Global A Go-Go Classico: From the campfire to the arena

Well, we had some technical difficulties with Global A Go-Go's February 27 episode.  As a result, WRIR listeners didn't get to hear that show's ending.  We're remedying the situation this week (Sunday March 20, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): I'm under the weather, so it's an ideal time to rebroadcast this program in its entirety.  Here's what I originally wrote about it:

 

Imarhan, a band from Tamanrasset, the Sahara Desert oasis city in southern Algeria, are masters of the warm, organic, luminous subtleties of the style of music called desert blues, tishoumaren, assouf or, even more simply among the Tamashek people, la guitare.  Their beautiful new album Aboogi is one of the best I've heard in the genre.

 

But the dynamic span of Toureg desert blues is as broad as that of any music today.  It ranges from the fireside intimacy of Imarhan all the way to the coliseum-scaled guitar rave-ups of six-string warriors like Mdou Moctar and Bombino.  This week Global A Go-Go presents a deep dive into desert blues, an hour that takes you from the campfire to the arena.

It's an all-African show this week, with new music from Malian songbirds Oumou Sangare and Rokia Koné, the sounds of the Mande balafon and a quick tour of Lusophone Africa on the bill as well.

Charts March 7-13, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 BUBE DAME KONIG | Von Der Quelle Bis Zur See | CPL

2 COCO LAGOS Y SUS ORATES | Descargas | Vampisoul

3 LOS BITCHOS | Let The Festivities Begin! | City Slang

4 FATOUMATA DIAWARA | Maliba | 3eme Bureau/Wagram

5 UC HUREL | 3 Hur-El | Turkofon

6 GOOD ONES, THE | "The Darkness Has Passed" [Single] | Six Degrees

7 AMARU TRIBE | "Candela Viva" [Single] | Vibrating Planet

8 OUMOU SANGARE | "Wassulu Don" [Single] | World Circuit

9 RICHIE SPICE | "Shootie Shootie" [Single] | Riddim Force

10 SATELLITES | "Yar Oi" [Single] | Batov

The darkness has passed

I've done a bunch of thematic programs in recent weeks: an all-Ghana show for that country's birthday last week, deep dives into desert blues, Nigerian highlife and Zimbabwean sungura, and a re-airing of my hour-long interview with Taj Weekes.

 

So this week (Sunday March 13, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site) is kind of a return to form: music from 17 different countries and seven different decades in two hours' time.

 

I'm featuring the new single from Rwanda's The Good Ones, and also new music from a band named Bube Dame König -- the first time I've ever played German folk-rock in this program's 18 year history.  Plus reggae songs about the po-po, descargas from Peru, Colombian vallenato via Australia and Turkish psych-rock made in Israel.  You know, your basic Global A Go-Go radio show.

Charts Feb 28 - Mar 6, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 AFRO-ZEN ALLSTARS | The Buzz And The Bells | AZA

2 AFRICA NEGRA | Antologia Vol. 1 | Bongo Joe

3 JEMBAA GROOVE | "Mokole" [Single] | Agogo

4 LUCIA DE CARVALHO | Pwanga - Light | Zamora

5 LESPRI KA: NEW DIRECTIONS IN GWOKA MUSIC FROM GUADELOUPE 1981-2010 | various artists | Time Capsule-Seance Centre

6 LEYLA MCCALLA | "Fort Dimanche" [Single] | Anti-

7 ESSIEBONS SPECIAL 1973-1984: GHANA MUSIC POWER HOUSE | various artists | Analog Africa

8 KOKOROKO | "Something's Going On" [Single] | Brownswood

9 BEAUTIFUL NUBIA AND THE ROOTS RENAISSANCE BAND | Huruhara | EniObanke

10 ELIA Y ELIZABETH | Elia Y Elizabeth | Vampisoul

Ghana, forward forever

On March 6th, 1957 the British colonies of Gold Coast, Ashanti, Northern Territories and Togoland officially became the independent Republic of Ghana, the first colony in sub-Saharan Africa to achieve sovereignty.

 

After a series of military coups in the 1960s, 70s and 80s, Ghana today has cast off authoritarianism in favor of one of the freest and most stable governments on the continent.  More to the point of this radio program, Ghana is the source of some of my favorite music on the planet.  From highlife and palm-wine to kologo and Afro-funk, there are just so many brilliant sounds that Ghana has sent out to the rest of the world.

 

So it's my pleasure this week on Global A Go-Go (Sunday March 6, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site) to celebrate with two hours of music from Ghana on that nation's 65th birthday.

Charts February 21-27, 2022

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WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 IMARHAN | Aboogi | City Slang

2 ETRAN DE L'AIR | Agadez | Sahel Sounds

3 AFRICA NEGRA | Antologia Vol. 1 | Bongo Joe

4 FRIENDLY FIRE BAND | Rastamantic Riddim [EP] | Friendly Fire

5 MARCOS | Saudade | Comets Coming

6 BURKINA AZZA | Wari Bo | Social Joy

7 RICHIE SPICE | "Shootie Shootie" [Single] | Riddim Force

8 ZAO | Kwiti Kwiti | Le Monde Des Artistes

9 BLACK-AM-I | "Jah In My Corner" [Single] | Ghetto Youths International

10 VIVA LA MUSICA DE PAPA WEMBA | La Voix Du Maitre: Hommage A Papa Wemba | self-released

From the campfire to the arena

Imarhan, a band from Tamanrasset, the Sahara Desert oasis city in southern Algeria, are masters of the warm, organic, luminous subtleties of the style of music called desert blues, tishoumaren, assouf or, even more simply among the Tamashek people, la guitare.  Their beautiful new album Aboogi is one of the best I've heard in the genre.

 

But the dynamic span of Toureg desert blues is as broad as that of any music today.  It ranges from the fireside intimacy of Imarhan all the way to the coliseum-scaled guitar rave-ups of six-string warriors like Mdou Moctar and Bombino.  This week Global A Go-Go presents a deep dive into desert blues, an hour that takes you from the campfire to the arena.

It's an all-African show this week (Sunday February 27, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site), with new music from Malian songbirds Oumou Sangare and Rokia Koné, the sounds of the Mande balafon and a quick tour of Lusophone Africa on the bill as well.

Charts February 14-20, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 ANO NOBO QUARTET, THE | The Strings Of Sao Domingos | Ostinato

2 AFRICA NEGRA | Antologia Vol. 1 | Bongo Joe

3 OLIVER NAYOKA | Club Series Chapter One | Odogwu/Palenque

4 LOS BITCHOS | Let The Festivities Begin! | City Slang

5 BURKINA AZZA | Wari Bo | Social Joy

6 BONGA | Kintal Da Banda | Lusafrica

7 OLIVER NAYOKA | Aja Wele-Wele | Odogwu/Palenque

8 FRIENDLY FIRE BAND | Rastamantic Riddim [EP] | Friendly Fire

9 LOS AUTENTICOS DECADENTES | "Jurabas Tu" feat. Los Palmeras [Single] | PopArt

10 BLACK-AM-I | "Jah In My Corner" [Single] | Ghetto Youths International

Music is my identity

We're taking a deep dive into the Igbo highlife sound of eastern Nigeria on this week's program.  The whole first hour will be devoted to this marvelous, mellifluous genre that combines the modern highlife music popular across Anglophone West Africa with Igbo traditional rhythms, also factoring in the influential guitar stylings from bordering Cameroon's makossa and the not-too-far-away Congo's soukous and successors.

 

Like the Zimbabwean sungura I played last week, Igbo highlife found a bit of a first-world audience during the 1980s world music boom.  Our ears have long since turned to newer novelties, but the category never went out of style at home.  Now guitarist Oliver Nayoka is reminding northern listeners of what they've forgotten with two fabulous new albums.  I'll play a track from each plus some classics from the 70s and 80s, including Africa's favorite song as chosen in 2004 by BBC's Network Africa listeners.

Also this week (Sunday February 20, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): songs Charlie Gillett taught me, some new roots reggae, and what the Super Bowl hip hop halftime show needed was some cumbia.

 

Oh, and here's a great read about one of Igbo highlife's superstars, the man behind the aforementioned "Africa's favorite song": narratively.com/his-biggest-hit-sold-more-copies-than-any-of-the-beatles-so-why-havent-you-heard-of-him

Charts February 7-13, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 GONORA SOUNDS | Hard Times Never Kill | The Vital Record/Dust-to-Digital

2 ABDULLAH IBRAHIM | Water From An Ancient Well | Yellowbird

3 MARCO FLORES Y LA JEREZ | "Ahora Es Cuando (feat Grupo Legitimo)" [Single] | Nacional

4 RENEE GOUST | "La Muchacha Alegre (feat Nancy Sanchez)" [Single] | self-released

5 AFRO-ZEN ALLSTARS | The Buzz And The Bells | AZA

6 OKI | Tonkori In The Moonlight (1996-2006) | Mais Um

7 LUCIDVOX | "Burn The Grief/Swarm" [Single] | Glitterbeat

8 VIVA LA MUSICA DE PAPA WEMBA | La Voix Du Maitre: Hommage A Papa Wemba | self-released

9 SMALL ISLAND BIG SONG | Our Island | self-released

10 EXTRA MUSICA NOUVEL HORIZON | Vision | Universal Africa

You're in it now

Blind guitarist-singer Daniel Gonora has been making his living performing on the streets of Harare, Zimbabwe since 2004.  His four year old son Isaac joined him on drums in 2008.  They call themselves Gonora Sounds and they play sungura, the quintessential popular sound of Zimbabwe that's based on traditional mbira (thumb piano) music adapted for the electric guitar.

 

Street videos of Daniel and Isaac have racked up more than 10 million views on the internet, and the family band was the subject of an award-winning 2017 documentary film You Can't Hide From The Truth.  They're released a number of limited edition CDs but now for the first time there's a full-length, full band Gonora Sounds studio album, Hard Times Never Kill.

It's a revelation.  1970s and 1980s Zimbabwean artists like Thomas Mapfumo, the Four Brothers and The Bhundu Boys were some of the first African musicians I ever heard, so hearing Gonora Sounds brings me back to some of my favorite, most memorable music of all time.  And I'll bring some of it for you this week on Global A Go-Go.

Also this week (Sunday February 13, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): a reissued masterpiece of South African jazz by Abdullah Ibrahim; new music by Small Island Big Song, who will be performing at the University of Richmond in March; high energy Russian folk-rock; and 21st century takes on Mexican tradition.

Charts Jan 31 - Feb 6, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 LOS BITCHOS |  Let The Festivities Begin! | City Slang

2 PHUONG TAM | Magical Nights: Saigon Surf, Twist & Soul 1964-1966 | Sublime Frequencies

3 OLIVER NAYOKA | Club Series Chapter One | Odogwu/Palenque

4 AYANE SHINO | Sakura | Sublime

5 BURKINA AZZA | Wari Bo | Social Joy

6 YOUSSOU N'DOUR | Mbalax | Universal Africa

7 ORCHESTRE TOUT PUISSANT MARCEL DUCHAMP | We're OK. But We're Lost Anyway | Bongo Joe

8 BOUBACAR BADIAN DIABATE | Mande Guitar: African Guitar Series, Volume 1 | Lion Songs

9 MDOU MOCTAR | Afrique Victime | Matador

10 MAJID SOULA | Chant Amazigh (Habibi Funk 017) | Habibi Funk

Global A Go-Go Classico: Taj Weekes interview

Welcome to an encore edition of Global A Go-Go.  Today's program was originally broadcast on October 10, 2021 during the Richmond Folk Festival.  It features an interview with reggae singer-songwriter Taj Weekes, who was in town performing at the Festival.

I've been doing this show for almost 18 years now, and I think Taj Weekes might be the most interesting person I've ever interviewed on Global A Go-Go.  We get into some pretty heavy topics, way beyond what I'd expect from the normal artist interview.  So tune in -- I think you'll enjoy this classico episode.

Also this week (Sunday February 6, 1:00-3:00 PM on WRIR, for two weeks afterwards on the wrir.org archive player, check your local listings for airing on other radio stations, and any old time at my podcast site): an all-Latin second hour with electronica, cumbia and chicha, including several releases that would end up on my Best of 2021 lists.

Charts January 24-30, 2022

WRIR's NACC World Top Ten

1 CHICHA POPULAR: LOVE AND SOCIAL POLITICAL SONGS FROM DISCOS HOROSCOPO 1977-1987 | various artists | Rebel Up

2 LOS BITCHOS | "Good To Go!" [Single] | City Slang

3 AFRO-ZEN ALLSTARS | The Buzz And The Bells | AZA

4 DIVANHANA | Zavrzlama | CPL

5 ANOUAR KADDOUR CHERIF | Djawla | Riverboat

6 COMBO CHIMBITA | Ire | Anti-

7 IBIBIO SOUND MACHINE | "All That You Want" [Single] | Merge

8 FACHADA | Mundos Secretos | Electric Cowbell

9 PAPE NZIENGUI | "Gho Mitsaba Na Voko" [Single] | Awesome Tapes From Africa

10 JUANITA EUKA | "Nalingi Mobali Te" [Single] | Strut

Discos Horoscopo

Chicha is the music of Peru's Great Migration -- the movement of indigenous people and other rural residents, some from the jungle and even more from the Andes, into the coastal cities starting in the 1960s.  And Discos Horoscopo (founder Juan Campos Muñoz is pictured above) recorded the soundtrack of that migration.

 

Horoscopo released hundreds of chicha records between 1977 and 1989.  The label was revived a few years ago; 38 of their titles are now available on Bandcamp, and Belgium's Rebel Up Records just issued Chicha Popular: Love & Social Political Songs From Discos Horoscopo 1977-1987.  So it's a perfect time for a tribute to Discos Horoscopo on Global A Go-Go as part of an all-Latin second hour this week.  For more background, check out this essay from Remezcla: remezcla.com/features/music/discos-horoscopo-relaunch

 

Also this week (Sunday January 30, 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): North African strings, Yugo-pop of the 20th and 21st centuries, funaná from Cabo Verde and points beyond, cumbia-adjacent rock en español and champeta's electronic sound.