GLOBAL A GO-GO: November 2010

November 28, 2010

Charts November 28, 2010

November 25, 2010

The Other Black Music November 28, 2010

My WRIR colleague DJ Graybeard asked me to fill in for him this week (Sunday 3-5 PM), and I'll do my best to fill his extra-large shoes with two hours of great black music -- maybe not ancient to the future, but at least from 1960 to today.

You'll hear from all kinds of folks: Arthur Lee & Love, Ronald Shannon Jackson & The Decoding Society, Howlin' Wolf, Andy Palacio, Ishmael Reed, Soul Messengers (pictured above, a band of Black Hebrew Israelites from Chicago via Liberia), Alton Ellis, Etta James, and many more.

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/47464

Program November 26, 2010

Bellowhead (pictured above) is probably the most exciting and imaginative band working in English folk music today, bringing the dynamics of a jazz big band and the theatricality of the music hall to traditional songs. You'll hear a song from their new album Hedonism on this week's program, and you'll hear from a few like-minded British artists as well.

Other things to look forward to: some surprising Latin-style covers of Anglo pop and rock hits, an Argentine singer-songwriter's riff on Congotronics, a band from Marseille plays samba, a steel drum band takes on Fela Kuti, and more unexpected pleasures.

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/47421

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go

Charts November 21, 2010

November 20, 2010

Tradi-Mods Vs. Rockers: Alternative Takes On Congotronics

ARTIST: various artists

TITLE: Tradi-Mods Vs. Rockers: Alternative Takes On Congotronics

LABEL: Crammed Discs

REVIEW: Very little of the world music I review ever seems to penetrate the hipster cordon sanitaire of the indie-rock subculture. But for some reason, the Congotronics sound of bands like Konono No. 1 and Kasai Allstars has been nearly universally embraced by the beard-wearing community in the USA and Europe. Crammed Discs has taken advantage of that fact by asking 26 indie artists to record homages to Congotronics. While most of the artists here are really recording homages to themselves and the good taste they demonstrate by digging Congotronics, a few go above and beyond in creating delightfully unexpected musical collisions. Juana Molina (disc 1 - track 9) grafts one of her older songs onto Kasai’s “Wa Muluendo” and somehow ends up with something like neo-tropicalia, sounding like a previously unheard Gal Costa recording. Jherel Bischoff (1-7) transcribes Konono’s “Kule Kule” for orchestral instruments, an idea that’s so wrong it’s absolutely right. Hoquets (2-2) built all their own instruments out of salvaged materials after seeing the Congotronics bands; they attack those instruments with a punk-rock gusto they share with the bands that inspired them. As for the brand-name indie artists, all of them sound more or less like themselves; only Deerhoof (1-1)’s subversively clunky take on “Wu Muluendo” really adds anything noteworthy to the proceedings.

REVIEWER: Bill Lupoletti

RECOMMENDED TRACKS:

Disc 1: 1 7 9 Disc 2: 2

November 17, 2010

Program November 19, 2010

Amparo Sanchez (pictured above) has one of the great voices in contemporary music -- it's powerful, dramatic and immediately recognizable. After ten years with her wild mestizo-rock band Amparanoia, her debut solo album was released in Europe earlier this year. I'll spend a half-hour of this week's program on her music as a solo artist, in Amparanoia and as a collaborator with Calexico and The Pinker Tones.

And plenty of new music this week: the new single from Richmond's salsa machine, Bio Ritmo; the fabulous just-released Tabu Ley retrospective from Sterns Africa Records in a set of Congolese classics; and new urban African dance music from Eritrea and South Africa.

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/47250

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go

Charts November 14, 2010

Tabu Ley Rochereau | The Voice Of Lightness, Volume 2

ARTIST: Tabu Ley Rochereau

TITLE: The Voice Of Lightness, Volume 2

LABEL: Sterns

REVIEW: Ken Braun of Sterns has come through with another superbly curated overview of one of the Congo’s greatest stars. Tabu Ley was second in popularity only to Franco through the years covered in the compilation, 1977 to 1993; his gentle voice and his band’s urgent arrangements, featuring some of the best guitar playing you’ll hear in your lifetime, produced hit after hit and made Ley one of the first African musicians to crack the European and American markets. This set features a choice selection of songs, with one of the highlights being two Tabu Ley-Franco collaborations (disc 2, tracks 1 & 2; kind of like a Beatles-Stones joint session). Importantly, the restoration and mastering is first-rate, so even Congolese music fans who own these recordings will want this set so they can retire their scratchy, overplayed vinyl. As always with Sterns, the notes (in English and French) and vintage photos really complete the package. An A+ all the way.

REVIEWER: Bill Lupoletti

RECOMMENDED TRACKS:

Disc 1: 3 4 8 Disc 2: 1 2 6 7

AfroCubism | AfroCubism

ARTIST: AfroCubism

TITLE: AfroCubism

LABEL: World Circuit/Nonesuch

REVIEW: This is the record World Circuit’s Nick Gold intended to make 14 years ago in Havana, a jam session with some of Mali’s and Cuba’s finest musicians. But the Malians didn’t show up, last-minute replacements gathered and recorded The Buena Vista Social Club, and the rest, as they say, is history. Now they finally get to make that record, and it’s definitely worth the effort and the wait. For me, the highlights here are the Malian songs (especially tracks 6, 9 and 11) – Eliades Ochoa and the other Cuban players add a certain urgency and earthiness to the Malians’ stately, serene approach. Guitarist Djelimady Tounkara shines throughout – he’s simply one of the world’s greatest improvising musicians, and every single one of his solos and riffs here is a pleasure and a surprise. Lassana Diabate, the least famous of the Malians, is outstanding on balafon (wooden xylophone); he’s greatly aided by Jerry Boys’ recording, which fully captures the room’s presence. A pleasure from start to finish.

REVIEWER: Bill Lupoletti
RECOMMENDED TRACKS: 2 6 9 11

November 11, 2010

Program November 12, 2010

Here's a big Global A Go-Go thank you to the 428 donors who put $31,100 into the collection box during WRIR's Fall '10 Fund Drive, money that we'll use to bring you more great radio over the next six months. You donors are the folks who make this uniquely ambitious community radio project possible, and yes Fall '10 is now our most successful fund drive yet. If donating somehow slipped your mind, it's not too late to click here and get one of our cool Fall '10 premium packages for your trouble:

https://wrir.wufoo.com/forms/2010-form

And here's an extra shout-out to the 50 folks who cited Global A Go-Go as one of their favorite programs on WRIR. Today's program is dedicated to you, and I aim to keep you on your feet for the entire two hours because this is going to be one of my hottest programs of the year. You'll hear:

Brand-new releases from Chico Mann and Fat Freddys Drop (the latter recorded live),
A West Africa-meets-Cuba set featuring the long-awaited AfroCubism session with Djelimady Tounkara, Toumani Diabate, Bassekou Kouyate and Eliades Ochoa, and
Some amazing garage and psychedelic rock recordings from Africa, including recently reissued tracks by The Psychedelic Aliens (pictured above), Witch and Tirogo

And in honor of Dirty Dacoit Dan, whose punk-rock program Salad Days moves to WRIR's Friday 7-9 PM slot (immediately following Global A Go-Go) starting this week, we'll end the program with some Mexipunk and gypsy punk.

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/47076

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go

Charts November 7, 2010

November 5, 2010

Program November 5, 2010

This is a special Fall '10 Fund Drive message from Dr. Evil. My good friend Bill (The Diet Coke of Evil) Lupoletti tells me that the drive ends on Sunday at 3 PM, so it's really frickin' important that you make your donation soon by calling (804) 622-9747, or by donating online here:

https://wrir.wufoo.com/forms/2010-form

Bill also told me that WRIR is getting great fundraising results when its volunteers offer to shave something. Dustin Richardson had his head shaved on Monday night when his $14,000 goal was met, and both Michael Miracle and Mike Rutz offered to shave something (anything?) on Tuesday night.

Now Dr. Evil has a special challenge for you -- if WRIR can raise ONE MILLION DOLLARS, I will shave Mr. Bigglesworth. C'mon, throw me a frickin' bone here!

You probably didn't know that Dr. Evil is a big reggae fan. Bill knows, and that's why he invited Unity Sound, one of Richmond's finest reggae bands, to play live on Global A Go-Go tonight. It's going to be a big party, so if you're in Richmond why not make your donation in person at 1621-B W. Broad Street between 5 and 7 PM, have dinner on us (food is from Kuba Kuba because Dr. Evil loves paella almost as much as Hot Pockets), and see a great band play in WRIR's Live Room?

Click "Read More" for today's tracklist; click here for a podcast of today's program:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/program/46899

The complete catalog of Global A Go-Go podcasts is here:

http://www.radio4all.net/index.php/series/Global+A+Go-Go

GLOBAL A GO-GO