June 6, 2010

Reviews and charts June 6, 2010

For the third week in a row, WRIR's #1 world music recording is this one pictured above.  Sexy time!  Click "Read More" for reviews of Next Stop ... Soweto, Volume 2 and the new reissue of a very young Youssou N'Dour & Etoile De Dakar.

Brand-New Reviews
ARTIST:  various artists
TITLE:  Next Stop … Soweto, Volume 2: Soul, Funk & Organ Grooves from the Townships 1969-1976
LABEL:  Strut

REVIEW:  I had no idea there was such an interesting soul music scene in South Africa in the 60s and 70s.  Of course, American jazz was a huge influence there, so it makes sense that it was likewise for soul music.  The folks at Strut, real soul music connoisseurs, have performed a valuable service by digging up these dusties for us.  Some of the tracks (1, 2) have obvious Zulu roots; others (3, 14, 16) could have been recorded in the USA (and 10 could have been recorded in Nigeria).  Plenty of gritty, funky, danceable stuff here that any soul aficionado will want to hear.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
RECOMMENDED TRACKS:     1 (soul-mbaqanga)   2 (“Soul Makossa” with new lyrics)   3 (funk)   10 (Afrobeat)   14 (organ funk a la Booker T)   16 (Shaft-style funk)

ARTIST:  Etoile De Dakar
TITLE:  Once Upon A Time In Senegal: The Birth Of Mbalax 1979-1981
LABEL:  Sterns

REVIEW:  Mbalax (pronounced um-BAH-lak) is Senegal’s greatest contribution to contemporary music.  The style borrows equally from Cuban and from traditional West African musics; it’s driven by galloping rhythms played on the tama talking drum and features swirling psychedelic guitar leads and punchy soul-influenced horn section playing.  Here’s a 2 CD set that documents the creation of mbalax as it actually happened.  These 23 tracks come from the six cassettes recorded by Etoile De Dakar between 1979 and 1981, and are some of the earliest recordings of Youssou N’Dour, who would go on to become Africa’s most famous musician.  On the first few tracks you hear the band augmenting the already popular salsa Senegalaise style with their new rhythms; by the end of CD 2 the new style is not only fully formed, it’s never to be topped.  Classic, historic recordings that will be of interest to anyone who cares about contemporary African music.
REVIEWER:  Bill Lupoletti
RECOMMENDED TRACKS:     CD 1:   1   7     CD 2:  6   7   9   10


New & Recommended At WRIR
Absolute Belter | (various artists) | B-Music
African Pearls : Cote D'Ivoire -- West African Crossroads | (various artists) | Syllart/Discograph
African Pearls: Congo -- Pont Sur Le Congo | (various artists) | Syllart/Discograph
African Pearls: Senegal -- Echo Musical | (various artists) | Syllart/Discograph
Allen, Tony | Secret Agent | Nonesuch
Behilia, Oswin Chin | Liber | Otrabanda
Dagnon, Bako | Sidiba | Syllart/Discograph
Egypt Noir: Nubian Soul Treasures | (various artists) | Piranha
Etoile De Dakar Featuring Youssou N'Dour | Once Upon A Time In Senegal: The Birth Of Mbalax 1979-1981 | Sterns
Gogol Bordello | Trans-Continental Hustle | American
Grupo Fantasma | El Existential | Nat Geo Music
Happy Lucky Combo | Carnival Of Sound | self-released
Juma, Issa & Super Wanyika Stars | World Defeats The Grandfathers: Swinging Swahili Rumba 1982-1986 | Sterns
Koes Bersaudara | To The So-Called "The Guilties" | Sublime Frequencies
Le Pop 5 | (various artists) | Le Pop Muzik
Next Stop … Soweto, Volume 2 | (various artists) | Strut
Nigeria Special: Volume 2 | (various artists) | Soundway
Pomegranates: Persian Pop, Funk, Folk And Psych Of The 60s And 70's | (various artists) | B-Music
Santacruz, Rana | Chicavasco | self-released
Sierra Maestra | Sonando Ya | World Village


CMJ New World Top Ten
1 GOGOL BORDELLO | Trans-Continental Hustle | American
2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Next Stop Soweto Vol. 2 | Strut
3 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Absolute Belter | B-Music
4 KOES BERSAUDARA | To The So-Called "The Guilties" | Sublime Frequencies
5 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Pomegranates: Persian Pop, Funk, Folk, And Psych Of The 60s And 70s | B-Music
6 BALKAN BEAT BOX | Blue Eyed Black Boy | Nat Geo
7 ETOILE DE DAKAR FEATURING YOUSSOU N'DOUR | Once Upon A Time In Senegal: The Birth Of Mbalax 1979-1981 | Sterns
8 GRUPO FANTASMA | El Existential | Nat Geo Music
9 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Le Pop 5: Les Chansons De La Nouvelle Scene Francaise | Le Pop Muzik
10 VARIOUS ARTISTS | Egypt Noir: Nubian Soul Treasures | Piranha


CMJ New World Adds
1 GAMELAN MADU SARI | Hive | Songlines
2 VARIOUS ARTISTS | The Rough Guide To The Music Of India | World Music Network
3 PLAYING FOR CHANGE | Live | Concord
4 VARIOUS ARTISTS | The Rough Guide To Salsa Divas | World Music Network
5 WAITIKI 7 | New Sounds Of Exotica | Pass Out

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