - Yellow Submarine - Total Balalaika Show
Daniel García Quinteto - Guitarra Y Bandonéon, Van A Llorar (While My Guitar Gently Weeps) - Tangoloco-Tangos de Liverpool
Rita Lee - Minha Vida (In My Life) - Bossa ‘n Beatles
The Super Eagles - Hey Jude - Senegambian Sensation
Mohamed Rafi & Asha Boshle - Dekho ab to (I Wanna Hold Your Hand) - Janwaar
Brazil and Beyond - Eleanor Rigby - Beatles
Inner Circle - Ob La Di Ob La Da - Jamaica Me Crazy
Carlos Piper Orquestra - A Hard Day’s Night - O Som Espetacular
various - A Hard Day’s Night - Buddha Lounge Tribute to the Beatles
Baba Yaga - Back in the USSR - Secret Combination
Sanjay Mishra - Norwegian Wood - Rescue
Shang Shang Typhoon - Let It Be - Shang Shang Typhoon 2
Brazil and Beyond - Day Tripper - Beatles
Daniel García Quinteto - Ticket to Ride - Tangoloco-Tangos de Liverpool

hour 2
Pouya Mahmoodi - Noban - Mehr
Le Trio Joubran - Majaz - Majaz
Mamak Khadem - Varan (Rain) - Jostojoo (Forever Seeking)
Rayssa Fatima Tabaamrant - Ajddig Ilwrd (Hymn to Nature) - Taghlaghalt or The Echo of the Atlas
Mahmoud Fadl - Darig Masri - For Oriental Dancers
Darbuki Kings - Blue Eyes - Lawrence of Suburbia
Ravi Shankar - Raag Mishra Kafi - Best of Ravi Shankar
Ashraf Hakim - Asho’s Tango - Sunrise
Umalali - Afayahadina (I Have Traveled) - The Garifuna Women’s Project
Fubuki Daiko - Monkey - Zanshin
Bokar Rimpoche - Tibetan Bowls - Sacred Chants & Tibetal Rituals from the Monastery of Mirik
Eduardo Mendonca - Samba-de-Roda - Brazil in Washington
Gaudi + Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan - Dil Da Rog Muka Ja Mahi - Dub Qawwali Remixes

Listen:

tags: worldmusic, beatles, cover songs, spin the globe, kaos, radio

Afro-Samba Jazz

If you wanted to, you could call Os Ipanemas the Brazilian version of the Buena Vista Social Club. But I don't want to. What I do want is to try to describe their fresh Afro-Brazilian sound. Fresh even though the band began back in 1962.

Led by septuagenarians Wilson Das Neves (percussion, vocals) and Neco (guitar), the band oozes smooth charm without lapsing into cliche. These two endow the group with a wealth of experience, having recorded and toured the likes of Elis Regina, Tom Jobim, Wilson Simonal, Jorge Ben, Chico Buarque and Elza Soares. Wilson also performs with the Rio samba troupe Orquestra Imperial.

At the risk of comparing apples and oranges, I find myself contrasting this album with the music of Eddie Palmieri, whose live show I caught last night. Eddie's band was tight and each member was at the top of his game, pumping out blistering solos on horns and percussion. But I found myself growing a little numb to the music, which seemed to come all at one temperature: hot. They provided too little dynamic variation. After a while, even on the most pleasant tropical afternoon one requires a cool drink.

The Ipanemas know cool. In contrast to Palmieri's boil, they simmer through the album's ten tracks. The rhythms are distinctly Latin, becoming distinctly Brazilian only (to my ear) when a bit of samba bubbles up, or when I recognize the soft syllables of Brazilian Portuguese in the vocals.

Their music maintains deep roots in the Candomble spirituality that is Brazil's equivalent of Haiti's vudon or Cuba's santeria. "Those who sing samba," Wilson asserts," sing it in praises of the Orixas. Brazilian music is religion. For our forefathers it comes from religion. So really, samba is a religion in Brazil."

So here's a little taste of cool spirituality from the Ipanemas.

[mp3] The Ipanemas: Chama o Donato (Calling Donato)
from the album Call of the Gods
(official release date April 15)

band site: myspace.com/theipanemas

The Ipanemas tour the UK this month:
16 April London Barbican / La Linea Festival
17 April Liverpool Royal Philharmonic / La Linea Festival
18 April Southampton Turner Sims
20 April Brighton Komedia
22 April Leeds College of Music
23 April Warwick Warwick Arts
24 April Bristol St Georges
25 April Exeter Phoenix
26 April Swansea Taliesin Arts Centre

tags: worldmusic, brazil, ipanemas, afro-brazilian, candomble

Gross National Happiness?

How Happy Are You? The US Government Wants to Know

Tue Apr 1, 2008 10:47am EDT
By Erving Iocus

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The US government wants you to be happy. Or at least, they want to know just how happy you are.

In the latest twist on the rich taking from the poor, the US government has announced plans to borrow a quality of life indicator with its origins in the impoverished Himalayan nation of Bhutan.

Announced by Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, the new indicator, called Gross National Happiness, would seem to fly in the face of accepted economic practice in the US, which has long favored economic growth measured by the Gross Domestic Product as the most important indicator of national well-being.

The concept of Gross National Happiness originated in 1972 when Bhutan's King Jigme Singye Wangchuck struck on it as a way to quantify his aims to build an economy that served the unique spiritual and social conditions of his nation, not focus on the narrow indicator of economic growth.

The timing of the US announcement is curious, coming as it does at a time of growing national unhappiness with the Iraq war, the economy, and President Bush himself, whose approval rating is as low as 27% by one recent CBS poll. While some dismiss the move as a political strategy aimed at capitalizing on the popular presidential campaign theme of “hope,” others say that the time is right for a new view of what constitutes success and progress.

"Materialism is toxic for happiness," says University of Illinois psychologist Ed Diener. “Even rich materialists aren't as happy as those who care less about getting and spending.”

The Gross National Happiness index will attempt to quantify the well being of a nation using a number of indicators:

• Economic Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of economic metrics such as consumer debt, average income to consumer price index ratio and income distribution
• Environmental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of environmental metrics such as pollution, noise and traffic
• Physical Wellness: Indicated via statistical measurement of physical health metrics such as severe illnesses
• Mental Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of mental health metrics such as usage of antidepressants and rise or decline of psychotherapy patients
• Workplace Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of labor metrics such as jobless claims, job change, workplace complaints and lawsuits
• Social Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of social metrics such as discrimination, safety, divorce rates, complaints of domestic conflicts and family lawsuits, public lawsuits, crime rates
• Political Wellness: Indicated via direct survey and statistical measurement of political metrics such as the quality of local democracy, individual freedom, and foreign conflicts.

Gutierrez did not say how the new index might impact the government’s economic or social policies.

tags: happiness, bhutan, usa, april fool's, happy

Monday's mp3: Zimbabwe's Second Independence?

Zimbabwe and observers around the world are holding their breath for the outcome of the nation's elections. President Robert Mugabe is at the center of the fray -- a man who helped usher in Zimbabwe's independence and became president in 1987, but whose policies have reflected a growing distance between himself and the reality for Zimbabweans. The nation was once known as "the breadbasket of Africa," with a highly productive agricultural sector. But around the turn of the century, the term "basket case" was more commonly applied to the struggling country.

Mr Mugabe's legacy is now forever tainted with the odious whiff of corruption, the rank oppression of human rights, the stunted growth of the economy, the clawing grip of early mortality, and the rasping destitution of people just trying to live. A Zimbabwean man can expect to live, on average, to 40 years of age, a woman to 38. The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in adults is estimated at more than a quarter of the population. The unemployment rate is 80%. Those living below the poverty line are about 70%. Inflation is running at 100,000%, the highest in the world. Its gross domestic product is now smaller than it was a decade ago. Six years ago unemployment was 50% and inflation 100%. The backbone of its economy, commercial farming, is in ruins thanks to the madness of Mr Mugabe in seizing agricultural land, estimated at 10 million hectares, running off the white farmers and installing political cronies and military henchmen. He also razed the homes and businesses of more than 500,000 supporters of opposition parties. (theage.com.au)

South African jazz icon Hugh Masekela named names in his controversial song "Change," rattling off a list of intransigent political leaders who clung to power at the expense of their people's well being. If my memory is correct, Mugabe may be the last of those leaders still in power, Daniel Arap Moi of Kenya and Charles Taylor of Liberia having finally relinquished power.

Thomas Mapfumo was a key figure in the Zimbabwean independence struggle, and has become a key critic of the Mugabe government as well. Currently living in exile in Eugene, Oregon, Mapfumo has continued to release hard-hitting (and danceable) songs promoting Zimbabwean culture and traditions and denouncing political corruption.

While we wait to see if Zimbabweans have a second revolution, my prayers are not so much for a specific political outcome, but for the people to be free of oppressive rulers, to have the opportunities to rebuild their nation, and of course for more music, dance, and joy to emerge.

[mp3] Thomas Mapfumo: Set The People Free
from the album Chimurenga '98

More Mapfumo:
SoundRoots 2007 birthday card to Mapfumo
2002 Afropop interview
Interview at The Leopard Man's African Music Guide

tags: worldmusic, africa, zimbabwe, chimurenga, thomas mapfumo, robert mugabe

Heavy, Heavy Afrobeat

Albino! at the Eastside Club in Olympia, WA

tags: worldmusic, afrobeat, albino, olympia, eastside club, photos

The Music of Peru

Spin The Globe Playlist

28 March 2008

Peru Negro plays in Olympia tonight, and we set the stage with an hour of Afro-Peruvian music on Spin The Globe, plus more widely ranging music in hour 2.

Artist - Song - Album

hour 1
Peru Negro - Golpe e’ Tierra - Zamba Malato
Chicha Libre - The Hungry Song - Sonido Amazonico!
Leida La Madrid & Roger Almestar - Tondero - Traditional Music of Peru 8 – Piura
Eva Ayllon - Raices Negras - Latinas-Women of Latin America
Peru Negro - Que Tiene Miguel - Zamba Malato
Tania Libertad w/ Cesaria Evora - Historia de un Amor - Costa Negra
Lucila Campos - Tio Goyo - Holding Up Half the Sky-Voices of Latin Women
Novalima - Machete - Afro
Novalima - Ay Bembe - Afro
Susana Baca - Toro Mata - Espiritu Vivo
Los Hijol del Sol - Linda Munequita - The Roots of Chicha
Peru Negro - Zamba Malato - Zamba Malato

hour 2
Keji Hamilton & the Exousia Band - Designers - Keji Hamilton & the Exousia Band
The Zmiros Project - Veshomru - The Rough Guide to Klezmer Revival
Umalali - Anaha Ya / Here I Am - The Garifuna Women’s Project
Jamshied Sharifi - As Mosst, Keh Bar Mosst - One
Sam Shalabi - Hawaga - Eid
Forro in the Dark & Seu Jorge - Suor de Pele Fina (Mawglee Remix) - Nublu Radio Noise Vol. 2: Remixes
Anoushka Shankar - Red Sun - Rise
Toumani Diabate - Cantelowes - The Mande Variations
Golem - School of Dance - Fresh Off Boat
Mahmoud Fadl - Masri Africa - For Oriental Dancers
Gedankensplitter - Dudelsack Fur Arme - Umnachter
Debashish Bhattacharya & Bob Brozman - Bana Mali - Mahima

Listen:


tags: worldmusic, peru, afro-peruvian, latin, playlist, peru negro, kaos, spin the globe

Whence "Underground"?

Okay, just one more brass band post... Last week on Spin The Globe, I interviewed members of Seattle's Orkestar Zirkonium ("not truly authentic, but shiny!"), and they raised a small mystery. They perform a song called "Underground" that they believe is a traditional Serbian tune, and apparently is connected to the Emir Kusturica film of the same name. Maybe.

The film is a tale of war, deception, music, and more. You've probably seen it. If not, it's worth finding. But one thing the movie does not contain is this song. So where does this tune come from? Does anyone know the story of this song? OZ wants to know. So do I.

[mp3] Orkestar Zirkonium: Underground
from Orkestar Zirkonium's Live EP

OZ is currently working on a full CD, which they say will be released later this year. Catch up with all their goings-on at www.orkestarzirkonium.com

Oh, and you can catch a clip from the movie here.

tags: worldmusic, balkan, brass, underground, serbia, emir kusturica, orkestar zirkonium

Monday's mp3: Hot Blown Brass

Easter, of course, is about rebirth. About rolling the stone away and finding new, uplifted life. I won't belabor the metaphor, but on some level it works for where I was at last night. As the day drew to a dreary close after various rain showers and even a spattering of hail, I didn't feel like going out. I wanted to stay home and curl up with a book, warm and comfortable.

Yet, there was this group called Brass Menazeri in town from the Bay Area. I'd been playing their CD, and greatly enjoying their take on Balkan and Romani brass music. So I dragged myself downtown and into the icebox of Art House Designs, where a smattering of people lined the walls around the open floor, and a few people wandered around carrying various windings of shiny metal tubes.

I love live music. And just being there made me feel more energized. It didn't hurt when I found out that members of this band have ties to other groups I enjoy, including the women's vocal ensemble Kitka and the crazy gamelan-Afrobeat mashup known as Gamelan X.

And then, my friends, the music started. A blast of horns that varied but barely paused as the nine-piece band ran through a playlist of songs from Serbia, Bosnia, even Bollywood. Squeaky-tight arrangements, great solos, and best of all the band was having as much fun as the audience.

The band deserved a much larger audience, and they get kudos for giving it their all despite the sparse turnout. It was their first show in Olympia, part of their first Northwest tour. Still to come are shows in Seattle, Port Townsend, Portland, Eugene, and Arcata. Friends, I implore you: If you have any reasonable proximity to one of their shows, don't hesitate. Get thee hence, preferably with a group of dance-happy friends. Or friends who need a resurrection from their home-bound lethargy.

Here's a little taste from their CD Brazen. They are working on another CD that they expect to release late this year.

[mp3] Brass Menazeri: Opa Cupa
from the album Brazen.

band website: brass.menazeri.com

This has been a brass-heavy week, with KAOS radio appearances by both the Hungry March Band and Orkestar Zirkonium. I did not, by the way, make it to Honk! Fest West this weekend, much to my dismay. Events conspired to keep me away, but I hear some pretty convincing rumors that it went well (with brass bands playing in the streets until the wee hours of the morning) and that it will repeat next year.

tags: worldmusic, brass, balkan, romani, brass menazeri