He fell for chicken feet

Malawi's Madalitso Band have gone in eight years from busking for survival on the dusty streets of Lilongwe to playing international music festivals like Sauti Za Busara in Zanzibar, Roskilde in Denmark and WOMAD and Glastonbury in England.

 

Their music, made with nothing but their voices, guitar, kick drum and the homemade one-stringed long-necked slide bass called babatone, is one of the most life-affirming sounds you'll ever hear.  Madalitso's new album Ma Gitala was just released on Friday, and you'll hear a track from it this week on Global A Go-Go, alongside more acoustic guitar music from southern Africa.

 

Also this week (Sunday June 15, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): Rockin' cumbia from XIXA and La Banda Chuska, Bio Ritmo's brand new single as they prepare for their first visit to Colombia, Brazilian samba-funk by Laiz & the New Love Experience and Seu Jorge, beautiful late-career statements from Mali's Salif Keita and Kasse Mady Diabaté, and Trinidadian soca remixed by Luke Una.

Charts June 2-8, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 BEJUCO | Machete | Discos Pacifico

2 GRUPO PILON | Nu Sta Li | El Palmas

3 GRUPO SON SAN | "La Hamaca" [Single] | Polen

4 SOOTHSAYERS | "Fly Higher" [Single] | Wah Wah 45s

5 BRIVELE | Khaveyrim Zayt Greyt | Borscht Beat

6 FEMI KUTI | Journey Through Life | Partisan

7 IBEX BAND | Stereo Instrumental Music | Muzikawi

8 ESTRELLAS DEL CARIBE | La Terapia de Palenque | Polen

9 MIZIK MALADI: DISQUES DEBS INTERNATIONAL VOL. 3 | various artists | Disques Debs International/Strut

10 SAMI GALBI | Ylh Bye Bye | Bongo Joe

Me mueve el tambó

 

The sound of the band Bejuco is based on currulao, the traditional marimba music of Colombia's Pacific coast.  But they've added a new beat to it: the polyrhythmic funk of Nigerian Afrobeat.  Turns out it's a great pairing, as you'll hear this week when I play a track from Bejuco's superb new album Machete, alongside new Afrobeat from Soothsayers and Femi Kuti.

 

Also this week (Sunday June 8, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): Comrades, get ready for Brivele's Yiddish folk against fascism; the rediscovery of Ibex Band of Ethiopia's Stereo Instrumental Music; champeta from Colombia's Caribbean coast, including new tracks from veteran bands Grupo Son San and Estrellas del Caribe; another veteran band makes a comeback: Grupo Pilon from Cabo Verde via Luxembourg; and some zouk and mini jazz from the French Antilles.

Charts May 26 - Jun 1, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 THE STORY OF NACIONAL RECORDS, VOL. UNO Y DOS | various artists | Nacional

2 GYEDU-BLAY AMBOLLEY | Wake Up Afrika | Agogo

3 SYSTEMA SOLAR | Futurx Primitivx 2025 | Sambumbia

4 PACHYMAN | Another Place | ATO

5 GRUPO SON SAN | "La Hamaca" [Single] | Polen

6 FREH KHODJA | Ken Andi Habib | Wewantsounds

7 AMMAR 808 | Club Tounsi | Glitterbeat

8 GRUPO PILON | "Tempo Passa" [Single] | El Palmas

9 SOOTHSAYERS | "Fly Higher" [Single] | Wah Wah 45s

10 LIDO PIMIENTA | La Belleza | Anti-

Viva la juventud

As you probably know already, WRIR is celebrating its 20th birthday this year.  There must have been something in the water in 2005 (myself, I think that something was "Year 1 of Bush 2's second presidential term"), because Richmond linchpins RVA Magazine and Gallery 5 were also founded that year.

 

And all the way across the country in Los Angeles, a fellow named Tomas Cookman was starting up Nacional Records, a new independent label, to focus on what he called "Latin alternative" music.  Today, Latin alternative is squarely in the mainstream: Nacional releases have been nominated for over 100 Grammys and Latin Grammys, and Cookman's business Green Lane Entertainment includes artist management and booking, the LAMC music conference (Latin alternative's Sundance) and a major sync (music licensing for movies, TV, commercials, video games and the like) operation along with the label.

 

Nacional was one of the first record companies to figure out that WRIR played a lot of international music.  They've been sending us promos of their releases for 20 years, and for all of that time I've been working with Jennifer Sarkissian, who's now Nacional and Green Lane's General Manager, in what might be the longest running business relationship I have in radio.

 

This week (Sunday June 1, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site) I'm going to play two hours of my personal Nacional favorites from the last 20 years including long time Global A Go-Go go-to artists like Systema Solar, Mexican Institute of Sound, Bomba Estéreo, Nortec Collective, Hip Hop Hoodios and Manu Chao, and including selections from the label's new two-volume, 4-album 20th anniversary set called The Story of Nacional Records.

 

Viva Nacional, viva WRIR!

Charts May 19-25, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten 

1 FRENTE CUMBIERO |  Inconcreto & Asociados | Salgaelsol/Biche

2 BEJUCO | Machete | Discos Pacifico

3 KOKOROKO | "Closer To Me" [Single] | Brownswood

4 CULTURE | Africa Stand Alone | VP

5 SUGAR MINOTT, BOUNTY KILLER AND KING JAMMY | "Give the People What They Want" [Single] | Hits 38

6 ABIJAH | "Warrior Code" [Single] | Tad's

7 FEMI KUTI | Journey Through Life | Partisan

8 DERYA YILDIRIM AND GRUP SIMSEK | Yarin Yoksa | Big Crown

9 LOS PIRANAS | Una Oportunidad Más De Triunfar En La Vida | Glitterbeat

10 SATELLITES | Aylar | Batov

Inconcreto & Asociados

One of my favorite bands in the world is coming to Richmond for the first time ever on May 28.  And I see I'm not the only Frente Cumbiero fan around -- it looks like the Simpsons creator Matt Groening is one as well.

 

You might become one too after you hear my concert preview this week on Global A Go-Go (Sunday May 25, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site).  I'll play several songs from Frente Cumbiero's great new album Inconcreto & Asociados, one from their equally outstanding previous album Cera Perdida, plus tracks from a few of the various projects that Frente Cumbiero bandleader Mario Galeano has worked on over the last fifteen years.

 

Continuing last week's theme, I'll have a lot more new music once again: roots reggae from Abijah, a roots reggae reissue of Culture, and Bounty Killer and King Jammy's remake of a Sugar Minott classic; soulful samba by Seu Jorge and Uli Costa e Sandália de Prata; new Anatolian rock from Meral Polat, Derya Yıldırım and Şatellites; and a whole set of scorching tsapiky music from southwest Madagascar.

Charts May 12-18, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 ADRIAN RASO AND FANFARE CIOCARLIA | The Devil Rides Again | Asphalt Tango

2 CAVEMEN, THE | "Dancing Shoes" [Single] | self-released

3 F.A.V., TINO AMOR AND BARZO | "Mi Barrio" [Single] | Lacteo Cosmico

4 MADALITSO BAND | Ma Gitala | Bongo Joe

5 LOS HERMANOS ROSARIO | Infinito Positivo | La Oreja

6 FRENTE CUMBIERO | Inconcreto & Asociados | Salgaelsol/Discos Biche

7 KANAZOE ORKESTRA | Balabeatz | Antipodes

8 ROOTS ROCKING ZIMBABWE: THE MODERN SOUND OF HARARE TOWNSHIPS 1975-1980 | various artists | Analog Africa

9 LUC-HUBERT SEJOR | Mizik Filamonik: Spiritual Sound | Heavenly Sweetness

10 FEMI KUTI | Journey Through Life | Partisan

Journey through life

It's hard to believe that Femi Kuti, Fela's eldest son, leader of the band Positive Force and manager of the New Afrika Shrine in Lagos, will turn 63 years old next month.  And it's a pleasure to say that he's still making powerful, challenging, threatening music.  Tune in to Global A Go-Go this week, hear the title track of his new album Journey Through Life, one of the best songs he's recorded in his career, and see him on tour this summer if you get a chance -- he'll be at the 9:30 Club in DC on July 25.

 

You'll hear all kinds of new releases this week (Sunday May 18, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): Balkan brass meets guitar twang from Adrian Raso & Fanfare Ciocărlia, Kwashibu Area Band's quiet storm of highlife, desert blues singer-songwriter Mohamed Alassane Karzo, Madalitso Band's Malawian banjo music, the psychedelic Afro-Colombian sounds of Pambelé and many more.

Charts May 5-11, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 AFRICAN JAZZ, O.K. JAZZ, AFRICAN TEAM, DIBANGO AND PEPITO | African Jazz invites O.K. Jazz (1961-1970) | Planet Ilunga

2 FEMI KUTI | Journey Through Life | Partisan

3 ADRIAN YOUNGE | Adrian Younge Presents Something About April III | Linear Labs

4 ERMELINDA CUELLAR | Under A Lavender Sky | self-released

5 KANKOU KOUYATE | N'Darila | One World

6 AMAYO | Lion Awakes | self-released

7 LOS PIRANAS | Una Oportunidad Más De Triunfar En La Vida | Glitterbeat

8 TRIO DA KALI | Bagola | One World

9 MDOU MOCTAR | Tears Of Injustice | Matador

10 WAGADU GROOVES VOL.2: THE HYPNOTIC SOUND OF CAMARA 1991-2014 | various artists | Hot Mule

Global A Go-Go Classico: Amminal live in Studio C

I'm out of town today (Sunday May 11, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site), so here's a Classico edition of Global A Go-Go for your listening pleasure.  Maybe I should call it an Instant Classico edition, since it just aired last month, on April 13, 2025.

 

That's when I hosted the Richmond-based band Amminal in WRIR's Studio C.  I thought they played a great set of music that day, and the mix by WRIR's live sound engineer Richard Schellenberg really captured all the nuances in the ensemble's sound.

 

So let's give Amminal another listen here on Global A Go-Go.  They'll be playing live on Wednesday June 25 at the Get Tight Lounge, on a bill with Orchestre Tout Puissant Marcel Duchamp from Geneva, Switzerland, presented by Secret Planet Richmond.

Charts Apr 28 - May 4, 2025

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WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 FRENTE CUMBIERO | Inconcreto y Asociados | Salgaelsol/Discos Biche

2 ORCHESTRE TOUT PUISSANT MARCEL DUCHAMP | Ventre Unique | Bongo Joe

3 MADALITSO BAND | Ma Gitala | Bongo Joe

4 AFRICAN JAZZ, O.K. JAZZ, AFRICAN TEAM, DIBANGO AND PEPITO | African Jazz invites O.K. Jazz (1961-1970) | Planet Ilunga

5 ROOTS ROCKING ZIMBABWE: THE MODERN SOUND OF HARARE TOWNSHIPS 1975-1980 | various artists | Analog Africa

6 K. FRIMPONG | Best of 1990-1995 | Hot Casa

7 LA DELIO VALDEZ | El Desveto | Delirio Valdez

8 AZUKA MOWETA AND HIS ANIOMA BROTHERS BAND OF AFRICA | Ekobe Global | Odogwu Entertainment/Palenque

9 JUANA MOLINA | Exhalo [EP] | Little Butterfly

10 LARRY AND JOE | Manos Panamericanos | self-released

Music without borders, spring-summer 2025

Richmond's home for music without borders is the Secret Planet Richmond concert series.  Started in 2024, it brings cutting-edge international roots-based artists to Richmond, performances that ought to be happening all year round, not just at the Folk Festival.

 

Secret Planet Richmond has announced their Spring-Summer 2025 season, and on this week's edition of Global A Go-Go (Sunday May 4, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards at wrir.org/listen, and any old time at my podcast site) you'll hear from all the artists who'll be visiting Richmond for this season's series: Frente Cumbiero, Mourning [A] BLKstar, Orchestre Tout Puissant Marcel Duchamp, Chicha Libre, Larry & Joe and Asmâa Hamzaoui & Bnat Timbouktou, and also from a couple of Richmond bands who will be opening for them.

 

The performances will take place at two Richmond venues: Révéler Experiences in Carytown and Get Tight Lounge in the Fan.  All shows and dates are listed below in this post, along with links to tickets and more information (if available yet).  Tune in to your community radio station and get early notice about some cool things that will be happening in your community.

Charts April 21-27, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 UKANDANZ | Evil Plan | Compagnie 4000

2 FAMO MOUNTAIN | For Those Left Behind | Glitterbeat

3 SALIF KEITA | So Kono | No Format

4 CHARIF MEGARBANE | Hawalat | Habibi Funk

5 KIN'GONGOLO KINIATA | Kiniata | Helico

6 YOUSSOU N'DOUR | Eclairer Le Monde | Light The World | TBI

7 THIAGO FRANCA E A ESPETACULAR CHARANGA DO FRANCA | "Bololo" [Single] | YB

8 DERYA YILDIRIM AND GRUP SIMSEK | Yarin Yoksa | Big Crown

9 TRIO DA KALI | Bagola | One World

10 SANTROFI | Making Moves | Outhere

Charts April 14-20, 2025

WRIR World's NACC Top Ten

1 RED BARAAT | Bhangra Rangeela | Sinj

2 GUSSIE CLARKE | Reggae Masters: Horace Andy & Leroy Smart | Reggae Library

3 TSAPIKY! MODERN MUSIC FROM SOUTHWEST MADAGASCAR | various artists | Sublime Frequencies

4 LES ABRANIS | Album No. 1: Id Ed Was | Wewantsounds

5 ROLANDO BRUNO Y EL GRUPO AREVALO/OF TROPIQUE | "Sabadabada" b/w "Fatman" [Single] | Electric Cowbell/Pepei

6 ESTRELLAS DEL CARIBE | La Terapia de Palenque | Polen

7 STORY OF NACIONAL RECORDS, THE, VOL. UNO Y DOS | various artists | Nacional

8 SISKA | Holdin' the Vibe | VLB

9 AFRODREAM | "Zugumalamba (feat. Killabeatmaker)" [Single] | Ludwig

10 GYEDU-BLAY AMBOLLEY | Simigwa | Strut