Diaper story

Most of the artists who led Brazil's late 1960s Tropicalia movement went on to become national icons: Caetano Veloso, Gilberto Gil, Os Mutantes and Gal Costa for example.  And then there's Tom Ze.  As his peers' music won more and more commercial and critical acclaim, Ze's became more and more experimental and forgotten.

 

It took a non-Brazilian to bring Ze the attention he deserves: David Byrne made Ze the first solo artist (after Byrne himself) to be released on his then-new Luaka Bop label in 1990.  A new collection of Tom Ze's singles, special projects and other rarities; you'll hear an unforgettable track from it on this week's edition of Global A Go-Go.

Also this week (Monday December 7, 3:00-5:00 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): reggae goes country & western, left-of-center Colombian big band cumbia, new father-and-son singles by Femi and Made Kuti, a quick trip to Madagascar; and vintage dance music from the French Antilles.

Charts November 24-30, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 RICARDO LEMVO AND MAKINA LOCA | N'Dona Ponte | Mopiato

2 DANDANA | Free The System | Rebel Up

3 LOS SAICOS 69 | "El Mercenario/Un Poquito De Pena" [Single] | Munster

4 SONGHOY BLUES | Optimisme | Fat Possum

5 ANCIENT ASTRONAUTS | Kampala Fire [EP] | Switchstance

6 GINA CHAVEZ | La Que Manda [EP] | self-released

7 PROTOJE | In Search Of Lost Time | In.Digg.Nation Collective/Six Course/RCA

8 SETENTA | Materia Negra | Latin Big Note

9 MARCOS VALLE, ADRIAN YOUNGE AND ALI SHAHEED MUHAMMAD | Marcos Valle JID 003 | Jazz Is Dead

10 LADAMA | Oye Mujer | Six Degrees

Un poquito de pena

It's time for another installment in Global A Go-Go's "Get in the Garage" series focusing on garage-rock from around the world.  This time the focus is on Peru, which had a massive rock 'n' roll scene kick-started by a band that anticipated punk-rock a decade ahead of the name, Los Saicos (pictured above) and pushed into overdrive by a military junta that declared war on rock music in 1968.  Sometimes you gotta have something to rebel against ....

Also this week (Monday November 30, 3:00-5:00 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): a classic long jam from Senegal's Orchestra Baobab, the psychedelic sounds of West Africa, Fat Freddy's Drop meets Tony Allen, another installment in "Salsa African Style" and scorching desert blues from the Sahel.

Charts November 17-23, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 MAWULI DECKER | "Lololi-Lomko" [Single] | Matasuna

2 KOKOROKO | "Baba Ayoola" [Single] | Brownswood

3 BOUNALY | Music From Saharan WhatsApp 10 [EP] | Sahel Sound

4 ABELARDO CARBOBO Y SU CONJUNTO | Guana Tangula | Vampisoul

5 BOSQ | Y Su Descarga Internacional | Bacalao

6 MODOU TOURE | Touki | ARC

7 MONKEY MARC | Vital Sound | Digikillaz/DubShot

8 LEYLA MCCALLA | Vari-Colored Songs: A Tribute To Langston Hughes | Smithsonian Folkways

9 JUANA MOLINA | ANRMAL (Live In Mexico) | Crammed

10 SONGHOY BLUES | Optimisme | Fat Possum

Celestial blues

Kokoroko is a young octet from London fronted by three female horn players; their music bridges Afrobeat, highlife and modern jazz.  They've released an EP and a couple of singles so far, and I expect more good things from them in the future.

Kokoroko's brand new single "Baba Ayoola" is a tribute to saxophonist Cassie Kinoshi's grandfather.  It's an ideal introduction to their sound and you'll be hearing it on this week's episode of Global A Go-Go.

Also this week (Monday November 23, 3:00-5:00 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): acoustic music of the Sahel, old-fashioned Afropop is sounding good to me right now, three 5-star albums of South African jazz, modern highlife from Ghana and the roots of Colombian champeta, where cumbia meets Afrobeat.

Charts November 10-16, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 BROOKLYN RAGA MASSIVE | In D | self-released

2 GYPTIAN | "Warm & Easy" [Single] | VP

3 ALFREDO LINARES | Lo Que Tengo | Vampisoul

4 BOSQ | Y Su Descarga Internacional | Bacalao

5 VUSI MAHLASELA | Shebeen Queen | ATO

6 LOS MOCOSOS | All Grown Up | Hip Spanic

7 MISTA SAVONA PRESENTS HAVANA MEETS KINGSTON | "Beat Con Flow (feat Cimafunk)" [Single] | Cumbancha-Baco

8 SONGHOY BLUES | Optimisme | Fat Possum

9 JUANA MOLINA | ANRMAL (Live In Mexico) | Crammed

10 LUCAS NWANANGA AND HIS BAND | Back To Soweto | Umsakazo

Back to Soweto

Lucas Nwananga can't go back to Soweto -- he's from Yorkshire.  He grew up collecting rare recordings of South African township jive and mbaqanga, then he taught himself to play all the instruments on those records by ear.  "His Band" is just Lucas playing guitars, bass, brushed snare drum and melodica, recreating the sonics of 1960s South Africa in his home during the lockdown.

 

Back To Soweto is one of the most joyful albums I've heard in 2020.  Tune in to Global A Go-Go this week and hear a selection from it for yourself, alongside some of the vintage jive that inspired it.

 

Also this week (Monday November 16, 3:00-5:00 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): Brooklyn Raga Massive's Terry Riley-inspired In D, North African rock 'n' roll, lovers rock - the romantic side of reggae, some tuneful Latin soul and salsa dura para los bailadores y los oyentes.

Charts November 3-9, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 BOSQ | Y Su Descarga Internacional | Bacalao

2 JUANA MOLINA | ANRMAL (Live In Mexico) | Crammed

3 KELEKETLA | Keleketla! | Ahead Of Our Time

4 ZEDASHE | Silver Sanctuary | Electric Cowbell

5 RICARDO LEMVO AND MAKINA LOCA | N'Dona Ponte | Mopiato

6 COLOR DE TROPICO | various artists | El Palmas

7 NAHAWA DOUMBIA | Kanawa | Awesome Tapes From Africa

8 QWANQWA | Volume 3 | Wuzzawazzee Industries

9 MINYO CRUSADERS AND FRENTE CUMBIERO | From Tokyo To Bogota [EP] | Mais Um

10 ACID COCO | Mucho Gusto | El Palmas

Rebellion manifesto

Gaye Su Akyol is a rock star in Turkey -- and the rest of the world is starting to pay attention as well.  She's an outspoken advocate for the rights of women and queer people, but her lyrics are just ambiguous enough to keep her safe from Ergodan's censors and enforcers.  At least so far.

Musically, she and a whole generation of young artists are reviving Anatolian rock, Turkey's home-grown psychedelic sound of the 1970s.  Akyol has a new single and it's her most forthright statement to date, both musically and politically.  Tune in this week and hear "Isyan Manifestosu" (Rebellion Manifesto) on Global A Go-Go.

Also this week (Monday November 9, 3:00-5:00 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): wild singing from three sides of the Black Sea, Ethiopian sounds, Latin remixes made for the dance floor, new music from Mali's Nahawa Doumbia and a question: how fast can you dance?

Charts Oct 27 - Nov 2, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 LA LOCURA DE MACHUCA 1975-1980 | various artists | Analog Africa

2 KELEKETLA | Keleketla! | Ahead Of Our Time

3 MADE KUTI | "Free Your Mind" [Single] | Partisan

4 WARSAW AFROBEAT ORCHETRA | Antibody | Peace & Rhythm

5 BUDOS BAND, THE | Long In The Tooth | Daptone

6 MODESTE HUGUES AND KILEMA | Ala Maintso - Green World | ARC

7 RICARDO LEMVO AND MAKINA LOCA | N'Dona Ponte | Mopiato

8 MUKAMBO PRESENTS GLOBAL AFROBEAT MOVEMENT | various artists | NYP

9 NATION BEAT | The Royal Chase | self-released

10 GARMARNA | Forbundet | Season Of Mist

Budos rising

The Budos Band has been a Global A Go-Go staple from the beginning -- their first album came out in 2005, the same year WRIR went on the air.  Their new album, Long In The Tooth, is a return to their original sound, their best in 10 years.  Hear for yourself as I play a track from the new album along with ones from their first four releases.

 

Also this week (Monday November 2, 3:00-5:00 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): European folk-rock appropriate for the spoopy season, four from Madagascar, Colombia's crazy pre-champeta sounds, Afrobeat from behind the former Iron Curtain, and Made Kuti's debut plus what his father and grandfather sounded like at the same age.

Charts October 13-26, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 BUDOS BAND, THE | Long In The Tooth | Daptone

2 MADE KUTI | "Free Your Mind" [Single] | Partisan

3 LA LOCURA DE MACHUCA 1975-1980 | various artists | Analog Africa

4 BAB L'BLUZ | Nayda! | Real World

5 RICARDO LEMVO AND MAKINA LOCA | N'Dona Ponte | Mopiato

6 NAHAWA DOUMBIA | Kanawa | Awesome Tapes From Africa

7 ALHOUSSEINI ANIVOLLA AND GIRUM MEZMUR | Afropentatonism | Piranha

8 JUANA MOLINA | ANRMAL (Live In Mexico) | Crammed

9 SONGHOY BLUES | Optimisme | Fat Possum

10 LINGO SEINI ET SON GROUPE | Musique Hauka | Sahel Sounds

WRIR's fall 2020 fund drive

WRIR's Fall 2020 Fund Drive is currently underway -- we're working to raise $40,000 by Wednesday October 28 to make sure Richmond's  "sound of surprise" continues to inform, inspire, delight and surprise you for a second 16 years (our first broadcast day was January 1, 2005 so we'll be turning 16 soon) and more beyond that.

 

Thank you for your previous donations to Richmond Independent Radio; I'm writing to encourage you to contribute once again this fall, if you can.  You can make that donation in less than two minutes by clicking this link: wrir.org/donating.

Global A Go-Go Classic: Tony Allen

I'm on vacation this week, so I'm presenting a rebroadcast of the program that was originally aired on WRIR on June 1, 2020.  It's a tribute to the great Nigerian drummer Tony Allen, who passed away on April 30.  He's one of my favorite musicians of all time in any genre: a drummer whose effortlessly cool style both defined and transcended Afrobeat, the genre of music he essentially co-invented alongside Fela Kuti.

 

On this week's program (Monday October 19, 3:00-5:00 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) you'll hear two hours of Tony Allen's drumming from all seven decades of his career. We'll range from his early days with Fela in the Koola Lobitos and the legendary Afrika 70, to his solo career, his electronica experiments, his many collaborations and the new album he released in March with Hugh Masakela.

Charts October 6-12, 2020

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 MUKAMBO PRESENTS GLOBAL AFROBEAT MOVEMENT | various artists | NYP

2 RICARDO LEMVO AND MAKINA LOCA | N'Dona Ponte | Mopiato

3 LEYLA MCCALLA | "Mesi Bondye" [Single] | Smithsonian Folkways

4 HIP HOP HOODIOS | "Mexican Miller (The Stephen Miller Song)" [Single] | self-released

5 CLINT EASTWOOD AND GENERAL SAINT | "Stop That Train/Talk About Run" [Single] | Greensleeves

6 LOS MOCOSOS | All Grown Up | Hip Spanic

7 ANDAL SUKABE | Music From Saharan WhatsApp 07 [EP] | Sahel Sounds

8 NOBLEZZA | "Coletera" [Single] | Codiscos

9 JUAN PINA CON LA REVELACION | Juan Pina Con La Revelacion | Vampisoul

10 BUDOS BAND, THE | Long In The Tooth | Daptone